We're moving to a new house on March 15 and one of the several things
that won't be making the trip across town is our refrigerator. It's
old, I've hated it for years and it isn't energy efficient. The style
I have my eye on is a stainless steel French door with the (pull out
drawer) freezer on the bottom. Does anyone have any recommendations of
personal or tangential experience? I looked at Consumer Reports and it
recommends Whirlpool umbrella brands which includes Whirlpool, Maytag,
Amana, KitchenAid and Jenn-Air. Yet when I look at the user reviews,
there were far too many negative comments to make me comfortable with
their recommendations. The only other ratings were for GE, Viking and
one LG - the rest were those under the Whirlpool umbrella (of the ones
that were rated as being energy efficient). Of those 3, the LG and the
GE were found to be too noisy (the refrigerator will be contiguous to
the family room) with inferior hardware and the Viking ridiculously
expensive (or course). SubZero wasn't even mentioned, but that would
be in the Viking cost category anyway.

So, what's a girl to do?

Terry "Squeaks" Pulliam Burd

---

"If the soup had been as warm as the wine,
if the wine had been as old as the turkey,
and if the turkey had had a breast like the maid,
it would have been a swell dinner." Duncan Hines

Terry Pulliam Burd wrote:
> We're moving to a new house on March 15 and one of the several things
> that won't be making the trip across town is our refrigerator. It's
> old, I've hated it for years and it isn't energy efficient. The style
> I have my eye on is a stainless steel French door with the (pull out
> drawer) freezer on the bottom. Does anyone have any recommendations of
> personal or tangential experience? I looked at Consumer Reports and it
> recommends Whirlpool umbrella brands which includes Whirlpool, Maytag,
> Amana, KitchenAid and Jenn-Air. Yet when I look at the user reviews,
> there were far too many negative comments to make me comfortable with
> their recommendations. The only other ratings were for GE, Viking and
> one LG - the rest were those under the Whirlpool umbrella (of the ones
> that were rated as being energy efficient). Of those 3, the LG and the
> GE were found to be too noisy (the refrigerator will be contiguous to
> the family room) with inferior hardware and the Viking ridiculously
> expensive (or course). SubZero wasn't even mentioned, but that would
> be in the Viking cost category anyway.
>
> So, what's a girl to do?

I have no complaints about the temperature in my Maytag fridge, and
stuff int he freezer stays frozen. What I don't like about it is that
the door shelves sometimes fall off. Thanks to those adjustable shelves
being insecure, the butter tray fell off and the roll-up top broke. I
ordered a new one. That was in May. I ordered a new one through the
local Maytag dealer and I still don't have it.

The quietest refrigerator would be a natural gas model.
They literally make no audible sound at all.

Steve

On Feb 14, 4:23*pm, Terry Pulliam Burd > wrote:
> We're moving to a new house on March 15 and one of the several things
> that won't be making the trip across town is our refrigerator. It's
> old, I've hated it for years and it isn't energy efficient. The style
> I have my eye on is a stainless steel French door with the (pull out
> drawer) freezer on the bottom. Does anyone have any recommendations of
> personal or tangential experience? I looked at Consumer Reports and it
> recommends Whirlpool umbrella brands which includes Whirlpool, Maytag,
> Amana, KitchenAid and Jenn-Air. Yet when I look at the user reviews,
> there were far too many negative comments to make me comfortable with
> their recommendations. The only other ratings were for GE, Viking and
> one LG - the rest were those under the Whirlpool umbrella (of the ones
> that were rated as being energy efficient). Of those 3, the LG and the
> GE were found to be too noisy (the refrigerator will be contiguous to
> the family room) with inferior hardware and the Viking ridiculously
> expensive (or course). SubZero wasn't even mentioned, but that would
> be in the Viking cost category anyway.
>
> So, what's a girl to do?
>
> Terry "Squeaks" Pulliam Burd
>
> ---
>
> "If the soup had been as warm as the wine,
> if the wine had been as old as the turkey,
> and if the turkey had had a breast like the maid,
> it would have been a swell dinner." Duncan Hines

If I could afford the remodel, I'd do refrigerator drawers.

