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Need advice about mounting a 12" cabinet over the Fridge

10 years ago

I'm getting my new cabinets delivered next week. The wife wants the cabinet over the refrigerator to be flush with the front of the fridge. It's a 12" deep cabinet. Should I just mount this to the side panels? The salesman told me to build a box but I didn't get how that would work. How do I do this?

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Comments (3)

silken1
10 years ago
We did this with the one over the fridge at the lake. I have easier access to the cupboard and the fridge has lots of venting for heat. If there is lots of space between the top of the fridge and bottom of the cupboard, you might see the hole at the back. Then building a box to fill in the back space would work. Otherwise it should be OK if it sits close to the top of the fridge. We mounted it to the sides of cabinets on either side.
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Joseph Corlett, LLC
10 years ago
jimsimm:

If you're installing cabinets left to right, level and plumb the adjacent upper and lower cabinets to each other and install the left panel plumb. Check side to side and front to back; scribe/shim as required. Install the 12" upper cabinet front flush with the left panel edge, then install the right panel, making sure to plumb the side and front. The panels and cabinets must be level and flush on top.

The refrigerator makes a great prop to hold the cabinet so you're wife's arms won't get tired. We don't want her rushing you. A 2x4 on top of the fridge works great for a shim.
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Beth, It's very common for the refrigerator to not require more than about 1" of clearances on top and back, but check your model's requirements to avoid emotional arguments like previous posts recommend. But, if you want, you might play the "age" card. Things have changed and the refrigerators are more efficient these days with more insulation around them to keep stuff inside cool. With older refrigerators, if you didn't provide enough ventilation, the heat generated would simply seep right back into the coolspace inside. But, with more insulation of today's refrigerators, it takes much longer for the exhaust heat to seep back inside, hence you don't need as much ventilation as the older models. I put our unit in a wall cavity with top cabinets with 1" top clearances even though the specifications called for 1/2" clearance. Don't compromise on this - they do make them so you don't need unsightly wide gaps for ventilation. They use less energy and don't require near as much heat exchange as the older models. Plus, they are quieter when you can minimize these gaps. Here is another example (not our kitchen, but our refrigerator) of how they minimize these spaces in a freestanding refrigerator. -DH of gsc
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Update: I posted elsewhere but it's not showing up. Basically, they redid it and it's still wrong! I'll copy my post here. New construction, but kitchen is completely finished. The frigadaire all fridge all freezer was to be built in with trim kit. They made the hole wrong. Supposed to be 25 1/4" deep MINIMUM. They did 24". The front of the counter is 25 1/4 but they have it flush with the cabinets. Supposed to be 66" wide. They did 67 7/8". Supposed to be 75" or 79". They did 79 1/8". They aren't willing to take out cabinets and redo soffit and such. The width I think can be fixed by taking out fillers and bringing the broom cabinet on the end in. The height isn't off much, maybe can have a filler put in between top of fridge and under cabinets. But what do we do about the depth? How can we make the front look right? They basically said if we come up with an idea on how to fix it and they do it, we are stuck with whatever they do, whether we like the end result or not.
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Comments (29)
@User Thanks for that guide. It's helpful to read through. I thought putting the mircrowave inside there is okay because many microwaves are built in. Plus, it's specifcally an appliance garage, so isn't that the purpose? I was at one point considering a pantry over there, but did realize the hazards of enclosing a Coffee pot or toaster. So, this way, they will be closed behind doors, but will be sitting on the counter itself. And the microwave will be the only thing on a shelf. So I thought this was a safer option? Interested in input because I do worry about things. I know quite a few people who have their microwaves behind a door. Never thought of the microwave as being as much of an issue as a toaster or coffee pot though.
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Comments (6)
I think I'd take the 36-37 inches that the pantry and fridge occupy and reverse the two. Fridge to the far right and then leave 2 -3 in before wall. the right side of pantry may not need an additional panel. then above the fridge I'd place another shelf as you have the microwave sitting..place baskets /a big piece of pottery. With money saved I'd place another cabinet left of hood and sticking w countertop sized microwave - push it back in the corner section of counter [on the diagonal] for ease. . Something about the microwave on that shelf frightens me when it comes to renters/transient people. Sitting on the counter is better and it looks like a size designed to sit on counter.
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robbcs3
10 years ago
When he said to build a box he meant this as a means to attach the cabinet to the wall behind it. It should be whatever depth you are pulling the cabinet from the wall. Mount the box to the wall,then mount the cabinet to it. You cannot just attach it to the side panels, it will fail.

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