Wow that’s a heck of a lot of fridge! Looks lovely

I have thr e Fridgeadaires and they really need the built in kit have you tried getting the Electrolux ones they are very similar and also have the kit . Fridges unless built to be builins need ait around them do you need to find out what the requirements are for the fridges you are getting .

Note that the refrigerators aren't going to look like those in the photo because F&P 32" stainless steel, bottom-freezer refrigerators have horizontal handles on the freezer compartment (example) or no handles (which would require space on the side of the door for your fingers).

As noted above, the minimum side clearance is 25/32".

Considering how long refrigerators last these days, I opted to put the refrigerator in our new house in the pantry along with a small chest freezer. I would rather walk a few more feet to the refrigerator than have to rip my kitchen apart a few years from now to get a new refrigerator in the alotted ”hole”. In addition, a chest freezer keeps your food better since it is not constantly defrosting. People rave about Subzero but they still defrost. Give me a good old chest freezer please. Saves on energy too.

@Nancy K: "I would rather walk a few more feet to the refrigerator than have to rip my kitchen apart a few years from now to get a new refrigerator in the alotted 'hole'."

Refrigerators have been sold in standard widths (most common: 24", 28", 30", 36") for decades. There's no need to put a refrigerator in an inconvenient location to avoid "rip[ping] my kitchen apart" to replace a refrigerator. People replace refrigerators all the time without modifying their kitchens to accommodate a new one.

@wdccruise The problem I had replacing the refrigerator in my old house was the height, not the width. My neighbor had the same problem. In my new house the pantry is conveniently located so I will not walk that far to it. We do not use the refrigerator as much as most people do and I prefer chest freezers to keep my food fresher and waste less energy. i actually need more freezer space than refrigerator space which cannot be found in a refrigerator. Everyone has different needs. My solution is not for everyone.

You could just put the 2 refrigerators next to each other. The specs call for a 13/16 gap on the non-hinge side of the door. So you will have a 3/4 " space between them.

While this is not the look of the built in model, it certainly would work just fine for free standing units.

Good luck!

@Patricia Colwell Consulting unfortunately neither Electrolux nor Frigidaire are in stock or are going to be in stock anytime soon where I live in Canada. We've spoken to every appliance store in the city at this point and the earliest they are predicted to be in stock is next summer. :(

@wdccruise I agree, our model is the bottom freezer drawer so it will look slightly different, but I couldn't find pictures online of our model without the trim kit so used this as an example.

@User you're right we're almost being forced to choose F&P if we want that side by side look. We are considering the option of sizing it for the Frigidaire and filling it up so we can later replace it, as long as our cabinet builders can do that without making it look like a botched/forced job, haha. One other (last resort) option that we are also looking at is just getting the 48" KitchenAid Built-In fridge, but that is significantly more expensive than the F&P pair and is less wide than the 2 F&Ps combined. Such a tough decision! Appreciate your suggestion though.

@Debbi Washburn this is very much the look we want to go for, thank you for sharing the picture!!

Top clearances inside cabinet are 2" for ventilation. Pay attention to where that heat is going. Sides as @worthy pointed out. Built ins have different clearances etc. vs modular free standing that are intended to optionally mount flush. I've not used their refers but have had great luck with their DWs. Definitely will consider.

You mentioned the "joiner kit" - get it an the install instructions for it to get the look you want. Don't hesitate to call support.