In article >,
Terry Pulliam Burd > wrote:

> recommends Whirlpool umbrella brands which includes Whirlpool, Maytag,
> Amana, KitchenAid and Jenn-Air. Yet when I look at the user reviews,
> there were far too many negative comments to make me comfortable with
> their recommendations.

> So, what's a girl to do?

You pays your money you takes your choice. I love my Amana (one fridge
door), with the pullout freezer drawer on the bottom. It's five years
old. FWIW.
-Barb, Mother Superior, HOSSSPoJ
http://web.me.com/barbschaller
Dom Schallerovych 2-10-2010

Terry Pulliam Burd wrote:
> We're moving to a new house on March 15 and one of the several things
> that won't be making the trip across town is our refrigerator. It's
> old, I've hated it for years and it isn't energy efficient. The style
> I have my eye on is a stainless steel French door with the (pull out
> drawer) freezer on the bottom. Does anyone have any recommendations of
> personal or tangential experience? I looked at Consumer Reports and it
> recommends Whirlpool umbrella brands which includes Whirlpool, Maytag,
> Amana, KitchenAid and Jenn-Air. Yet when I look at the user reviews,
> there were far too many negative comments to make me comfortable with
> their recommendations. The only other ratings were for GE, Viking and
> one LG - the rest were those under the Whirlpool umbrella (of the ones
> that were rated as being energy efficient). Of those 3, the LG and the
> GE were found to be too noisy (the refrigerator will be contiguous to
> the family room) with inferior hardware and the Viking ridiculously
> expensive (or course). SubZero wasn't even mentioned, but that would
> be in the Viking cost category anyway.
>
> So, what's a girl to do?
>
> Terry "Squeaks" Pulliam Burd
>
> ---
>
> "If the soup had been as warm as the wine,
> if the wine had been as old as the turkey,
> and if the turkey had had a breast like the maid,
> it would have been a swell dinner." Duncan Hines
I put little credence in others review
most of them expect miracles for little expenditure
Now our experience is that a couple of years back we bought an Lg
GR-559F without the water , it is HUGE and the sound level is very low
and it's cheap to run
two metres from the unit at 3 am it is just audible (just)the temp
regulation is good and it has heated door seal and lots of nice glass
and trimming ( metal handles in white body)
We also have a 340 litre Whirlpool . its noisy and expensive to run
because the damn thing goes into "it's all gonna freeze " mode at least
once a month or more , the regulation is poor and I hate it
ask you friends as some regions need more than others , perhaps if
it's cold out dropping the steaks out the window till spring ?

On Sun, 14 Feb 2010 16:23:13 -0800, Terry Pulliam Burd
> wrote:

> We're moving to a new house on March 15 and one of the several things
> that won't be making the trip across town is our refrigerator. It's
> old, I've hated it for years and it isn't energy efficient. The style
> I have my eye on is a stainless steel French door with the (pull out
> drawer) freezer on the bottom. Does anyone have any recommendations of
> personal or tangential experience? I looked at Consumer Reports and it
> recommends Whirlpool umbrella brands which includes Whirlpool, Maytag,
> Amana, KitchenAid and Jenn-Air. Yet when I look at the user reviews,
> there were far too many negative comments to make me comfortable with
> their recommendations. The only other ratings were for GE, Viking and
> one LG - the rest were those under the Whirlpool umbrella (of the ones
> that were rated as being energy efficient). Of those 3, the LG and the
> GE were found to be too noisy (the refrigerator will be contiguous to
> the family room) with inferior hardware and the Viking ridiculously
> expensive (or course). SubZero wasn't even mentioned, but that would
> be in the Viking cost category anyway.
>
> So, what's a girl to do?
>

Hold your nose and take your chances because they don't build them
like they used to. I put around $1000 into fixing my refrigerator
this year (three different visits, four different things to be fixed)
and it's not more than seven years old. We should have just purchased
a new one, but we thought the odds were against us spending what we
did _in less than six months_ when it all started.

