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Do you like custom panel refrigerators? The ones that blend in with your cabinetry? Or do you like a regular fridge that has stainless/black/white doors.
What do you think is better from a resale perspective?
I could care less about the decor of refrigerator doors. Nobody makes a house buying decision based on fridge door covers....and if they do they're dumber than dirt.
Have any kind of refrigerator door you want. Be happy. When you move take the fridge with you.
At most price points you will not get the cost of a custom fridge back at resale. In the very high bracket the lack of a built-in fridge will hurt you.
Personally, just like with the cabinets themselves, it can be a taste driven decision, and like all such decsions the COST does NOT translate into VALUE. There are some styles of elaborated carved and stained and glazed cabinets that I think are the kitchen equivalent of a Tammy Faye Baker make-up job, but certain people LOVE 'em.
I have seen some rather interesting kitchens done with quarter sawn oak or other hardwoods that have a very pleasing effect -- even a high end kind of fridge that it NOT fully built-in / paneled over would interupt the intended look. Some folks also go to great lengths to get a very custom looking effect with painted cabinets that have a very specific look, if that is thrown next to a modern run of the mill fridge it is wasted, and the sizes of even the nicest "retro" fridges are small, so again it makes much more sense to panel over a nice counter depth fridge. The really clever look is get a fully built-in unit and have even the grill for the compressor replaced with a floating panel -- a very neat way to make the fridge all but disapper. With some brands of fridges and the door configuration it is about as close to a classic "ice box" as you can get. Of course if this is not done by a pro it comes off looking not like the "how did they do that" magic of a Disney Imagineering crew, but a "what did they do" disaster of a wanna be amateur...
Last edited by chet everett; 03-19-2010 at 05:51 AM..
I could care less about the decor of refrigerator doors. Nobody makes a house buying decision based on fridge door covers....and if they do they're dumber than dirt.
Have any kind of refrigerator door you want. Be happy. When you move take the fridge with you.
Problem solved.
I think it depends on the price range. In upper price ranges buyers expect high end touches.
Do you like custom panel refrigerators? The ones that blend in with your cabinetry? Or do you like a regular fridge that has stainless/black/white doors.
The built-ins (e.g. Sub Zero) that are paneled to match the cabinets are ok, although even then I prefer the classic stainless and glass front. I really dislike the stand-alone fridges with the frame-kits that just sort of "hold" the panels.
Quote:
What do you think is better from a resale perspective?
I live in an area where, unless it is a built-in system, the refrigerator does not generally convey. So for me, it's a non-issue.
I posted this poll because my husband and I disagreed on what is better. I like the regular stainless/black fridges. I don't care for the panelled ones. I think they are ugly and you can't find the fridge bc they blend in so much!
The house we are buying has no fridge and unfortunately the space for it, is 48 inches.
48 inch fridges are anywhere from 5000-8000. It totally sux. Why would I want to spend that much on a fridge!!?! So we're trying to figure out what to do.
We're eventually going to update the kitchen so I figured just get a regular 36inch fridge. (But we were just planning on staining the cabinets since they are in good condition and just get new countertops, the space will still be too big for the fridge unless we figure something out.)
Or we just bite the bullet and buy a 48 inch fridge. But I'd rather just the regular stainless steel one while my husband thinks the panelled fridges are much nicer.
It kills me though to spend that much on a fridge.
I think it depends more on the look of the kitchen than the price range of the home.
My parents house when I was growing up was a 6000 sq.ft, very nice house on almost an acre. The look of the kitchen was such that non-paneled fridge doors looked the best. The appliances were black.
My parents current house is only about 1/2 the sq.ft. and a third the price, and they have paneled doors because it fit the look of that kitchen better.
Beyond that, it is personal preference. If you don't like paneled doors, don't put them in, unless it is the only non-wood area in your kitchen (your sink and countertops are a wood grain look, you have a panel for your dishwasher, you have a wood cover for your range, etc) it is going to be just fine.
I posted this poll because my husband and I disagreed on what is better. I like the regular stainless/black fridges. I don't care for the panelled ones. I think they are ugly and you can't find the fridge bc they blend in so much!
The house we are buying has no fridge and unfortunately the space for it, is 48 inches.
48 inch fridges are anywhere from 5000-8000. It totally sux. Why would I want to spend that much on a fridge!!?! So we're trying to figure out what to do.
We're eventually going to update the kitchen so I figured just get a regular 36inch fridge. (But we were just planning on staining the cabinets since they are in good condition and just get new countertops, the space will still be too big for the fridge unless we figure something out.)
Or we just bite the bullet and buy a 48 inch fridge. But I'd rather just the regular stainless steel one while my husband thinks the panelled fridges are much nicer.
It kills me though to spend that much on a fridge.
Wow, what a dilema...not only will the fridge cost more to buy, but it will cost more to run. Is there room to have a built in broom closet or wine rack next to the fridge? Just trying to think of ideas...
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