Industrial Sized Refrigerators Are Outdated And On The Out - Here's What To Try Instead

The refrigerator is the centerpiece of everyone's kitchen, so it's important to have one that looks good in your home and meets your family's needs. Trendy homeowners know that industrial-sized refrigerators were popular for quite a while, thanks to their high-end appearance, quality builds, and massive storage capacities. Now, though, that trend is making its way out, and you should try a full-size refrigerator paired with a mini fridge instead.

Full-size is just a generic term encompassing both of the more specific standard-depth and counter-depth fridges, and it's worth noting that both are much smaller than industrial-sized fridges. Counter-depth refrigerators typically range in depth from 24 to 30 inches and can align flush with your cabinets. Alternatively, standard depth refers to fridges with 31 to 36 inches of depth and are designed to stick out about 6 inches farther than your cabinetry, offering more grocery storage space.

Mini fridges are easier to shop for — just measure your counter height, and find a design and model that fits. They come in a large range of sizes, designs, and finishes as well. You can opt for a standard mini fridge, wine coolers, bar refrigerators, or even the polished undercounter refrigerator. Having this second option is an ideal way to keep your favorite food and drinks at the ready, and to ensure that kids can access their snacks without leaving the doors of your main refrigerator wide open. You can even hide your mini fridge with a custom cabinet.

When faced with the task of choosing the right refrigerator for your kitchen, it's easy to feel overwhelmed. With so many configuration options, we recommend taking a moment to consider your usage in order to narrow down your options. Think about how much space you use up between your fridge and freezer during weekly grocery hauls. Also think about whether you regularly need enough space to organize odd-shaped items in your fridge, such as giant pizza boxes, tall cakes, wide catering trays, or any of the unique bowls or pots that tend to come along with food-based events like Thanksgiving.

Also consider how you want the fridge and freezer oriented in relation to each other. You can have them side by side, with the freezer up top, or with the freezer on the bottom. The latter option opens up the popular French door design, too, which offers a large freezer drawer and wide fridge shelves for holding items of virtually any dimension. There are even fridges with retro designs that offer colorful style.

And then there are the extras to think about. Do you want a built-in water and ice dispenser? How about a smart fridge or soft-close doors? Do you want easy-to-grab handles, or sleek, recessed handles? Or a smudge-resistant finish? The sky is truly the limit when it comes to option configurations.

Lastly, make sure you choose a reliable fridge brand. There are a ton out there, which can make it difficult to discern which are trustworthy and which you should skip. Choosing the wrong brand could leave you paying not just for costly repairs but also for replacement groceries.