--
I love cooking with wine.
Sometimes I even put it in the food.

sf > wrote:

>I put around $1000 into fixing my refrigerator
>this year (three different visits, four different things to be fixed)
>and it's not more than seven years old. We should have just purchased
>a new one, but we thought the odds were against us spending what we
>did _in less than six months_ when it all started.

It is greener to repair the old unit even if replacing it
would be cheaper. A new refrigerator, being a significant
chunk of metal, represents a large resource spend.

Plus I notice a new Miele refrigerator will set you back $6,200
anyway. Even an LG or a Bosch pushes two grand.

Steve

Wayne Boatwright > wrote:

> We don't have that style, but we do have a newer Whirlpool
> with SS doors that we're very happy with. It's quiet to the
> point of not really knowing when the compressor is running.
> Of all the refrigerators we've owned overe the years, it has
> the most consistent temperature throughout. I would definitely
> make the same choice again.

Wayne, which model number is this?

TIA,

Steve

On Mon, 15 Feb 2010 03:18:38 GMT, Wayne Boatwright
> wrote:

>We don't have that style, but we do have a newer Whirlpool with SS doors
>that we're very happy with. It's quiet to the point of not really knowing
>when the compressor is running. Of all the refrigerators we've owned overe
>the years, it has the most consistent temperature throughout. I would
>definitely make the same choice again.

I would say exactly the same things about our three-year-old
counter-depth side-by-side Kitchen Aid. Quietest reefer I've never
heard, apart from Sub-Zero (for obvious reasons).

IMO, the Whirlpool line-up is the way to go if you don't want to spend
the Sub-Zero bucks.

-- Larry

Terry Pulliam Burd wrote:
> We're moving to a new house on March 15 and one of the several things
> that won't be making the trip across town is our refrigerator. It's
> old, I've hated it for years and it isn't energy efficient. The style
> I have my eye on is a stainless steel French door with the (pull out
> drawer) freezer on the bottom. Does anyone have any recommendations of
> personal or tangential experience?


We've had the GE since November and I like it. I bought the model
without ice and water in the door because we've never had it, don't
miss it, and I read that those are the features most likely to fail.
It's the first GE appliance I've ever owned. We've always bought
Frigidaire, Amana, or Whirlpool because the interior design made the
most sense.

I have found that even though the square footage is larger then my
former top freezer model the refrigerator doesn't seem to hold as much.
YMMV. I am short and the top shelf and top door shelves are over my
head. This isn't a huge problem.

Also, it took about a month before the ice cubes stopped tasting like
plastic (they are fine now.)

God luck with whatever you decide.

gloria p

"Dave Smith" > wrote in message
m...
> Terry Pulliam Burd wrote:
>> We're moving to a new house on March 15 and one of the several things
>> that won't be making the trip across town is our refrigerator. It's
>> old, I've hated it for years and it isn't energy efficient. The style
>> I have my eye on is a stainless steel French door with the (pull out
>> drawer) freezer on the bottom. Does anyone have any recommendations of
>> personal or tangential experience? I looked at Consumer Reports and it
>> recommends Whirlpool umbrella brands which includes Whirlpool, Maytag,
>> Amana, KitchenAid and Jenn-Air. Yet when I look at the user reviews,
>> there were far too many negative comments to make me comfortable with
>> their recommendations. The only other ratings were for GE, Viking and
>> one LG - the rest were those under the Whirlpool umbrella (of the ones
>> that were rated as being energy efficient). Of those 3, the LG and the
>> GE were found to be too noisy (the refrigerator will be contiguous to
>> the family room) with inferior hardware and the Viking ridiculously
>> expensive (or course). SubZero wasn't even mentioned, but that would
>> be in the Viking cost category anyway.
>>
>> So, what's a girl to do?
>
> I have no complaints about the temperature in my Maytag fridge, and stuff
> int he freezer stays frozen. What I don't like about it is that the door
> shelves sometimes fall off. Thanks to those adjustable shelves being
> insecure, the butter tray fell off and the roll-up top broke. I ordered a
> new one. That was in May. I ordered a new one through the local Maytag
> dealer and I still don't have it.

