Size Matters! (Sometimes)

Back in 2014 my wife and I were getting a realtor's tour of the house we eventually bought (and live in today.)  While checking out the kitchen, I looked at the cabinet installed over the past-its-prime, 90's era GE white top-freezer refrigerator  measuring 66 1/2" tall, 31 1/4", and mentioned in passing that upgrading to a more contemporary style refrigerator would be an issue as the 68" tall cabinet above the refrigerator was too low, and the width (32") was too narrow.  

My wife looked at me skeptically, and asked me something along the line of "Seriously?  You mean nothing will fit?"  To which I replied "No; no full size fridge will." 

(FYI: Years ago GE manufactured a 31 1/4" wide fridge; that width is no longer in production. The prior owners of the house apparently framed around the existing fridge instead of  specing out the normal 33" or 36" wide opening.)

This issue frequently arises in a lot of older homes. Today's refrigerators have grown in all three dimensions.  Most "full size" fridges, such as French Door or Side-by-Side style models, are built to squeeze into a 36" wide space, and are 68 1/2 to 69" inches tall.  There are exceptions of course, such as an upscale 84" tall built in Subzero or GE Monogram, but for purposes of this discussion I'm going to focus on the more common, for lack of a better word, Middle-Class kitchen.

So let's say you're planning on remodeling your kitchen, have decided you aren't going to compromise on your appliance choices, and will order, size, and install kitchen cabinets that accommodate the appliance suite and look that you want.  What should you be considering?

(Note:  I'm not going to get into style choices, etc.  I am going to provide some links to past blogs discussing design at the end of this blog.)

First, the refrigerator.

This is the piece that usually becomes the lynchpin of the kitchen suite.  If you've decided on a full sized, 21-30 cubic foot model, here's what you should be thinking about:

1) Modern kitchens usually provide 36" in width and 70-71" in height for a refrigerator.  This will accommodate the typical modern French-Door or SXS (side-by-side) and still have sufficient clearance for ventilation.  

2) BE SURE to leave 36" (or even a little more.)  If you have only, say, 35 1/4" in width, you'll have to downsize to a 33" wide model.  No one makes a 34-35"model.Why are 33" available, you may ask?  The simple reason is that 33" was the traditional width allotted for the older top-freezer models that were ubiquitous in 50-70's homes.  As the kitchen became larger, more open, and evolved from a working room to a gathering place, the 36" width became the norm.

3) Don't plan on placing the fridge in a corner if you can help it!  With only a few exceptions, most refrigerators today have deeper bins in the door that are useful for storing gallon containers etc., in an effort to maximize storage volume.  Deeper doors mean that the door swing will generally extend beyond the width of the refrigerator case, sometimes 3-5" more.  If you place your refrigerator in a corner, you will most likely be unable to open one of the doors fully.

4) Be aware that today's units tend to be deeper than older units.  Some refrigerators can be as much as 37 1/2" deep!  You'll want to be sure both that the fridge will fit through your doorways, and that you won't wind up regretting your behemoth of a 29 cubic foot refrigerator dominating your kitchen.

4a) Consider counter-depth refrigerators as an option!  There is a sub-category of refrigeration called "counter-depth".  These units have 24" cases, so only the door sticks out beyond a typical cabinet.  (And yes, they should really be called "counter-plus-the-door-depth", but "counter-depth" is so much easier to say.)  People sometimes buy this style for the aesthetics of a fridge not sticking out a foot or so beyond their cabinets. Sometimes a shallower unit is a necessity due to the layout of the kitchen.  Do note that you will pay a little bit more for a shallower refrigerator, and that these shallow units are only available in French door or SXS styles - no single door top or bottom units.

-Most of the time, as I said above, the refrigerator is the most challenging piece of the appliance suite.

Other appliances are more standardized and require less pre-planning as far as size is concerned.

Ranges:  These are normally 30" wide (actually 29 7/8" to fit a 30" space.)  Now, some specialty ranges are wider, 36 or 48" for some professional style ranges, or 20-24" for some apartment/cottage ranges, but standard ranges have always been built for a 30" opening; they were never, say, 28 or 31 inches.

Dishwashers:   24" is the norm with the exception of a handful of 18" wide units.  Just like ranges, these were never a little bit wider or narrower.  You do want to be aware of the cabinet opening height; once in a while we run into instances where a homeowner retiled their kitchen floor and raised the height.  This occasionally leads to the old dishwasher being "walled in" ( For some reason I always think of Poe's "The Cask of Amontillado" when I have this conversation!), and the new unit unable to squeeze into the shorter opening.  Different brands shrink to different heights, so consult one of our sales pros if you have a specific case.

Ventilation:  Three main options here:  

1. The over-the-range microwave combo provides adequate ventilation and frees up counter space by placing the microwave above the stove vs. on a counter.  Allow 30" in width for these (same as a range!)
2. Undercabinet hoods are also usually 30" wide, but some options in wider sizes (36" and 48"), as well as smaller 24" width hoods to go over apartment ranges, are also available.
3. Chimney hoods don't require an overhead cabinet for mounting purposes, and also come in the standard 30, 36, and 48" widths.  Chimney hoods certainly add style to your kitchen, but plan on spending more for a chimney hood than other categories.

The "finished product". A newly remodeled kitchen

I intentionally haven't covered built-in wall ovens (usually 30", but some older kitchens have only 27" or 24" in width), or drop-in cooktops (usually 30", but 36 and 48" units are also available.)  I also - again intentionally - have avoided delving into the intricacies of "professional" kitchen appliances such as 84" tall refrigerators and often larger ranges.  Perhaps I'll address these specialty categories in a future blog.

Meantime, please take advantage of our sales staff's expertise, and reach out to us in any of our twelve showrooms if you have any questions.  We are more than happy to help you plan your kitchen and select the right appliances for your vision!

For more info on the different choices in various appliance categories, take a look at my blog from April 12.   

For more background on the evolution of the modern kitchen, check out my March 25 entry.