Most refrigerators require almost no side clearance. They "breathe" out the front at the bottom. I routinely put a 35 7/8" fridge in a 36" alcove. No problems. What yours requires would be stated in the model specifications for the model. If it isn't in writing in the specs that 2" is required, then it is not required, and nothing needs to be altered. What model refrigerator did you use? Did you pick it out in advance of the job and furnish them with the specs? I've used Samsung on plenty of jobs in a 36" alcove, with zero issues. After 10 years of them being in our market.

Note that the 3 3/4" shown here is for clearance against a wall for the door to be opened, NOT clear air clearance. The only shown air clearance is 2" at the rear and top.

My specs for my refrigerator said nothing about the sides...just 2 inches in the back for air flow.

Airflow is required only to dissipate heat from the condensor, which in the large majority of units nowadays is located at the bottom with a fan that pulls air in from the toekick at the lower front at one side (left or right), through the condensor coil, and blows it out the toekick at the other side. Rear clearance is probably only for the water line connection.

Some refrigerators, usually lower-end models, still have the condensor mounted on back without a fan (sometimes called a "bed-spring" condensor because it looks vaguely like an old-style bedspring assembly). That type requires space all around the unit for passive airflow to dissipate heat.

Just curious..how did you know that this (lack of airflow on the sides) may be an issue? Was your fridge overheating?

BTW-my refrigerator is a 2017 Samsung RH29H9000SR. I believe it's a fairly recent model as it has a door-in-door.

It's confusing because there is nothing written in the specs about how much space is required for airflow, but after contacting Samsung by email and on the phone I was told that they require a minimum 2 inches of space on each side of the refrigerator.

When installed a full depth fridge that required 2" on the sides for air flow I placed a 36" cabinet over a 32" refrigerator and trimmed the front out with fillers. I also left some room at the top under the cabinet and used a light apron to cover that space.

Most "counter depth" refrigerators are made to appear built in and have tighter allowances on the sides for air flow.

I'm also curious about why you began investigating this in the first place.

2" is quite a large gap. A quick browse of the Google shows a PDF file that says to leave 5"if installed next to a wall for doors to open fully. I'm wondering if the folks you're speaking to are answering your question with the misunderstanding that you need to know the proper gap for the doors to swing open 90°?

palimpsest-Thanks for letting me know that it would be alright to use fillers on the sides of the cabinet. I wonder if you would mind sending me a picture of your cabinet above your refrigerator? Just wondering what it would look like.

My fridge is also a full depth refrigerator, not counter depth. Do you think it's necessary 2" of space on the sides of full depth refrigerators (but it's OK to have less air flow space on counter depth fridges)?

Lindsey-A Samsung technician came to adjust the doors because they weren't closing properly. He's the one that said there was not enough space on the refrigerator sides for air flow. He said the refrigerator compressors would have to work too hard and this would shorten the life of the refrigerator. That's when I began to investigate this issue of air flow.

2" does seem to be quite a large gap, but that is the minimum amount of space that Samsung told me I needed to leave, when I specifically asked about air flow, due to what the refrigerator technician said. I agree that 2" seems like a lot of space to leave on the sides of the refrigerator. But palimpsest above seems to have used 2" on each side of his/her fridge.

If you can use fillers on the sides, then you don't need the extra clearance space in the first place!!! What purpose would it possibly serve?

How did you get fixated on this side clearance issue? Are there any vents, louvers, air inlets or outlets on the sides? No? Of course not, there never are. Then they don't need air. What do you think that clearance would be for?

You have a printed owner's manual that says nothing about side clearance. Why don't you just leave it at that? If the manufacturer wanted side clearance they'd have put it in there.

Becky, my Samsung refrigerator has less than an inch clearance on each side. It's been in place for four years and it hasn't been a problem. To clarify, the Samsung refrigerator has been a problem several times, but never because of the clearance.