One thing to consider is the space you have available and the size of
refrigerator you need. There are counter depth and other models are much
deeper. We have been toying with the idea of a move. We were in The Great
Indoors last week for some other stuff, but walked through the appliances.
We liked a GE Monogram with French doors and two freezer drawers. The
biggest thing we look at is the storage space for larger party trays and
even pizza boxes. Some just do not have the space for that. We currently
have a Kitchen Aide integrated cabinet depth unit that is great. It does do
some sort of defrost cycle now and then, and is pretty noisy for a couple of
minutes as it cools back down. We had a side by side and I did not like the
narrow freezer unit. We have a separate freezer, so that is not a huge
deal, but it could be. Soooo, look at the features you like and the storage
space you think you will use, and buy the one that looks the best.

Dale p

On Feb 14, 4:23*pm, Terry Pulliam Burd > wrote:
> We're moving to a new house on March 15 and one of the several things
> that won't be making the trip across town is our refrigerator. It's
> old, I've hated it for years and it isn't energy efficient. The style
> I have my eye on is a stainless steel French door with the (pull out
> drawer) freezer on the bottom. Does anyone have any recommendations of
> personal or tangential experience? I looked at Consumer Reports and it
> recommends Whirlpool umbrella brands which includes Whirlpool, Maytag,
> Amana, KitchenAid and Jenn-Air. Yet when I look at the user reviews,
> there were far too many negative comments to make me comfortable with
> their recommendations. The only other ratings were for GE, Viking and
> one LG - the rest were those under the Whirlpool umbrella (of the ones
> that were rated as being energy efficient). Of those 3, the LG and the
> GE were found to be too noisy (the refrigerator will be contiguous to
> the family room) with inferior hardware and the Viking ridiculously
> expensive (or course). SubZero wasn't even mentioned, but that would
> be in the Viking cost category anyway.
>
> So, what's a girl to do?
>
> Terry "Squeaks" Pulliam Burd
>
> ---
>
> "If the soup had been as warm as the wine,
> if the wine had been as old as the turkey,
> and if the turkey had had a breast like the maid,
> it would have been a swell dinner." Duncan Hines

We had an experienced appliance repair guy up here last week - nice
fellow, chatty. While he installed a new microwave, since we're
contemplating making some changes in our appliances, DH asked him for
his preferences. Were surprised that he recommended the Kirkland
(COSTCO) appliances, which are made by Whirlpool, across the board.
Said Whirlpool is the only manufacturer not producing "expensive junk"
these days - and he works on all of them. Bears our your Consumer
Reports info.

Know I'd never ever buy a Frigidaire "Gallery" again...we paid a small
fortune for their Stainless Steel side by side with ice maker in the
door for our old house and it was such a lemon I seriously considered
rolling it into the street and setting it on fire. Constantly froze
up and ceased functioning because of a poorly designed plastic part.
Was still under warranty and the company replaced the part numerous
times before quietly redesigning it, but not until I'd spent weeks of
my life on the phone begging for service, waiting for repairmen, and
transferring food into ice chests.

Also, the Frigidaire SS finish was represented as "easy clean"...and
turned out to be such a total PITA nuisance to keep up that I was glad
to find white appliances in my new house. Know SS's a popular trend
and a lot of folks adore it, but I just don't have the time to polish
my appliances with special products every darned day to keep them
looking nice.

