[john1970]

To all AC Members,

I am looking at purchasing a new refrigerator/freezer due to problems (water leaks and noisy compressor) with the old one.  I am looking to spend between $800 to $1200 for the new unit.  I am quite upset that a 4 year old GE is already falling apart, but from what I have read on the web (http://www.consumeraffairs.com/homeowners/appliances.htm) new appliances are not made to very high standards.  Of course, this comes from a website where consumers vent their frustrations so there is a bias. 


I am looking at Whirlpool and Amana (or any other brand except GE or Bosch).  It appears that Amana was purchased by Maytag in 2001 and that Whirlpool recently (last 2 years) acquired Maytag.  Moreover, Whirlpool makes Kitchen Aid, Jenn-Air.  Because one company makes (owns) many brands, I don't see how there can be vast differences in the reliability between the major brands (Whirlpool, Maytag, Amana, Kitchen Aid, Jenn-Air) as reported by Consumer Reports.   

More specifically, I am looking at the Whirlpool Gold GR2FHMXPQ Top Freezer for ~$875 and the Amana ABB2222FE Bottom Freezer for ~$1100.  Many reports indicate that the Amana falls apart (compressor failures) after about two years and I read a report where a Whirlpool caught on fire!  Although I like the bottom freezer advantages, given the poor reliability I am highly considering purchasing the Whirlpool; if all brands are poorly made I might as well buy the inexpensive unit and plan on purchasing a new one every 5 years or so. 

MY PRINCIPLE CONCERN IS RELIABILITY.  CAN PEOPLE PLEASE RECOMMEND A RELIABLE BRAND? 


Any help or guidance is greatly appreciated.

Thank you,

John

[Dan_ed]

I stopped paying attention to what consumer reports reports. I found them too unreliable. Just FYI, I own Bosch, GE and Maytag for many years and never had any real problems with the appliances. Now, how the contractor installed them is a completely different story.

I think the best thing you can do with appliances is find the features you want and then check out what local service is available for that particular brand. In my area we have a couple of very good appliance service/repair companies, including Sear's. 

[yooper]

IMHO, Your fridge is to new to replace (unless you require something different).  I would call Sears and have a service call set up.  You pay about 60.00 for the call, and the tech will give you an estimate.  You may find it is not very expensive to repair.  If you decide to not repair it, Sears will credit the the money spent on the service call towards a new fridge.

Good luck,

Mark

[john1970]

To those that had replied,

Thank you for the recommendation on Sears, but unfortunately Sears can not deliver to my address. 

TRUE STORY:
When I first moved into my house four years ago I ordered all of my appliances from Sears for ~$3000.  I live on a very hilly street and Sears claimed that they could not make the delivery because the truck's back end got stuck going up the hill.  In conclusion I had to cancel my order with Sears and ended up purchasing my appliances and Lowes and Home Depot. 

So unfortunately I can't order from Sears (I wish I could).

John

[JCarney]

Take a look at LG. I have the bottom freezer that pulls out, and has double doors up top. It's build quality is very good, and the interior os pretty flexible for configuration. The veg and cold cut bins work very well. The freezer has decent space, and freezes stuff pretty fast.

Good Luck,
JCarney

[arthurs]

We also have an LG (side by side) and have been very happy with it in terms of features and performance for a couple of years now. 

They really benefit from upgraded power cords as well, you'll be amazed at the added crispness of vegetables and the extended flavor in milk......   sorry, couldn't resist that one....

Seriously, the LG has been terrific.

[Parnelli777]

Whatever is still made in the U.S.A. We just bought a nice bottom freezer Whirlpool unit for around $1100–made in the U.S.A.

[john1970]

Whatever is still made in the U.S.A. We just bought a nice bottom freezer Whirlpool unit for around $1100–made in the U.S.A.

FYI,

My GE is also "Made in the USA".  However, if I look closely at the parts on the unit many of the major parts are "Made in China".  IMO the unit should state "Assembled in the USA of foreign and domestic parts".  The real problem as I see it is that manufacturers don't build quality units regardless of where they are made. 

Best,

John

[ctviggen]

Whatever is still made in the U.S.A. We just bought a nice bottom freezer Whirlpool unit for around $1100–made in the U.S.A.

FYI,

My GE is also "Made in the USA".  However, if I look closely at the parts on the unit many of the major parts are "Made in China".  IMO the unit should state "Assembled in the USA of foreign and domestic parts".  The real problem as I see it is that manufacturers don't build quality units regardless of where they are made. 