Not a pro but ... my late husband knew about such things and (from him) my understanding is that it is far more important to have space behind and above a fridge than beside it. Heat from the back coils will rise and escape over the top of the fridge. Your refrigerator spacing, unless it's beside a stove or adjacent cabinets impede opening the doors all the way (for pulling veggie drawers out all the way for cleaning), is probably good as is. If the refrigerator doors are not closing properly, and if you've made sure the contents is not in the way, you could have a warped refrigerator door hinge -- especially if someone tried to move the weight of the refrigerator by holding on to just the doors.

A heat producing stove is another matter entirely. Not only do you need space on each side of a stove (behind trim) but also behind it for the heat to vent but you don't want a heat producing stove next to a refrigerator as it will make it run more and wear out quicker.

Hope that helps.

The Home Depot website has information for your refrigerator that provides spacing for ventilation details in the "Measurement Guide" which you can find in the "Info & Guides" section and here's the link. Just scroll down to "Step 3 - Allow Room For Ventilation", "To enable maximum refrigerator performance, add 1/8” on each side, 1” on top and 2” in the back for air flow."

Far better to have 4"-6" inches ventilation atop the refrigerator. The main thing is for the heat to be able to escape from the coils in the back. The sides of the refrigerator do not produce heat -- the back coils do.

We had a fridge that was squeezed into a space just big enough for it (like, the guys replacing it had trouble getting it out, I have no idea how they got it in there in the first place) and the heat from it over time appears to have actually damaged the paint and the wall. It’s made me very leery of squeezing a fridge into a space if it isn’t designed to be fitted in snugly.

Leave at least a 3" space between the back of the refrigerator and the wall, too -- even if that means the front of the refrigerator is not even with the front of the cabinets.

As others have said, your KD was correct in the first place. It's not the side clearance that is important. It's the clearance in the back, 2" to 4", and on top, 1" to 2". As long as you have those clearances and the doors open properly you are good to go.

Sometimes repair people get a little enthusiastic about products. I installed one of the these three years ago with very tight clearances on both sides with good clearance in back and above. It works well. I've had no problems. I would suggest you live with the current situation. It seems to fit the requirements.

A few posts above have referenced the need for space in back and above so heat can dissipate from the (condensor) coils on back. As I stated further above, some lower-end units may have coils on the back but majority of refrigerators nowadays do not, the condensor is on the bottom.

This is the rear of my 14-years-old GE. No coils on the back. It has sat flush to the wall for the duration, or near as it can in consideration of the water lines, to no ill effect.

A fan at the bottom actively pulls air in at the left side of the toekick, through the condensor coil beneath, and blows it out the right side of the toekick. No need for airflow space at the sides, back, or top.

dadoes-thanks for taking the time to help me. just a question-do you have any idea how much space is on the left and right of your fridge? It looks like you have close to an inch on each side. Is this correct, or is this an illusion? It's difficult to tell.

It's 1" on the left. 1" on the right to the little piece of granite which overhangs the cabinet stile a little. 2.75" on the top to bottom of the upper cabinet.

The freezer door handle hits the pantry door handle, which is plenty wide-open to get things in/out but rolling baskets & shelves just barely snag on the door gasket when pulled ~fully out but I can open the pantry to get a bit more swing if needed.

Ditto what The Cooks Kitchen and Sophie have said. You're fine!

Are you worried about the warranty if you don't leave 2"? Because if it's not written in the specs, they can't deny a warranty claim because of "improper" installation if something should go wrong.

We had our refrigerator installed by professionals and they said as long as you have 2 inches in the back and the same at the top, you are fine. As it happens, we do have one inch space on each side but the prof only mentioned the top and back....this refrigerator is a double door and was purchased less than six months ago.

I have less than an inch on each side, and zero room above. Well, there is a cabinet above it and the fridge touches the bottom lip of the cabinet frame. There are 18” on each side between the upper and lower cabs. Vent is in front at the bottom. It’s been installed for about 10 years with no issues. But mine is Kenmore so perhaps different requirements.

Don't worry, if it's a Samsung, it won't matter what you do. 7 years max then dead. If you are truly concerned, pull the refer out from the wall another inch for increased air flow and heat dissipation. It's all about heat dissipation.

