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Hello, could you please give me some advice on what affordable solutions I could use to protect my fridge from the heat coming from the oven? The fridge is next to the stove. There is a bit of space between them - there is a 20 cm so 8 inches of aire gap space between them. You can see picture attached. I have no where else to move the fridge to. It is a new fridge so don’t want it to be damaged by the oven.
I’m also renting so can’t build a cabinet can’t do anything to the walls.
Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community @eliariana. It's amazing to have you join us, and many thanks for your question about heat protection.
A 20 cm air gap between the stove and fridge is generally sufficient to prevent heat from the oven from affecting the fridge. Air gaps are actually one of the most effective ways to dissipate heat, and at that distance, any radiant or conductive heat reaching the fridge should be minimal. A simple way to check is to run your oven on a typical cooking temperature and see if the side of the fridge gets noticeably warm. Try placing your hand against it for 30 seconds. If it doesn’t get uncomfortably hot, there’s likely no risk.
If you do want extra protection, a heat shield like a cut-to-size fibre cement board or even a thin sheet of reflective aluminium placed between the oven and fridge can help reduce any radiant heat. Since you’re renting and can’t attach anything to the walls, just leaning it carefully in place or using it as a free-standing barrier would work. In most cases, though, with your current spacing, the fridge should be safe without any additional measures.
Please let me know if you have any questions.
Mitchell