Nancy T

"Terry Pulliam Burd" > wrote in message
...
> We're moving to a new house on March 15 and one of the several things
> that won't be making the trip across town is our refrigerator. It's
> old, I've hated it for years and it isn't energy efficient. The style
> I have my eye on is a stainless steel French door with the (pull out
> drawer) freezer on the bottom. Does anyone have any recommendations of
> personal or tangential experience? I looked at Consumer Reports and it
> recommends Whirlpool umbrella brands which includes Whirlpool, Maytag,
> Amana, KitchenAid and Jenn-Air. Yet when I look at the user reviews,
> there were far too many negative comments to make me comfortable with
> their recommendations. The only other ratings were for GE, Viking and
> one LG - the rest were those under the Whirlpool umbrella (of the ones
> that were rated as being energy efficient). Of those 3, the LG and the
> GE were found to be too noisy (the refrigerator will be contiguous to
> the family room) with inferior hardware and the Viking ridiculously
> expensive (or course). SubZero wasn't even mentioned, but that would
> be in the Viking cost category anyway.
>
> So, what's a girl to do?

Get what you like. If it has the features that you want at the price you
can afford, it's right for you. I got a Whirlpool last year. It's 24 cubic
feet, has a water dispenser and ice maker, plenty of deep shelves and it is
super energy efficient. I don't think there is a huge quality difference
between the major brands. Mine is a side by side. I like that over the big
deep freezer compartment underneath.

Paul

Melba's Jammin' wrote:
> In article >,
> Terry Pulliam Burd > wrote:
>
>> recommends Whirlpool umbrella brands which includes Whirlpool, Maytag,
>> Amana, KitchenAid and Jenn-Air. Yet when I look at the user reviews,
>> there were far too many negative comments to make me comfortable with
>> their recommendations.
>
>> So, what's a girl to do?
>
> You pays your money you takes your choice. I love my Amana (one fridge
> door), with the pullout freezer drawer on the bottom. It's five years
> old. FWIW.
> -Barb, Mother Superior, HOSSSPoJ

I prefer the single door fridge with bottom freezer too. I looked at the
French door models and they seemed too bothersome to me. You have to
open one, or the other, or perhaps both just to get to something. My
single door fridge with bottom freezer is a GE and just 18 months old
and just had to be repaired. Something computer-ish went belly up but
thankfully because I used my AMEX to purchase it, they extended the
standard one year warranty to two so the repair was free to me.
One thing I also like about my bottom freezer is the extra third pull
out basket. I keep my spices all on one wide pull out shelf and still
have loads of room.

On Sun, 14 Feb 2010 16:23:13 -0800, Terry Pulliam Burd
> wrote:

>We're moving to a new house on March 15 and one of the several things
>that won't be making the trip across town is our refrigerator. It's
>old, I've hated it for years and it isn't energy efficient. The style
>I have my eye on is a stainless steel French door with the (pull out
>drawer) freezer on the bottom. Does anyone have any recommendations of
>personal or tangential experience? I looked at Consumer Reports and it
>recommends Whirlpool umbrella brands which includes Whirlpool, Maytag,
>Amana, KitchenAid and Jenn-Air. Yet when I look at the user reviews,
>there were far too many negative comments to make me comfortable with
>their recommendations. The only other ratings were for GE, Viking and
>one LG - the rest were those under the Whirlpool umbrella (of the ones
>that were rated as being energy efficient). Of those 3, the LG and the
>GE were found to be too noisy (the refrigerator will be contiguous to
>the family room) with inferior hardware and the Viking ridiculously
>expensive (or course). SubZero wasn't even mentioned, but that would
>be in the Viking cost category anyway.
>
>So, what's a girl to do?
>
>Terry "Squeaks" Pulliam Burd
>

Consumer Reports sticks with middle of the line appliances. We have
had good luck with GE. When we moved to Hampton, VA in 1974 we
bought GE range and refrigerator. We replaced the compressor in the
refrigerator. It lasted until about 1995. We replaced it with
another GE and it is still going fine. The ice dispenser only puts
out crushed ice but we are not about to replace the ice maker for
that, especially since the kids are no longer here and we don't use
the ice and water dispenser very much any more. The double oven stove
was still working fine when we left in 2004.

