Under counter fridge: integrated or not ?

[Tim Day]

We have been designing a new kitchen. It would probably look nicer if we went for an integrated fridge, otherwise there will be a single white-faced unit which will almost certainly stand out like a sore thumb at the end of a row of nice wooden cabinets.

Only having had free-standing under-counter fridges before, I'm a little dubious about integrated ones: the fan/venting arrangement at the bottom seems to eat into the capacity (most seem to be 141-144lt, cf 153lt for a freestanding Bosch KTR16420, which seems to be the latest incarnation of what we've had before), and the way the bottom "salad" compartments can invariably only be accessed by clearing off the bottom shelf (compared with simply pulling out like a normal fridge) looks a little awkward.

If anyone has any opinions which might help us make our mind up we'd love to hear them.

[Lurch]

Buy what you want, it's your kitchen. Go to a shop, have a look at fridges. Look for the different types of salad tray if that is your main concern. If you would care to look back in the group there is a discussion on integrated vs freestanding. What's wrong with peoples search engines today?

SJW A.C.S. Ltd.

[Anne Jackson]

The message from Tim Day contains these words:

We got "almond" coloured fridge and freezer for our new wooden kitchen. Isn't that creamy-brown colour available any more?

I wouldn't pay the extortionate amounts they ask for integrated units!

[Christian McArdle]

Integrated under counter fridges can be much smaller than freestanding units for two reasons. Firstly they are less wide to accommodate the width of the hinges and cabinet. Secondly, the plinth interferes with the height. I like integrated units, but would find an under counter fridge too small (and low down). I chose a 70/30 split fridge freezer. This gives the freezer door split at worktop height. The fridge is above with a huge door, right to the cornice level. Is there no way you could fit a full height larder unit into the design?

Christian.

[Tim Mitchell]

In article , Christian McArdle writes

I agree with Christian, we ended up going for a tall unit because the under-counter integrated units are tidgy inside. My parents have got an under-counter integrated fridge and they ended up having an "auxiliary" fridge in the garage because they can never fit everything in the one in the kitchen.

I think you either need to re-design with a tall unit, or go for a non-integrated under counter one.

[Tim Day]

Unfortunately we don't have much space, so sacrificing work surface to make a fridge/freezer column isn't an option.

Having now heard a few horror stories like the one above, we've decided to forget the integrated fridges and will simply try and match the other appliances with a stainless-steel fronted regular under-counter fridge (Siemens and AEG both make a decent sized one).

Tim