How to Get a Built-In Refrigerator Look with a Trim Kit

Give your fridge that built-in look with a refrigerator trim kit! It's easy and inexpensive to give your kitchen a major upgrade.

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Last fall, our LG fridge (that had been on its last leg for quite a while) finally kicked the bucket. (Don't buy an LG fridge by the way - they're nothing but trouble.) Anyone who has had to replace a refrigerator knows that it's just kind of an annoying process.

I have loved that built-in refrigerator look for years. I wasn't so big on the price of it though. If you've never priced a sub-zero or custom refrigerator, take my advice and don't. They're super expensive.

I think we knew from the get-go that there was no way we were paying into the five figures for a refrigerator, but we also both love that sub-zero look. So, we started looking at our options.

Related: Check out my tips for easy fridge organization!

Option A: Frigidaire Professional Series Fridge/Freezer

I really, really wanted this option to work. These are actually two separate units (a full stand-up fridge and a full stand-up freezer) that are attached together and finished out with an add-on trim kit that Frigidaire manufactures.

Pros: Tons of fridge space, much less expensive than a comparable sub-zero refrigerator, everything is sold from the same manufacturer, solid reviews

Cons: Really big. Too big. That's the main issue we ran into - we would have had to basically rip out a whole wall of cabinetry, losing that cabinet storage space. And the whole set-up is still going to run you $7-8k, which was a little higher than we were willing to go.

There's also a Whirlpool version of this setup that's a little bit more competitively priced. We would have run into the same issue with this though - just too big, and still a little pricier than we were willing to pay.

Option B: Forno Moena Refrigerator

This one is fairly new to the market. These fridges have mixed reviews, but they give that sub-zero look at a great value.

Pros: Really competitively priced and would give you that built-in look at a fraction of the price of paying for a sub-zero. The actual refrigerators have great reviews.

Cons: There are mixed reviews on the trim aspect of the fridge. It seems to be a little difficult to install. In addition, you'll need to build a custom wood casing that fits the fridge, which we didn't want to do.

Option C: DIY Refrigerator Trim Kit

Eventually, this is the option we landed on. This is by far the most inexpensive way to get that built-in look and gives you tons of options as far as fridges go.

Pros: Choose any fridge you'd like, incredibly inexpensive compared to the other options, custom built to fit your refrigerator casing, and you're supporting an American-made small business

Cons: Can be difficult to match the exact finish of your fridge, won't work without a minimum clearance around the fridge

What Fridge To Use With a Refrigerator Trim Kit

We landed on a Hisense refrigerator. I know, I know - the reviews online aren't great. But we had a few things we really wanted...

• fingerprint-resistant matte finish
• water dispenser inside the fridge
• no handles

...so this was our only real option that was in the price range we were willing to pay.

We've actually been really impressed with it! We're going on 8 months with this refrigerator and haven't had a single issue. Plus, you just can't beat the price.

Here's the great thing about using Refrigerator Trim kits though - you can use just about any refrigerator on the planet. It obviously needs a stainless steel finish, and you do need a minimum clearance between the fridge and your cabinets, but those are really the only limitations!

You can see that it just looked kind of unfinished in our existing casing. It's a little bit smaller than the LG fridge that this casing was built for, so there are bigger gaps that needed to be filled.

Refrigerator Trim Kits to the rescue!

How to Order a Refrigerator Trim Kit

First thing's first - order samples. Trust me on this one, you don't want to skip this step. Just click the button on the right side of the Refrigerator Trim Kit website to order those.

They'll send you a sample of their matte and shiny finishes at no cost. This makes it really easy to determine which finish is best for your fridge.

This handy dandy chart also shows which trim finish will probably work best for your model.

Once you have the finish figured out, measure your cabinets. This video walks you right through the process. Basically, you're just measuring the dimensions of your fridge and the dimensions of your cabinet opening.

One note I will add about measurements: make sure your cabinet opening measurement is the same from top to bottom. We discovered that there's about a ⅓" difference between the top of our casing and the bottom. It's not a huge deal if that happens though - just let them know in the order notes and they can send extra adhesive to pad the bigger sections of the opening.

How to Install DIY Fridge Trim

The trim kit took 1-2 weeks to ship. It's custom-cut to your refrigerator cabinet and fridge, so it takes a little while to build.

The whole process is really straightforward and it only took about an hour to install. You'll get full video instructions with your kit.

We went a little out of order with the recommended installation - we decided to put the top in first and the sides last. Because our side measurements were a little wonky, we wanted to make sure everything would be nice and flush to the fridge before we installed the side panels.

There are really only 3 pieces to put in - the top grate and the two long side panels. The top grate is screwed into your casing and the side panels are attached with really strong adhesive. Once everything is in place, it's all super secure!

Final Built-In Look

We are so pleased with the final result! This whole setup was under $2000, making it less than half the price of any other built-in option. The ordering process and installation were simple. No complaints!

This is the way to go if you're limited on a) fridge space and b) budget. It's one of those really easy upgrades that makes a big impact in your kitchen.

And one final note - you know that large built-in look I mentioned in Option A? Refrigerator Trim Kits can make a similar look for much less. If you have a little bit more space, this is such a great setup!

I can't wait to see what you think of this easy DIY! Let me know how it looks in the comments below.