Just wondering if it would look funny with a inch and a half gap on each side of my refrigerator.If I get the next size bigger there will be no room on either side. My space is 33 inches and can't find a 32 inch refrigerator.

@Barb Bean I just did a quick search for 32" wide refrigerator and came up with a few models. They say 33", but looking at specs, closer to 32", made for a 33" space. https://www.google.com/aclk?sa=L&ai=DChcSEwinmOClk8HsAhWZFq0GHV0HCSAYABB1GgJwdg&sig=AOD64_3ZG-fWlsC3NT2I1KO7P5RPnoiE6w&ctype=5&q=&ved=0ahUKEwj0odqlk8HsAhWxOH0KHc46CgUQwzwIfg&adurl=

30" is more common though: Lfcs22520s

I just had a major issue in my brand new home in SW Florida The photo looks like there is a space on the left side of fridge, but there's not. You can barely slide a piece of paper on each side of the fridge. That dark area is a piece of gray wood that connects to top cabinet. The construction co built the frame around the entire new LG refrigerator with hardly any space at all on both sides and only a 2" space on top. When we pulled the fridge out of its cubby hole, there was a lot of moisture on the side of the fridge and along the left wall. They started to look at the refrigerator as a problem when our home had a thin layer of surface mold on the couches, throw pillows, wood tables, etc. The house was humid even though we keep the brand new AC unit on 78 degrees F. They decided to cut out a section of the wall on the left side of the fridge and put a vent in so that there would be airflow and so that the fridge could breathe. I do not have new pix of the vent. That was a lot easier than moving all of the cabinets. Our issue is now resolved. You can see the mold in last photo. The last pic below also shows the piece of wood (matches gray cabinets) between the left side of fridge and left wall. That's the wall that they cut the vent into. Sorry I don't have a pic of the vent. During our next trip to FL I'll snap a pic of it. - Laura

I agree with JuneKnow. An appropriately sized AC dehumidifies the air as it’s cooled. An oversized AC will blast your home with cool air instead of cooling it down gradually. The temperature swings prompt your HVAC system to start up and shut down in rapid succession - a condition known as “short cycling.” Oversized AC systems that short cycle do not run long enough for the dehumidification process to take place, and that is why you have mold on your furniture.

If the issue is resolved as you said, that is because we are now in end of November. Wait until April or May in Florida and see how you are doing.

Bring in a good HVAC contractor to your home, and they will tell you what your AC size should be.

Thanks! Yes, we had a home inspector and mold inspector come in and created a 30 page report. There was an issue with the AC but it was not oversized. It was the correct size for the new home but had not been serviced since the build was complete (about 1.5 years.). They said that it should have been serviced twice per year. Also, they both did say in the report that the refrigerator did not have enough air flow around it. It was one of the issues reported. It was NOT the "biggest issue". The vent was put in before the AC was even serviced and it completely stopped the condensation on the left side of fridge.

I did a kitchen reno 3yrs ago. new appliances, all Samsung. December 2021, discovered the dishwasher was leaking, which caused damage to the floor and the gabled walls around the fridge. when the restoration company was removing the gabled walls around the fridge and then removed the upper cabinet above the fridge they discovered mold on the ceiling. My fridge is 29 3/4” wide and the fridge space is 30”. The restoration company says the mold was caused from poor fridge ventilation. i contacted the cabinet comapny that did the redesign and they say the mold was not created from the fridge and they will not fix the problem. The fridge is placed on an outside wall, the wall is dry, the roof and attic have been checked, no leaks or mold in the attic.

It is very upsetting that i paid a lot of money to this company using there designer and they have said it is my problem.

The restoration company says it was a good thing the dishwasher failed because the mold could have gotten worse. It wouldnt have been detected until it spread past the crown moulding, so i guess in a way im lucky, with the expence of cleaning up the mold and reduing the ceiling, i dont feel lucky.

We are now trying to redesign the fridge enclosure out of fear that after repairing the ceiling it will happen again. I will make sure it is further out from the back wall and hope for the best..