I am also looking for a 36" inch wide CD fridge. I don't care if it is a side by side, bottom freezer or french door. Just looking for recommendations for CD fridge.

Do you understand the difference between counter depth, built in, and fully integrated? They are not the same. A plain counter depth Kitchenaid KRFC704FSS ain’t the same functional animal as a SubZero IT 36CI, Much less close in budget.

Hey Sophie, I think, I do understand the differences between counter depth, built in, etc. We are looking for a regular 36" counter depth refrigerator with french door. The decisions we need to make are:
1) Brand - We are building a whole new kitchen so need all the appliances. We don't have to have the same brand for each appliance in the kitchen but if as a package it's a good deal to have same brand as stove then we will go for that.
2) Water Dispenser - Should we have the water dispenser or not

You’re asking a lot of questions but providing no information that is helpful in judging what is important to your family. You need to do more research. What is perfect for one family would be an awful choice for another. Figure out what you like and what is important to you. Then you can ask for online recommendations and provide enough info to narrow it down.

You could be a 3 series Beemer, or you could be a Prius, or you could be a Ford Fiesta. If you ask what’s the best “car”? Someone’s gonna tell you a Cadillac Escalade or a SL500. Cause you didn’t give enough info to know anything about what you like or want.

Or just go to an appliance showroom near you to show and tell with the sales person there. Nothing beats hands on. Just be sure to BUY from them when the consultation is done.

We have an Electrolux counter depth French door fridge. 4.5 years old and still great. We did not get water dispenser bc read that’s usually the first thing to break. It does have an ice maker in the freezer. I would recommend it.

Is your budget $2000, or $10,000+? That's what Sophie is trying to tell you. Also what features are important to you and your family? Do you want counter depth, or fully integrated?

Samsung makes a 36" counter depth with the ice maker in the freezer and an interior water dispenser eliminating the through the door issues most fridges have these days. LG and GE have similar models. Samsung has the only single hand capable inside water dispenser with the button below the spout that you can press the glass against. The others seem to require you to use your other hand to push the button above the dispenser.

I looked at them recently but decided to go with full depth since the CD fridges don't fit my needs. I also noticed that some of the shelves have vent holes in the framework (shelf trim) in the back making them have even less depth than they appear to have.

The Bosch CD refrigerator is interesting in that the bottom freezer consists of 2 drawers so things don't get lost in the large single drawer most other bottom freezers have. Check it out.

http://www.bosch-home.com/us/productslist/refrigerators/french-door

We just bought a SZ counter depth (48in) side by side, and it is great. We did not do an external dispenser because my research showed that it is the first (and sometimes the only) thing that breaks on a fridge. In my experience, everyone with a dispenser has issues well before any problems with the fridge or freezer. An external ice dispenser also takes up a lot of room in your freezer.

Sub Zero water and ice dispenser question:

When you've read that dispenser issues are the most common, does that include a built in ice maker unit that is *not* on the door or is it any kind of feature that involves water running into the fridge, such as an automatic ice maker in the freezer bin?

This is not a response to Kendrah, above, but to the Original Poster: After a great deal of research, we purchased a French-door-above/freezer-below LG. However, it was not a 36-inch counter depth, because the unit needed to fit into a very particular space. Also, my husband nixed the water-in-the-door option, although I had loved that option on our previous 'fridge. So far, we have been extremely happy with the LG, which replaced a 15-year-old Jenn-Air -- and which has brought down our utility bills by about 8% a month.

bought the Bosch 36" CD french door refrigerator with the two drawer bottom freezer.