Installed my GE CD FD 2 wks ago. The doors extend past the counters, but that's not a problem. In fact, if they didn't, the doors would hit the counters when opened.

Hi Mollie,

If you can afford to, I would definitely suggest you go with the counter depth fridge. I am in the process of remodeling (DIY) on a really small budget, but am trying to squeeze a counter depth out of it.

Depending on where your refrigerator is placed, can make even more of a difference. I moved my refrigerator from being left of my doorway from dining room into kitchen, to the right side and it really stands out now. The site line walking in now is nothing but fridge. See before and after below. For the majority of counter depth fridges, the extension beyond the counter will be as little as just the handles to just a bit of the door. See the noticeable difference...

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I also opted for a counter depth french door. It's not installed yet, so I can't give much of an opinion yet. I have a SxS now, that I DESPISE. So I figure that the counter depth can't possible have any less space than the SxS. I would have preferred a gigantic built-in, but there was no way I'd be able spend that much money on a refrigerator! I'm looking forward to trying out the counter depth. I think it's a good compromise and should look really nice.

I LOVE my counter depth french door fridge. You can get side panels to match your cabinets, so it looks built-in. Here is a pic of mine.

It is definitely worth it. The 2-3 inches really make a difference. I got this FD Jenn Air at a Sears Scratch n Dent for only $1800. There is a small black mark in the upper right corner. The depth of the fridge is counterdepth and only the doors extend out. The side panels really mimic the look of a built in for a lot less money. I should have ordered a bigger cabinet so it would have been lower but I wasn't sure the bigger one would fit.

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Several people on this site have recessed their refrigerators into the wall to make their standard depth refrigerators closer to counter depth. Another option is to recess the refrigerator into the room behind it...this will allow you to have a standard depth (or deeper) refrigerator appear completely counter depth.

In a small kitchen, yes, it is worth the extra money. However, extra is relative. We found ours online at Sears for $950 delivered... pure luck at 1/2 price, but it's wonderful. I also like the recessed idea Buehl talked about but we have plaster walls so there was no way we were messing with that.

(Ignore the stuff on the right)

Cleo - we put a piece of extra molding on a hinge that folds in we can store the extra oven racks and other large things. It works well. It was a really quick DIY fix if you have a table/miter saw and extra molding (like we did). If you don't have one, just order a small filler piece and get off the shelf hinges at Homeless Depot or Lowes. If you have your measurements, they can probably cut it there and just use the screws with the hinges to attach it although you might want to predrill.

I have one, it looks great but I tell people it is my tiny very expensive frig. It about killed me to pay way more for a small frig. I put my old one in the garage or I would be really hurting for space.

I have a counter depth and really like it as well. Its 71" tall and a bit wider, so I don't feel like it has a smaller capacity than a normal fridge.

pcjs
I actually have pipes hiding in thise 6 inch fillers. In the previous kitchen, the fridge was in its own drywalled section surrounded by pipes to my upstairs. When I discovered the pipes , I came up with this idea to house the pipes. I would love to have the 12 inches of space in those fillers though. It took me 2 months to come up with a plan. I may use your hinged molding idea on light rail to hide a flip down TV though. Thanks.

It took us a little while pre-garden web to come up with it, but we learned you can get get fillers in any size, which is nice. We had extra filler that fit perfectly, so we got very lucky. The hinges can be a bit hard to find - I had to study them all for a while to find the ones I wanted, but they are there.

I never thought about using a hinge for the tv. I wanted to mount ours on the wall - I wonder if I can get my husband to come up with a cheaper mount than the overpriced ones. He doesn't want to do a flip down from our cabinet since it is a lone cabinet glued to the wall that houses books and he's worried about the weight. Thanks for that idea.

pcjs, i'm confused...where is your "simple fix" located? it sounds really clever and i would like to store it in my brain (or a file) for possile later use.

See the gap between the fridge and cabinet that I thought looked ulgy:

We used two hinges that allowed us to push the filler in (I used ORB to be anal but no one can see) on the inside. I've see others put the hinges on the outside but I prefer the humm.... where is it comment :) It just pushes in and in theory I was going to keep cookie sheets, but now I only keep the extra oven rack (and what ever else I threw up there and now forgot about).