Counter depth refrigerators, options.

amother

Fri, Feb 06 2015, 9:24 am

I just spoke to someone at Town Appliances who told me that most people who don't have medium or large families and have insisted on counter depth fridges have been very unhappy because of less space in the fridge. One customer took a 50% loss and gave her fridge back to get a regular one.

He told me that people redoing kitchens try to open the wall behind the fridge to get an additional 4 or so inches and get a regular fridge and it looks like counter depth. I had a contractor here yesterday who told me he'd only know for sure that he can do that when the present kitchen is ripped out and hed pull off the sheetrock. Has anyone else done this?

I'm not spending a fortune on a Subzero. What would you do?

Ive seen one kitchen where the all the cabinets on the refrigerator side were custom ordered deeper so the refrigerator doesn't stick out. The fact that that side of the kitchen was deeper was noticeable and a little strange.

Any opinions?

Rubber Ducky

Fri, Feb 06 2015, 9:31 am

I agree with Town Appliance, and I do space planning and kitchen design professionally. In our own home we cut out the wall behind our fridge to get an extra 3 inches for our standard depth refrigerator. If you have a lot of space, another good option is to put 2 average size fridges next to each other or an all-fridge & an all-freezer in your kitchen. Lots of possibilities here including a few that look built in.

Last edited by Rubber Ducky on Fri, Feb 06 2015, 9:37 am; edited 1 time in total

amother

Fri, Feb 06 2015, 9:36 am

Rubber Ducky wrote:

I agree with town Appliance, and I do space planning and kitchen design professionally. In our own home we cut out the wall behind our fridge to get an extra 3 inches for our standard depth refrigerator. If you have a lot of space, another good option is to put 2 average size fridges or an all-fridge & an all-freezer in your kitchen. Lots of possibilities here including a few that look built in.

Thanks, my kitchen isnt that big so I cant do all fridge/freezer. So weird that theres a few inches of wasted space behind the sheetrock...in some cases.

Rubber Ducky

Fri, Feb 06 2015, 9:39 am

You can often do it if the refrigerator is on an interior wall. The space isn't really wasted because electrical and plumbing wires and pipes have to go somewhere.

rh1211

Fri, Feb 06 2015, 9:53 am

We moved into a house that only had a space for a counter depth fridge (we were not redoing the kitchen -- in our old house, we had a regular size fridge that stuck out and the look really didnt bother me much, FYI to consider). We bought a new counter depth fridge that had the maximum possible space and we have an extra old fridge/freezer nearby in our garage that we use for overflow. However, we only have little kids so time will tell iyH how annoying the counter depth REALLY is...

amother

Fri, Feb 06 2015, 10:11 am

Rubber Ducky wrote:

You can often do it if the refrigerator is on an interior wall. The space isn't really wasted because electrical and plumbing wires and pipes have to go somewhere.

In my case theres no plumbing on that wall, but what will they do with the wires (theres an outlet behind the fridge, so theres definitely electric wires running behind the fridge)?

sky

Fri, Feb 06 2015, 10:14 am

there can also be beams running through interior walls that can't be touched. or water pipes or duct work or electric wires or gas pipes going to a second floor,
Most be guessed, but its hard to know exactly until the wall is opened.

saw50st8

Fri, Feb 06 2015, 10:34 am

We remodeled and put in a counter depth fridge. I really don't like the space available.

We do have an extra fridge in the basement that we use quite a bit.

If you do go with a counter depth, make sure to get a bottom freezer, not a side by side. I wanted a side by side (I like them better), but counter depth side by sides are pretty terrible.

Also, if you have a spare freezer somewhere else, put in an all fridge and get an icemaker for your kitchen.

Rubber Ducky

Fri, Feb 06 2015, 10:36 am

amother wrote:

In my case theres no plumbing on that wall, but what will they do with the wires (theres an outlet behind the fridge, so theres definitely electric wires running behind the fridge)?

Wires can rerouted: either in the wall behind and above the fridge, or in the basement joist area below the floor. The outlet can placed in the floor or set into the bottom of an adjacent cabinet.

If the wall is loadbearing, a ledger can be put in place to carry the load where the studs have been removed — really not that big a deal. If there are plumbing/gas pipes, ductwork, or a structural post behind the fridge, it's possible to move them but it can get expen$$$ive.

If you have an unfinished basement you may be able to see where the pipes and ductwork are positioned. Also take a look at whatever is on the other side of the wall, and above it if your home has a second story; e.g., a closet is less likely to hold plumbing pipes than a bathroom.