When planning the design of your new home - or even if you are simply doing a remodel - refrigerators are a primary concern for planning a workable, efficient kitchen. And while every kitchen has a refrigerator, not every fridge is created equal. As we are designing kitchens for our homeowners, we find that most people prefer to have the front of the refrigerator flush with the adjacent cabinets. That tends to look the best and really gives you that feeling of a custom-designed home.
In almost every case, your kitchen base cabinets will be 24” deep, with upper cabinets at 12”. That’s been a long-held industry standard. However, what most people don’t realize is that there are two different ‘standard’ depths for refrigerators.
‘Standard’ depth refrigerators are usually about 30” deep by 36” wide. This size offers the best value in terms of cost versus storage capacity. This size is what the refrigerator industry has been manufacturing for decades. But, this depth causes them to stick out past the cabinets by about 6 inches – and that is a look that no one prefers.
A ‘counter depth’ refrigerator is one way to get that flush look. Counter depth fridges are only 24” deep (matching the depth of the cabinets). To overcome that smaller capacity, manufacturers typically make them wider. Their sizes are typically 42”, 48” or 60” wide. Counter depth fridges tend to cost more than standard depth fridges, usually with smaller overall capacity for the money.
However, with a little savvy planning, you can get the value and size of a standard size fridge without paying more for the counter depth size, if space allows. With a smart floorplan, you can plan the walls to step back behind the cabinets, creating a deeper pocket for a standard fridge, while keeping your cabinets at a standard depth.
That pushes the 30” fridge back an additional 6” to make it appear flush the adjacent countertops. It’s smart design that looks great and saves you money, while giving you the most storage space. Who doesn’t like that?
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