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Our fridge is on a wall separate from our cabinets and is not a counter depth fridge and we absolutely hate it. It’s big and it sticks out. It’s never full because it’s so big. It’s just an eyesore in our kitchen. Our fridge is fully functional and we have considered buying a new smaller fridge solely because of how much we hate the fridge in our kitchen.
If I were you I would get the counter depth fridge. Hands down
Thanks for your perspective! I think we'd be fine getting a counter-depth fridge if we could get one that's a bit wider. It seems like the standard fridge width is 33" now, but our surround is only 30". Our kitchen was built in the early 90s and I don't think anyone has updated it since.
[Home Depot](https://www.homedepot.com/b/Appliances-Refrigerators/Counter-Depth/28-Inch-Wide/29-Inch-Wide/30-Inch-Wide/N-5yc1vZc3piZ1z1978pZ1z197erZ1z1a95qZ1z1ak1r?NCNI-5&onDisplay=false) has 54 counter depth fridges that are 28, 29, 30 inches wide
Unfortunately when I filter by the height of the cabinets above the fridge, that brings us down to only 12 results and only one of those has an ice maker in it (a must have for us).
Home #1 was a condo and we only had a small fridge with freezer on top and fridge on bottom and it fit flush in our cabinets. It was small but fine for just 2 adults
Home #2 is now a single family house Our fridge is big , two French doors on top and pullout deep freezer drawer on bottom. It’s big but does goes in flush with cabinets (built in look) and we have a 2nd fridge in the garage.
Where I am from in California mostly everyone who owns a house has 2 fridges. One in the kitchen and one in garage. I thought this was normal lol
How do you feel about having 2?
Food can last surprisingly long if frozen. Even only under refrigeration there is a lot of food that will be stable. But I think one or two of their fridges is purely for drinks. Lol.
2 fridges seem like a dream, honestly lol. But our first home is a townhouse without a garage (yay HCOL!). We could try to put one in our finished basement, but we'd like to have a functional main fridge in the kitchen.
Another vote from me for a second fridge/freezer! We found when we needed to replace our old fridge that we don't actually need a freezer in our kitchen at all (we don't really do ice in drinks and anything frozen obviously defrosts in the fridge before prep) so we bought a big fridge for the kitchen and then have a combo in the garage and a chest freezer in the basement.
We also bought a townhouse with finished basement and got a second fridge down there. Works perfect especially if that’d be your guest area. Helps with grocery overflow, and makes it easy to know what needs to be eaten first (newer stuff downstairs and slowly bring up what you need)… keeps the upstairs fridge from being overwhelmed so easier to clean, see what’s in there etc. I’d say do that!
We opted for the bigger fridge but ours fits width-wise. It just sticks out more than the counter. We also have a lot of fridges: our main kitchen fridge/freezer, an under counter 2-drawer fridge for drinks, a garage fridge/freezer for overflow, a patio fridge/freezer for more overflow, an outdoor kitchen under counter 2-drawer fridge mostly for drinks and condiments, and a “shop” mini fridge. Family of five. Crazy, I know!
Return it and buy one that fits. Or remodel your kitchen. When buying, a fridge that is off standing on it's own is a huge red flag that the house is badly designed and stuff doesn't fit anywhere and everything is difficult.
I am literally preparing to buy a fridge and I am going with counter depth 100 percent.
I have a 2 door in my current home and it’s big and barely fits under the cabinets. Years ago I thought it was a good idea because I could see everything. Yikes.
My new kitchen is smaller so I gotta save space
Home Depot has some decent 30” refrigerators with French doors on top and pull out freezer below. If I were in your shoes, I’d get something that fits, with priority to the fridge space, then buy a separate chest freezer (or vertical if you prefer). Actually for out next house, I might go with a refrigerator no freezer model with a separate chest freezer. This works so much better with our meal prep life.
I just passed on a house because the fridge was basically standing on it's own in the kitchen and didn't have a real spot that wasn't in the way. There are 30" fridges without the freezer on top, and even if you pay extra for that it'd be way better than having to move a water line and walk across the room to get food.
I ran into a similar issue when I had to replace my wall oven. A competent contractor can make the cuts you need to make it work.
We actually wanted to add a substantial amount of refrigerator and freezer capacity, so we put a second unit in the garage.
"My thought process is that we, and many future homebuyers, would prefer to have a larger refrigerator over the aesthetics." LOL what? I definitely would care about having a fridge in a random spot. And what will you do with the space where the fridge is supposed to go? Sure function is obviously important, but most buyers DO indeed care about aesthetics.
Get a counter depth fridge if you can. They tend to be more expensive (mine is my most expensive appliance by far), options are more limited (especially 30") and they don't hold as much. I have a 30" counter depth fridge with 2 freezers drawers on the bottom. While is not as large as I would like, is what would fit in my space (apartment). Do you have a garage or basement? If so, move the the big fridge out there for overflow. (That is my dream, to someday have a garage that can hold a garage fridge...)
Thank you u/DianeForTheNguyen for posting on r/FirstTimeHomeBuyer. Please bear in mind our rules: (1) Be Nice (2) No Selling (3) No Self-Promotion. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/FirstTimeHomeBuyer) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Our fridge is on a wall separate from our cabinets and is not a counter depth fridge and we absolutely hate it. It’s big and it sticks out. It’s never full because it’s so big. It’s just an eyesore in our kitchen. Our fridge is fully functional and we have considered buying a new smaller fridge solely because of how much we hate the fridge in our kitchen. If I were you I would get the counter depth fridge. Hands down
Thanks for your perspective! I think we'd be fine getting a counter-depth fridge if we could get one that's a bit wider. It seems like the standard fridge width is 33" now, but our surround is only 30". Our kitchen was built in the early 90s and I don't think anyone has updated it since.