That is not to say that any GE or other product will last as well as
the older ones did. I am hoping they will since we have replaced the
GE stove and the Maytag dishwasher since we moved here. They were
both actually working but I hated the dishwasher (noisy) and wasn't
happy with the stove.

The Bosch dishwasher we replaced in 2004 lost its water pump this
fall. We decided to get a new one. DH had a couple of nits to pick
about the Bosch. We got an Electrolux. $1500 and it did not get
dishes clean. We returned it, ordered a $180 water pump from Bosch
and DH replaced it. We received the new pump in 2 days.

As I told Jean in an earlier thread, make sure that you know where you
can get reliable service. The greatest appliance is not worth s**t if
it breaks and you can't get it repaired for 2 weeks.
--
Susan N.

"Moral indignation is in most cases two percent moral,
48 percent indignation, and 50 percent envy."
Vittorio De Sica, Italian movie director (1901-1974)

ntantiques wrote:

> On Feb 14, 4:23 pm, Terry Pulliam Burd > wrote:

>> of personal or tangential experience? I looked at Consumer Reports
>> and it recommends Whirlpool umbrella brands which includes
>> Whirlpool, Maytag, Amana, KitchenAid and Jenn-Air. Yet when I look
>> at the user reviews, there were far too many negative comments to
>> make me comfortable with their recommendations. The only other
>> ratings were for GE, Viking and one LG - the rest were those under
>> the Whirlpool umbrella (of the ones that were rated as being energy
>> efficient). Of those 3, the LG and the GE were found to be too noisy
>> (the refrigerator will be contiguous to the family room) with
>> inferior hardware and the Viking ridiculously expensive (or course).
>> SubZero wasn't even mentioned, but that would be in the Viking cost
>> category anyway.

> Know I'd never ever buy a Frigidaire "Gallery" again...we paid a small
> fortune for their Stainless Steel side by side with ice maker in the
> door for our old house and it was such a lemon I seriously considered
> rolling it into the street and setting it on fire. Constantly froze
> up and ceased functioning because of a poorly designed plastic part.
> Was still under warranty and the company replaced the part numerous
> times before quietly redesigning it, but not until I'd spent weeks of
> my life on the phone begging for service, waiting for repairmen, and
> transferring food into ice chests.

It's hard to recommend appliances, it's so iffy. There's probably
someone who just loves their Frigidaire Gallery, never had a
problem.

I have a KitchenAide side by side, the reason it was chosen is
it has no 'water in the door' which I couldn't be less interested in.
That feature is just about standard on side by sides. It was a
floor model so I got a break on it. Knock wood, it works like a
champ and what a relief from my previous refrigerator, it's so
quiet. And I guess this is the new normal, it could not be easier
to clean (inside). Everything, including the door shelves, comes
out and goes back in so easily. Not like my older refrigerator,
now that was a chore.

I'd buy a KitchenAide again and hope for such a positive experience.

> Also, the Frigidaire SS finish was represented as "easy clean"...and
> turned out to be such a total PITA nuisance to keep up that I was glad
> to find white appliances in my new house. Know SS's a popular trend
> and a lot of folks adore it, but I just don't have the time to polish
> my appliances with special products every darned day to keep them
> looking nice.

