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Boring Topic!; Tell me about Refrigerators
Topic Started: May 7 2010, 07:49 AM (349 Views)
Won for Me
Is the meadow on fire?
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I have to buy one. I have no preference at all because I know nothing about them and I am not a ocok. I care if it keeps my iced tea cold and that is about it. Oh and of course, carrots fresh.

Is Stainless Steel a necessity? What about the configuration? Side by side has always seemed too narrow. What is this French door thing now? Also, they have something called Clean Steel...I imagine because Stainless was a pain in the rump to clean...anyone know about that? I think white would be pretty with my cabinets, but isn't that passe? Any brands to look for or stay away from? Why does there seem to be such a huge price range? I am guessing size, but really there can't be too many features.

I don't have water run for an ice maker, but the home inspector said it would be easy to run...so maybe sometime in the future. If a cheap one is not a good investment, let me know. I will spend the extra money if I don't have to replace in a few years, but it the cheap ones are okay...let me know.

I know...boring topic! :)
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Indy
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I wouldn't do stainless steel. I love the way it looks but I don't know that I'll ever have it in a kitchen that I supply the appliances for. Our last rental had brand new gorgeous stainless appliances and they were a pain.in.the.ass to keep clean. Finger print smudges and streaks got over everything, and getting them off was nearly impossible. Our water dispenser dripped a bit so there were always water streaks running down the freezer side. Our place now has regular plain vanilla white appliances and they're so much easier to deal with.

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Delia
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We have a stainless GE Arctica side by side that I don't like at all. Stainless isn't the problem -- it's a matte finish so doesn't really show prints, etc. But the fridge and freezer temperature will randomly warm up; the icemaker frequently freezes over; and I agree with you that at least the freezer side of a side-by-side is narrow. If I had to do it over again, I would buy one with the French doors. We didn't, because 3 years ago when we bought ours they were new so $$$$$, and I didn't like that the bottom freezer compartments of the models available were just one big tub -- so to get at stuff at the bottom you would have to root around in there. But now I think manufacturers have installed sliding trays in the freezers to remedy that problem. Also, hubby wanted an icemaker/water dispenser in the door and french door models didn't used to have that but I think some do now. But honestly, I think he would give that up now, since we don't usually get water from the fridge dispenser, and opening the door to get into the icemaker isn't a big deal. Your inspector is correct -- running water to the fridge is super easy. It's just a little plastic tube that runs along the floor molding from the sink to the fridge.
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hijumpin1
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I think stainless steel appliances should be renamed "stainful" steel. PIA to keep clean. To be quite honest I don't polish it unless company is expected (yeah I'm lazy and would rather clean tack).

I also haven't been impressed with the KitchenAid brand. We bought a full set about 3 years ago and had the repair guy out within 6 months. Both the microwave and dishwasher have broken. Ice gets stuck frequently in the ice maker.

Why is stuff so cheapy now? When I moved out, my grandma gave me an old upright vacuum. That thing was SOLID. It was ugly--I suppose at one time the bag had been avocado brocade. It was probably from the early 60's. That thing wouldn't die. Finally the zipper gave out, so I pitched it. Mistake! :duh:

I bought a top of the line Hoover wind tunnel with our wedding $$. That one was super loud, and died within a year. I've gone through a few now and honestly don't see any more reliability with expensive vs. mid range cheap.

I would get on Consumer Reports. I think the high-end appliances are made in the same Chinese plants as the cheaper ones.
Edited by hijumpin1, May 7 2010, 09:06 AM.
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Buryinghill1
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I agree with buying Consumer Reports. Very helpful!

I have a 15+ year old GE that refuses to die. Not stainless ;) Works just fine.

Family member bought a fancy (don't know brand) side by side with freezer in bottom (3 door?). It sucks! No icemaker, and the freezer is a pain in the a**. My old GE is much easier to get stuff into and out of...
The 2 doors are nice, but not worth the money IMHO. For half the price they could have bought a regular side by side (freezer on the left?), or upper/lower.

I do like ice and water in the door (I don't have this).

Another relative has a compartment that holds milk, juice, etc - without having to open the whole door. Very cool, but no idea if it's energy efficient. Great when you have 2 kids that open that compartment a lot!

I have a stainless stove, and DW. Very pretty, but they don't work any better than non-stainless. The DW has something on the front that will not come off. I'll bet on a non-stainless this would not be a problem.
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SidesaddleRider
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Is the meadow on fire?
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We have a black GE Profile French Door refrigerator.
http://products.geappliances.com/ApplProducts/Dispatcher?REQUEST=SpecPage&Sku=GFSF6KKYBB.

We LOVE it. It fits everything that we need, is quiet, the shelves are adjustable, you can fit gallon milk jugs on the bottom door holders, the freezer is easy to get in and out of, etc....ours is about 5 years old, so it has the water dispenser inside and the icemaker in the freezer, rather than set into the outside of the door.

My parents have a side-by-side, and every time they visit, they always say that they wish they had our refrigerator.

