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A bright kitchen during an installation, a new stainless French door refrigerator on a low four-wheel appliance dolly being eased toward an empty cabinet opening, a technician seen from behind and shoulders down guiding it with one hand on the side of the cabinet, a folded moving blanket and a coil of new braided water line on a protective floor runner, cardboard corner guards at the edge of the frame, even daylight.

Cold Storage Installation

Setting a new refrigerator, freezer, wine or beverage unit or ice maker into its opening: measured, connected to water, leveled and started.

(844) 638-8309

Mon–Sat, 8am–8pm

  • 4 things that fail on it
  • 32 makes build it
  • 7 problems it shows

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or call (844) 638-8309

Is yours
a cold storage unit?

A cold storage installation begins weeks before the truck arrives, with a tape measure and the spec sheet side by side. A freestanding French door model needs its depth checked against the counter and its door swing checked against the wall beside it; a built-in column or an integrated drawer needs a cutout matched to the maker's drawing within a fraction of an inch, an anti-tip strap or bracket where the instructions call for one, and a toe-kick grille that lines up with the cabinetry. Then there is the path: the front door, the hall, the turn into the kitchen and sometimes the stairs to a basement where the second freezer lives. On the day, the old unit is emptied, unplugged and rolled out on a protected floor. The new one gets its doors reversed or removed if the path demands it, stands upright long enough for its oil to settle when it traveled on its side, and meets its water supply through a fresh line and a shutoff the owner can reach. Then come the leveling legs, the door alignment, the panels on a panel-ready model, and the first cool-down, which takes most of a day before any food goes in. A wine or beverage unit under the counter and a built-in ice maker with its own drain follow the same order with their own clearances.

A kitchen of light oak cabinetry with a tall built-in column refrigerator set into its opening, its door open and a blank wooden cabinet panel being fitted to it, a technician seen from behind and shoulders down adjusting a panel bracket with a screwdriver, a tape measure and a small spirit level on the counter nearby, packing corner guards at the edge of the frame, even daylight. What fails on a cold storage unit

How to tell

01

Its job is holding food, drinks, wine or ice below room temperature behind a sealed door or drawer, whatever size or finish it comes in.
02

Its spec sheet lists an opening width, height and depth plus an air gap around the cabinet, and the installation instructions show those numbers in a drawing.
03

Many models take a water line for a dispenser or an ice maker, and some built-in ice makers also need a floor drain or a drain pump.
04

It is heavy, top-heavy when the doors are open, and it arrives strapped upright on a pallet or a dolly with protective blocks on the shelves.

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What fails
on this design.

On a cold storage unit: an opening measured once, and wrong, a water line that was reused, too little air around the cabinet, doors that were never aligned.

The problems it shows

An opening measured once, and wrong

A cabinet measured at the front but not at the back, a floor that climbs toward the wall, or a soffit that sits lower than the drawing: any one of them leaves a new unit an inch too tall or too deep, with the doors unable to open past the counter.

A water line that was reused

The old plastic tubing and a worn saddle valve are the most common leak after a cold storage swap. A new braided or copper line and a proper quarter-turn stop cost little next to a soaked subfloor.

Too little air around the cabinet

A freestanding model pushed tight to the back wall, or a built-in with its top grille blocked by trim, cannot shed heat. It runs long, cools slowly on the first day and never quite reaches its set point.

Doors that were never aligned

Reversed hinges, a panel mounted slightly high or legs left at their shipping height make doors that rub, gap or drift. A door that does not seal on the first night fills the unit with frost by the end of the week.

Getting at it,
and whether to.

Measure twice before you order: the opening at the front and the back, the height under any cabinet above, and every doorway and turn on the way in.

What installations cost

On the visit

  1. Empty the old unit the night before and let the ice bin melt into a towel, so it can be disconnected and moved without spilling across the floor.
  2. Show us the water shutoff for the ice maker line, or tell us there is none, so a proper stop valve can be planned rather than improvised.
  3. Keep the spec sheet and the installation manual that came with the new model handy; the cutout drawing and the clearances in it decide how the unit is set.

Repair or replace

Not every cold storage problem calls for a new unit, and not every new unit needs a new opening. A refrigerator that has failed is a repair question first, answered by our sister repair site for that appliance. Once the decision to replace is made, the cheapest path is a model that fits the opening you already have: same width, the depth your counters allow, the same water and power. Changing from freestanding to built-in, or from one column to a pair, means cabinet work and sometimes a new outlet, and that is worth knowing before the order is placed rather than on delivery day.

