It is a question we often get - why can't I make _____ when you can buy it in the store? And the answer is basically that commercial processors have access to a great deal of specialized equipment that home canners don't have. Huge powerful vacuum sealers are one of them and that is how the commercial jars are sealed. Irradiation equipment is another along with powerful autoclaves. high pressure canners, etc. But even then you'll note that the cold type unprocessed pickles are kept refrigerated all along (sold in the fridge section) and have a much earlier expiration date than those sold out on the shelves that were processed. Basically there is 3 ways to make pickles: quick-pack heat processed, fermented, and refrigerated. The link to NCHFP I put in your other post explains each in detail and the limits and hazards associated with each. Hope this helps. Dave

I bought a frig as your described. It is a french door Whirlpool. when the power goes out, the ice in the door will melt and it seems the water has no place to go but out onto the floor. I too am trying to decide whether to return and what brands are better designed. Did you buy this type?

We replaced our side by side refrigerator (old GE, replaced with Whirlpool) with another side by side, and am not pleased with it. Mainly because the doors do not open as wide as the old one. The ice maker in the freezer works good but when the automatic defrost takes place, the cubes melt a little and sort of clump up in the bottom of the bin. They are fed out through the door, and that is good. Our refrigerator is not a cabinet depth so maybe one of those would be different. Oh, ours is white.

If that were my mistake, I'd pull the whole surround, add extra 3/4" pieces to the back edges (enough to move the cabinets far enough forward to cover the fridge sides), prime and paint to match, then re-install. You would have a barely noticeable seam 2"-3" from the wall, between the counter and upper cabinet, but wouldn't need to rebuild the whole structure. Add 2x4 ledgers to the studs to affix the upper cabinet.