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DairyQueen2049
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Be sure to get one that has a fed refund on it!! (Applis with Energy Star ratings)
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goodhors
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We have 2 Amana refrigerators. Sounds silly, but the extra one holds volume of stuff to save shopping trips. Trying to only shop with the long list every couple weeks.

We do usually get milk inbetween, in quantity. I seldom buy any kind of pop, so having extra milk on hand makes it the drink of choice. This is usually 4-5 gallons each store visit.

We like the Amana with the freezer on the bottom. One has the swing door, the other a pull out wire drawer. Funny but husband likes the drawer, I like the swing door freezer which holds more. All the regular food is easily viewable without bending over. Freezer drawer usually has frozen veggies, a box of ice cream, ice maker, in the kitchen fridge. The other fridge has extra veggies, loaf of bread, dog bones, freezer packs for small lunch coolers.

We have 2 small upright freezers in the basement for quantity storage and meat. We buy seasonal food and freeze a lot, meat in quantity, store that in the freezers. Makes a big savings in the grocery bills, even though we are not a big family. We do share with our families, don't eat it all. Usually have a couple lambs frozen, 1/4 beef, sometimes 1/2 a pig over a year. We do find the home produced flavor excellent, superior to store meat. We are happy to know where the food came from, not run thru the 'store-bought' channels so no worries about recalls!

The Amana's have glass, slide out shelves for easy viewing, easy cleaning. Humidity controlled, clear drawers for fresh vegtables and meat. Door has deep shelves, easily holds gallons of milk on the bottom. Other shelves on door are very adjustable for your door items.

One is stainless to match the other appliances, the other is white. I HATE the SS, will never buy another SS fridge, always spotty or streaked. The white one is easily cleaned, always looks nice, plus you can stick magnets on it for notes! One SIL has a black fridge, says it also looks dirty ALL the time, never will have black again. SS is not magnetic. The SS is not as deep, but wider, 36", to be even with the cabinets, not protrude in our narrow kitchen. They didn't have the French door when we purchased, I would have gotten them! My SIL has one and likes it very well.

Both of them hold a lot of stuff. We had to get the SS fixed when the freezer had some problems. No problems with the older white fridge. The SS has a cold-water dispenser in the side of the door frame, works pretty well when we think to use it. Ice maker works well also. I like the fact that I can turn off either section, fridge or freezer, for cleaning. They are both easily cleaned. Door hinges can be changed to the other side fairly easily, if you need the fridge put in another location, so door opens the other way.

They were both energy efficient rated at the time of purchase. I think one is about 10yrs, and the other about 5yrs.

I did not even look at the side-by-sides. The compartments are too narrow to take tray size pans, trays, big bowls, for preparing stuff for family gatherings with lots of people coming. I don't know anyone who really LIKES their side-by-sides. Even those big Sub-Zeros. Hard to use. Kind of a "fashion" type fridge. The Sub Zero often needs repair.

Consumers Report is a good source for checking freezer comparisons. We also were very happy with our previous Sears fridges, no repairs. They were just so old, not efficient anymore. Got them from my mother. New kitchen deserved NEW appliances.
Edited by goodhors, May 8 2010, 08:17 PM.
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Black Tack
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I also have the Amana with the freezer in a drawer with shelves on the bottom. It's stainless and to be different from the others I love it! Love the look and wouldn't buy any other colour. Our stove and dishwasher are Bosch and are also both stainless.
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Sannois
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11 year old GE here, Plain white Freezer on top. Praying it keeps on going!
A trick I was told is that keeping the fridge full is a good way to conserve energy. Stuff stays colder and the compressor does not run as much, also make sure you vacum the coils every six months! ;)
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Buryinghill1
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Sannois
May 10 2010, 06:15 AM
make sure you vacum the coils every six months! ;)
Oh God, I can't imagine how much dog hair is on the back of my fridge :jaw: :jaw:
Thanks for the reminder!
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Delia
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buryinghill1
May 10 2010, 10:54 AM
Sannois
May 10 2010, 06:15 AM
make sure you vacum the coils every six months! ;)
Oh God, I can't imagine how much dog hair is on the back of my fridge :jaw: :jaw:
Thanks for the reminder!
I'm always amazed at how much dog hair is IN my refrigerator! I adore my dogs, but really, seeing black lab hair in the vegetable crisper or stuck to the milk container is a little bit :spew:
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Buryinghill1
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Delia
May 10 2010, 11:14 AM
black lab hair in ... milk
Protein shake :teehee:
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Sannois
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Delia
May 10 2010, 11:14 AM
buryinghill1
May 10 2010, 10:54 AM
Sannois
May 10 2010, 06:15 AM
make sure you vacum the coils every six months! ;)
Oh God, I can't imagine how much dog hair is on the back of my fridge :jaw: :jaw:
Thanks for the reminder!
I'm always amazed at how much dog hair is IN my refrigerator! I adore my dogs, but really, seeing black lab hair in the vegetable crisper or stuck to the milk container is a little bit :spew:
Oh same with cat hair BH1. The first time I did it the hair was awful, The fridge ran so much less after that. It has to work harder when there hair all gunked up. ;)
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