Book a visit for a cold storage unit

The problems
it shows.

On a cold storage unit, most often cold storage slow to cool on the first day.

All problems
A kitchen with a newly installed stainless French door refrigerator standing open and empty, bright interior light on clean glass shelves, a simple dial thermometer on the middle shelf, grocery bags waiting on the counter nearby, cardboard corner guards at the edge of the frame, soft daylight.

Cold Storage Slow to Cool on the First Day

6 causes, cheapest first

 Close view inside the open freezer compartment of a new stainless refrigerator, an empty clear plastic ice bin under a small ice maker with a few thin half-formed cubes in its tray, the freezer shelves clean and nearly empty, soft interior light.

Ice Maker Not Filling After the Install: Valve, Line and Patience

6 causes, cheapest first

 A kitchen floor in front of a newly installed dishwasher, its kick plate removed and leaning against the cabinet, a small spreading pool of clear water on light wood flooring below the open toe space, a folded dry towel lying nearby untouched, the sink cabinet door open beside it with a chrome stop valve visible, seen low from across the room. Hazard after a hookup

Water Leak After an Install: Close the Supply Valve First

6 causes, cheapest first

 Close view along the front of a kitchen wall of light oak cabinetry with a newly installed panel-ready column refrigerator, its wooden door panel standing a finger's width proud of the cabinet door beside it at the handle side, the uneven shadow line clear, soft side daylight.

Door Not Closing Flush After the Install

6 causes, cheapest first

 A kitchen with a new stainless French door refrigerator still on its low appliance dolly, stopped halfway into a cabinet opening whose top edge is visibly too low for it, a yellow tape measure lying extended along the counter beside it, cardboard corner guards at the edge of the frame, even daylight.

Unit Too Big for the Opening: Cutout, Depth and the Delivery Path

6 causes, cheapest first

 Close view at the bottom corner of a newly installed stainless freestanding range, the kick drawer removed, one threaded leveling leg visible turned partway out, a small spirit level lying on the floor beside it with its bubble off center, a strip of light wood floor and the edge of a cabinet, soft daylight.

New Appliance Not Level: Rocking Cabinets and Uneven Gaps

6 causes, cheapest first

 Close view of the dark control panel of a newly installed white front-loading laundry machine, one abstract wave-shaped symbol glowing amber among unlit icons, a strip of protective blue film still on the edge of the panel, the door glass blurred below, soft daylight.

Appliance Installation Code on a New Unit: Setup Modes and Hookup Messages

8 causes, cheapest first

Who builds
a cold storage unit.

32 of the makes on this site build a cold storage unit. Each mark opens that make's own page.

All 37 brands

Cold storage installation,
where we come out.

9 metros, each with its own page.

All service areas

Tampa BayFL · 31 areas

OrlandoFL · 30 areas

Miami / South FloridaFL · 47 areas

New York MetroNY · 75 areas

HoustonTX · 36 areas

ChicagoIL · 50 areas

Los AngelesCA · 95 areas

San DiegoCA · 31 areas

San Francisco Bay AreaCA · 74 areas

A family unpacking groceries into a newly fitted kitchen, the fresh appliances set flush in their openings.
For the heart of your home.

Questions about
cold storage units.

How long should a new cold storage unit stand before it is plugged in?
If it traveled upright, most makers allow it to be plugged in right away. If it was laid on its side or its back, the usual advice is to let it stand upright for several hours, or as long as its manual says, so the compressor oil drains back where it belongs.
Can the ice maker line from the old unit be connected to the new one?
It can, but it is rarely a good idea. Old plastic tubing turns brittle and a self-piercing saddle valve weeps with age; a new line with a quarter-turn stop is a small part of the installation and removes the most common leak.
Does a panel-ready unit arrive with its front panels?
No. The panels come from your cabinetmaker, cut to the maker's drawing for thickness, weight and the position of the handle holes. They are hung and adjusted during the installation, once the cabinet itself is set and level.

Back to your everyday

Is it a cold storage unit?

Say so when you book — it changes what the technician brings and how the visit is planned.

Schedule an installation Call (844) 638-8309
(844) 638-8309 Schedule an installation