Refrigerator drain funnel

Apparatus adapted for twist-locking in place between a notched aperture in the liner and a hole in the outer casing of a refrigerator before foaming-in-place and subsequently providing a passageway for defrost water to drain through the insulation space between the liner and the outer casing, said apparatus comprising:

• a rigid plastic conduit having an upper portion, a central portion having a downwardly-facing shoulder, and a lower portion;
• said central portion having at least one ear adapted for inserting through a notch of said notched aperture and twist-locking said conduit to said liner after rotation underneath peripheral portions of said aperture;
• and
• a gasket surrounding said lower portion of said conduit and seated against said shoulder wherein, after twist-locking said conduit in place, said gasket is compressed between said shoulder and peripheral portions of said hole thereby providing a seal between said conduit and said outer casing to prevent injected foam from leaking therebetween.

The method of fabricating a refrigerator cabinet, comprising the steps of:

• providing an outer casing having a hole;
• providing an inner liner having an aperture;
• positioning said liner in spaced relationship within said outer casing with said aperture approximately aligned with said hole in said outer casing;
• inserting a rigid plastic conduit spanning between said aperture in said liner and said hole in said outer casing;
• twist-locking said conduit in place with respective ends of said conduit sealing to said liner and said casing;
• and
• injecting foam insulation under pressure into the space between said liner and said outer casing.

The method of manufacturing a refrigerator cabinet, comprising the steps of:

• providing an outer casing having a hole;
• providing an inner liner having an aperture with at least one twist-lock notch;
• providing a rigid plastic conduit having an upper portion, a central portion, and a lower portion, said central portion having a downwardly facing shoulder and at least one twist-lock ear;
• positioning an annular gasket around said lower portion of said conduit;
• positioning said inner liner in spaced relationship within said outer casing with said aperture approximately aligning with said hole in said outer casing;
• inserting said rigid plastic conduit through said aperture so that said twist-lock ear passes through said twist-lock notch and said lower portion extends through said hole, said gasket being compressed between said shoulder and said outer casing;
• twisting said conduit so that said ear rotates away from said notch and engages peripheral portions of said aperture thereby twist-locking said conduit to said liner;
• and
• injecting foam insulation into the space between said liner and said outer casing.