I see all those stainless steel cleaning products and I can take a
hint. It's not the kind of chore I'm good about keeping up with.

nancy

The Cook wrote:
> On Sun, 14 Feb 2010 16:23:13 -0800, Terry Pulliam Burd
> > wrote:
>
>> We're moving to a new house on March 15 and one of the several things
>> that won't be making the trip across town is our refrigerator. It's
>> old, I've hated it for years and it isn't energy efficient. The style
>> I have my eye on is a stainless steel French door with the (pull out
>> drawer) freezer on the bottom. Does anyone have any recommendations of
>> personal or tangential experience? I looked at Consumer Reports and it
>> recommends Whirlpool umbrella brands which includes Whirlpool, Maytag,
>> Amana, KitchenAid and Jenn-Air. Yet when I look at the user reviews,
>> there were far too many negative comments to make me comfortable with
>> their recommendations. The only other ratings were for GE, Viking and
>> one LG - the rest were those under the Whirlpool umbrella (of the ones
>> that were rated as being energy efficient). Of those 3, the LG and the
>> GE were found to be too noisy (the refrigerator will be contiguous to
>> the family room) with inferior hardware and the Viking ridiculously
>> expensive (or course). SubZero wasn't even mentioned, but that would
>> be in the Viking cost category anyway.
>>
>> So, what's a girl to do?
>>
>> Terry "Squeaks" Pulliam Burd
>>
>
> Consumer Reports sticks with middle of the line appliances. We have
> had good luck with GE. When we moved to Hampton, VA in 1974 we
> bought GE range and refrigerator. We replaced the compressor in the
> refrigerator. It lasted until about 1995. We replaced it with
> another GE and it is still going fine. The ice dispenser only puts
> out crushed ice but we are not about to replace the ice maker for
> that, especially since the kids are no longer here and we don't use
> the ice and water dispenser very much any more. The double oven stove
> was still working fine when we left in 2004.
>
> That is not to say that any GE or other product will last as well as
> the older ones did. I am hoping they will since we have replaced the
> GE stove and the Maytag dishwasher since we moved here. They were
> both actually working but I hated the dishwasher (noisy) and wasn't
> happy with the stove.
>
> The Bosch dishwasher we replaced in 2004 lost its water pump this
> fall. We decided to get a new one. DH had a couple of nits to pick
> about the Bosch. We got an Electrolux. $1500 and it did not get
> dishes clean. We returned it, ordered a $180 water pump from Bosch
> and DH replaced it. We received the new pump in 2 days.
>
> As I told Jean in an earlier thread, make sure that you know where you
> can get reliable service. The greatest appliance is not worth s**t if
> it breaks and you can't get it repaired for 2 weeks.

Hi! You can be sure I am reading this thread! I have ordered the
cooktop and the dishwasher, but the oven and fridge are lagging
behind. I just heard the cabinets are being shipped ca March
22nd, so I still have some time to figure things out. I'd better
get the oven ordered soon though, along with the sink and faucet.
The fridge is not going to be built in, so I can continue to
think about that.

--
Jean B.

Nancy Young wrote:
> ntantiques wrote:
>
>> On Feb 14, 4:23 pm, Terry Pulliam Burd > wrote:
>
>>> of personal or tangential experience? I looked at Consumer Reports
>>> and it recommends Whirlpool umbrella brands which includes
>>> Whirlpool, Maytag, Amana, KitchenAid and Jenn-Air. Yet when I look
>>> at the user reviews, there were far too many negative comments to
>>> make me comfortable with their recommendations. The only other
>>> ratings were for GE, Viking and one LG - the rest were those under
>>> the Whirlpool umbrella (of the ones that were rated as being energy
>>> efficient). Of those 3, the LG and the GE were found to be too noisy
>>> (the refrigerator will be contiguous to the family room) with
>>> inferior hardware and the Viking ridiculously expensive (or course).
>>> SubZero wasn't even mentioned, but that would be in the Viking cost
>>> category anyway.
>
>> Know I'd never ever buy a Frigidaire "Gallery" again...we paid a small
>> fortune for their Stainless Steel side by side with ice maker in the
>> door for our old house and it was such a lemon I seriously considered
>> rolling it into the street and setting it on fire. Constantly froze
>> up and ceased functioning because of a poorly designed plastic part.
>> Was still under warranty and the company replaced the part numerous
>> times before quietly redesigning it, but not until I'd spent weeks of
>> my life on the phone begging for service, waiting for repairmen, and
>> transferring food into ice chests.
>
> It's hard to recommend appliances, it's so iffy. There's probably
> someone who just loves their Frigidaire Gallery, never had a problem.
> I have a KitchenAide side by side, the reason it was chosen is
> it has no 'water in the door' which I couldn't be less interested in.
> That feature is just about standard on side by sides. It was a
> floor model so I got a break on it. Knock wood, it works like a
> champ and what a relief from my previous refrigerator, it's so quiet.
> And I guess this is the new normal, it could not be easier
> to clean (inside). Everything, including the door shelves, comes
> out and goes back in so easily. Not like my older refrigerator,
> now that was a chore.
>
> I'd buy a KitchenAide again and hope for such a positive experience.
>> Also, the Frigidaire SS finish was represented as "easy clean"...and
>> turned out to be such a total PITA nuisance to keep up that I was glad
>> to find white appliances in my new house. Know SS's a popular trend
>> and a lot of folks adore it, but I just don't have the time to polish
>> my appliances with special products every darned day to keep them
>> looking nice.
>
> I see all those stainless steel cleaning products and I can take a
> hint. It's not the kind of chore I'm good about keeping up with.
>
> nancy

