Thanks, Werner. Having spent some time aboard Rhapsody, I consider that to be a real compliment.
As I was pulling out the boxes to get dimensions for you, a thought occurred to me that could improve upon the design. I made a handle out of teak and nylon line that makes it even easier to pull them out. It's probably now easier to access things in my icebox than from my refrigerator, back when I had a real home (and a real life).
Most projects tend to require many times more effort that the benefit would warrant. In this case, I would say that the benefit outweighs the effort ten-fold. It might be worthwhile to start a new topic: "Small projects, with BIG rewards" just for simple ideas that work.
The dimensions of the teak strips are not critical other than the length must fit within the shelf steps of the reefer box, and the plastic boxes need to fit snugly enough within the frames that they can't slip through. This is one of the many projects I've done using some of the teak flooring strips that came from Michael & Susan Beilan's W43, "Infini", when they ripped out the floor to replace tanks. Boy, did that teak come in handy for a lot of things, after I resurfaced it on my planer! Thanks again Michael & Susan!
I used Sterilite boxes which turned out to be a perfect fit for mine. Sterilite's product line is constantly changing and their product quality has improved over the years. The boxes I used were the
Sterilite #1961 (small clip box) and the
Sterilite #1962 (medium clip box). They are available at Walmart, Target and lots of other places.
Jack
Update Dec 9, 2015 (done long ago... just now updated the post):
I found that the string handle, though effective, always seemed to get in the way. So I replaced it with a brass bail that slides into the holes, out of the way. I made the bail out of a heavy piece of brass rod, sliding it through a hollow fiberglass tube before bending it, to make it more comfortable to lift and to assure it didn't lose its shape.
Then I added one of the old plexiglass shelves back onto the top ledge, over the freezer and put in two storage boxed that slide into place, all the way out to the hull. Because these shelves are higher and reach out to the outer edges, they tend not to be as cold as the lower refrigerated section. So I use these for things that need to be cool but not necessarily cold... veggies, cheeses, preserved meats, etc. (I even keep my spare pole spear bands in the back, as it greatly prolongs their life.)
This photo shows the inner top box in its normal position...
This one shows the inner top box slid out for access. If you lift it out, the other one is easily accessible by reaching in and grabbing it.