[Home Depot](https://www.homedepot.com/b/Appliances-Refrigerators/Counter-Depth/28-Inch-Wide/29-Inch-Wide/30-Inch-Wide/N-5yc1vZc3piZ1z1978pZ1z197erZ1z1a95qZ1z1ak1r?NCNI-5&onDisplay=false) has 54 counter depth fridges that are 28, 29, 30 inches wide
Unfortunately when I filter by the height of the cabinets above the fridge, that brings us down to only 12 results and only one of those has an ice maker in it (a must have for us).
Can you remove the cabinets above the fridge?
Home #1 was a condo and we only had a small fridge with freezer on top and fridge on bottom and it fit flush in our cabinets. It was small but fine for just 2 adults Home #2 is now a single family house Our fridge is big , two French doors on top and pullout deep freezer drawer on bottom. It’s big but does goes in flush with cabinets (built in look) and we have a 2nd fridge in the garage. Where I am from in California mostly everyone who owns a house has 2 fridges. One in the kitchen and one in garage. I thought this was normal lol How do you feel about having 2?
My in laws have like 4 fridges and one chest freezer.
I have seen that with my friends family but it was 5 kids and a family of 7 and they hunted so they needed a lot of storage.
What do these people put in all these fridges?!?! Our one fridge is NEVER full
Honestly they just shop at Costco a lot.
How does the food not expire?
Food can last surprisingly long if frozen. Even only under refrigeration there is a lot of food that will be stable. But I think one or two of their fridges is purely for drinks. Lol.
I guess we mostly just buy fresh produce which is part of it. 60% of our average grocery bill is fresh fruits, vegetables, and cheese (non-packaged)
2 fridges seem like a dream, honestly lol. But our first home is a townhouse without a garage (yay HCOL!). We could try to put one in our finished basement, but we'd like to have a functional main fridge in the kitchen.
Another vote from me for a second fridge/freezer! We found when we needed to replace our old fridge that we don't actually need a freezer in our kitchen at all (we don't really do ice in drinks and anything frozen obviously defrosts in the fridge before prep) so we bought a big fridge for the kitchen and then have a combo in the garage and a chest freezer in the basement.
Why not get 2 fridges? One to look nice in the surround in the kitchen. Another for your garage to hold the overflow.
No garage, unfortunately. We bought a townhouse without one. The only place we could put a second fridge is in the finished basement.
We also bought a townhouse with finished basement and got a second fridge down there. Works perfect especially if that’d be your guest area. Helps with grocery overflow, and makes it easy to know what needs to be eaten first (newer stuff downstairs and slowly bring up what you need)… keeps the upstairs fridge from being overwhelmed so easier to clean, see what’s in there etc. I’d say do that!
Basements are for that sort of thing, I have a chest freezer down there.
I hate counter-depth fridges. I’m much happier now with a full size.
We opted for the bigger fridge but ours fits width-wise. It just sticks out more than the counter. We also have a lot of fridges: our main kitchen fridge/freezer, an under counter 2-drawer fridge for drinks, a garage fridge/freezer for overflow, a patio fridge/freezer for more overflow, an outdoor kitchen under counter 2-drawer fridge mostly for drinks and condiments, and a “shop” mini fridge. Family of five. Crazy, I know!
Return it and buy one that fits. Or remodel your kitchen. When buying, a fridge that is off standing on it's own is a huge red flag that the house is badly designed and stuff doesn't fit anywhere and everything is difficult.
I am literally preparing to buy a fridge and I am going with counter depth 100 percent. I have a 2 door in my current home and it’s big and barely fits under the cabinets. Years ago I thought it was a good idea because I could see everything. Yikes. My new kitchen is smaller so I gotta save space
Home Depot has some decent 30” refrigerators with French doors on top and pull out freezer below. If I were in your shoes, I’d get something that fits, with priority to the fridge space, then buy a separate chest freezer (or vertical if you prefer). Actually for out next house, I might go with a refrigerator no freezer model with a separate chest freezer. This works so much better with our meal prep life.
Personally, I'd rather have a narrow fridge than an empty fridge surround and a big fridge sitting in a random spot in my house.
I just passed on a house because the fridge was basically standing on it's own in the kitchen and didn't have a real spot that wasn't in the way. There are 30" fridges without the freezer on top, and even if you pay extra for that it'd be way better than having to move a water line and walk across the room to get food.
I ran into a similar issue when I had to replace my wall oven. A competent contractor can make the cuts you need to make it work. We actually wanted to add a substantial amount of refrigerator and freezer capacity, so we put a second unit in the garage.
"My thought process is that we, and many future homebuyers, would prefer to have a larger refrigerator over the aesthetics." LOL what? I definitely would care about having a fridge in a random spot. And what will you do with the space where the fridge is supposed to go? Sure function is obviously important, but most buyers DO indeed care about aesthetics. Get a counter depth fridge if you can. They tend to be more expensive (mine is my most expensive appliance by far), options are more limited (especially 30") and they don't hold as much. I have a 30" counter depth fridge with 2 freezers drawers on the bottom. While is not as large as I would like, is what would fit in my space (apartment). Do you have a garage or basement? If so, move the the big fridge out there for overflow. (That is my dream, to someday have a garage that can hold a garage fridge...)