Best,

John

I totally agree.  Unless it's 100 percent USA parts and made in the USA, it should say something like "assembled in USA from foreign and US parts" (and should list the percentage of US and foreign parts, as the car companies have to do). 

I have an Amana bottom freezer, pullout unit that has been great for the last about five years or so.  I purchased this prior to the buyout by Maytag, so I'm not sure what if anything has happened since.  At the time, there were very few pullout bottom freezer units.  My unit was relatively energy efficient at the time, has pullout shelves, but no automatic ice maker (although I purchased and installed one later).  It was more expensive than 1,200 though. 

As for LG, I examined their front loading washers.  They are really expensive, and I can't see paying more for LG than Bosch, which I've found to be very reliable with great features.  So, I purchased a set of Bosch washer/dryer instead of LG. 

[Parnelli777]

FYI,

My GE is also "Made in the USA".  However, if I look closely at the parts on the unit many of the major parts are "Made in China".  IMO the unit should state "Assembled in the USA of foreign and domestic parts".  The real problem as I see it is that manufacturers don't build quality units regardless of where they are made.

FYI,

We do the best we can. If the product available is completely manufactured in the U.S.A.–nothing outsourced whatsoever–of course that is ideal. If the alternative is to purchase products that are utterly and completely made in China, Taiwan, then you won't sell it to me, thats a cinch

Now, if I can just convince the wife to go for the Audio Research Reference CD7, I'll sell the Jolida and be able to say that for the most part, my hi-fi gear is made in the U.S.A.

[finsup]

I see Sears doesn't deliver so too bad about that.  I have had Kenmoore (8 years now) and found it to be pretty reliable although I have had some problems with the ice machine chute door fully sealing.  Since it doesn't close properly, a little ice dam builds up from time-to-time.

I also have a French-door/bottom freezer Samsung.  One thing to check about bottom freezers:  If you get an ice-cube maker, the maker itself will likely be in the refrigerator compartment.  The ice-cube production in the Samsung comes nowhere close to matching the Kenmoore -- maybe because the maker unit in the Kenmoore is in the freezer where it is naturally colder therefore giving me better ice production.

Good luck.

[Dan_ed]

We shouldn't get to uptight about this "made in America" thing. After all, we are the country that invented "built in obsolescense".   

[JLM]

We got a Maytag double door/freezer on the bottom a couple of years ago, no problems so far.  I'd avoid ice makers (known as something to break) and any other nonsense options (as other potential trouble makers).  I'd avoid paying $300 extra for stainless steel.

The double door refrigerator is nice, avoid side by sides as too narrow for wide items in either compartment.  As we as have a separate freezer the bottom freezer section was nice too.l

Make sure to measure before shopping, all units are different sizes.

Shop for returned units for substantial savings.

[rajacat]

We shouldn't get to uptight about this "made in America" thing. After all, we are the country that invented "built in obsolescense".   

I agree. Why worry about "made in American" since the multinational corporations that manufacture most of the refrigerators are just trying to maximize profits and really don't have any loyalty to American workers. They're outsourcing whenever it is in the interest of their stockholders. Many of these corporations just have their offices in the U.S. but most of the actual fabrication is overseas where they can take advantages of the very low wages, lack of environmental standards and virtually nonexistent worker rights. It's tough to find any mass produced appliance that is completely built in the USA. "Made in USA" doesn't have much meaning anymore.
Too bad!

[Russell Dawkins]

I'd go with LG for the quiet.

My understanding is it is the only major brand that is significantly quieter than the others and that most of the name brands use the same compressor unit.

We bought a KitchenAid for its large freezer capacity, but we both wish now we had got the LG and a separate freezer, as the fridge seems to run most of the time and it's not very quiet.

[Photon46]

My wife & I are going to be buying a new 'fridge soon also. I've been reading Consumer Reports, researching consumer opinions on various sites, and talking to salespeople. LG is overall, is a very quiet fridge if you buy the higher end models with the "low decibel" operation feature. Noise is a big problem for me, a primary consideration. The newest generation of fridges do run almost all the time, it's operationally normal. Sears Kenmores are made by LG now, but they aren't quite as quiet as the LGs according to Consumer Reports. They do have some very nice models though. GE also has higher end models that are specifically noted for quiet operation. Icemakers account for the vast majority of problems, by far the most trouble causing area. More expensive fridges appear to have better made icemakers with more metal parts, less flimsy plastic. You won't have much luck finding any larger, nice fridges without icemakers though. Only cheap, low line models lack icemakers.