Do you need 36" of vertical storage? I didn't, so my vertical storage is in a cabinet over a pantry pull-out. I divided my fridge cab into two cabinets with an 18" shelf in each because a 36" shelf will eventually sag. So I could have had vertical dividers on one side and a shelf on the other.

I use it for light-weight metal baking pans since I hardly bake any more. I have a few small electrics in there since I don't have a lazy Susan--things I use occasionally and are easy to take out while on a step stool--yogurt maker, Cuisinart ice cream maker. Extra paper towels and paper napkins. Picnic supplies. Lunch box. And one lonely, empty shelf. Take advantage of that depth!

Susanne, this will get you started . . .
http://www.google.com/search?q=over+fridge+storage+site:Gardenweb.com

Also, once you go to that link, click on 'Images' for lots of photo ideas.

Here is mine:

Mine is posted in one of those earlier threads, but here it is. I use it for large diameter serving pieces that I don't use often. I can reach the front of the bottom shelf on tip toe. the back of the bottom shelf and the top shelf require the step stool. As you can see, I also put my extra oven racks in there.

I'm sure I've posted this somewhere, but here you go..

the flip-up door is there for one reason only..it is a separate cabinet that can be removed without disturbing the surrounding cabinets if we ever need to put a taller fridge in (which is what the standard single fridges are these days.

Ask your cabinetmaker for extra horizontal shelves if you do the horizontal storage. It's nice not having to pull everything out just to get to the pan on the bottom.

I think some of these may not have full-depth cabinets since you can see the back of the cabinet. You can use a standard depth cabinet and pull it forward, hiding the open back between adjacent cabinetry. The advantage is things on their edge won't slide/get pushed back into the cabinet. That happens in my deep over-pantry cabinet. I'm always losing a pizza pan. :)

I'm in the process of remodeling my small kitchen, so everything is still on paper at this point. I have tray/cookie sheet space elsewhere.

I am planning fridge-depth cabinets above, with two pull-outs - but not pull-out shelves. They will be more like trash pull-outs where the whole door pulls out, accessible from the side. Does that make sense? It will be essentially the same as reaching the stuff on the open top of the fridge that we have now. Two questions on my latest list for the cabinet maker are the pull-out length of these cabs, and their weight limit.

My plan for the space is cereal boxes, paper towels, juice bottles - other large items we buy in bulk.

My kitchen is small. The large fridge is on a 10' wall with a door beside it. The cab over it is 10-15'' deeper than the cab to the left. To minimize the visual protrusion into the room, I had the cab over the fridge stop somewhat short of the ceiling:

Here is a side angle that shows the protrusion:

With the doors open, a full-width tray pulls out. This gives me access on 3 sides to the cabinet contents. I can reach nearly everything except the very center back from either the sides or front without using a stepladder. Since I am short, this is great!

The pullout tray (really a shallow drawer) is very efficient here. The use of the area for storing very large stock pots, pots with strainer and steamer inserts, and a canner is also efficient.

After a year of use, I would not change anything about this cabinet.

I love the vertical setup many use to store their trays and other things. However, in my last kitchen, I already had a space for these items, so we turned the doors above our refrigerator into pullout drawers. The picture below is not mine - but close enough.

We all know that the space above the refrigerator can become a black hole that is difficult to access. With these drawers, the back of the cabinet is as easy as the front to access. We stored liqueur bottles up there.

{{!gwi}}

Here are a couple pics from our remodel 8 yrs (!) ago.

-Babka

{{!gwi}}
{{!gwi}}

I have very tall ceilings in our 1890 home . I had to get creative in using all the space. I can reach the cookbooks but have to use a step ladder for the cabs. They are DEEP...so I have a lot of storage up there. c