Heh! Speaking of cleaning... Having not learned the lesson with
my current black appliances, my new ones are also going to be
black--and the counters are going to be antiqued black granite.

--
Jean B.

Jean B. wrote:
> Nancy Young wrote:

>> I see all those stainless steel cleaning products and I can take a
>> hint. It's not the kind of chore I'm good about keeping up with.

> Heh! Speaking of cleaning... Having not learned the lesson with
> my current black appliances, my new ones are also going to be
> black--and the counters are going to be antiqued black granite.

Oh, now you're just being mean! Heh. Congratulations on the
new kitchen and especially those countertops.

My stove and dishwasher are black, I think they stay pretty clean
looking unless I really neglect them.

nancy

"Janet Baraclough" > wrote in message
> We didn't get water/ice dispensers in the door because the saleswoman
> told me they go wrong a lot (as well as the trouble of plumbing them
> in)

In 15 years, my ice maker had to be repaired twice. I'd buy another again
tomorrow though, I'm willing to pay for the convenience of water and ice.
Plumbing was simple in our house, but in some it would be harder. Ours is
a Kitchen Aid and we've been happy with it.

"The Cook" > wrote in message
> As I told Jean in an earlier thread, make sure that you know where you
> can get reliable service. The greatest appliance is not worth s**t if
> it breaks and you can't get it repaired for 2 weeks.

Very true. Local dealers often provide the best service and prices are good
these days since most belong to buyer's co-ops. I don't trust the big box
stores for service.

Nancy Young wrote:
> Jean B. wrote:
>> Nancy Young wrote:
>
>>> I see all those stainless steel cleaning products and I can take a
>>> hint. It's not the kind of chore I'm good about keeping up with.
>
>> Heh! Speaking of cleaning... Having not learned the lesson with
>> my current black appliances, my new ones are also going to be
>> black--and the counters are going to be antiqued black granite.
>
> Oh, now you're just being mean! Heh. Congratulations on the
> new kitchen and especially those countertops.
> My stove and dishwasher are black, I think they stay pretty clean
> looking unless I really neglect them.
>
> nancy

Well, my current black cooktop shows even a grain of salt, so I
expect the new one to be the same.

Remodeling is an arduous project! I doubt I will ever do any such
thing again. (Thanks!)

--
Jean B.

Ed Pawlowski wrote:
>
> "The Cook" > wrote in message
>> As I told Jean in an earlier thread, make sure that you know where you
>> can get reliable service. The greatest appliance is not worth s**t if
>> it breaks and you can't get it repaired for 2 weeks.
>
> Very true. Local dealers often provide the best service and prices are
> good these days since most belong to buyer's co-ops. I don't trust the
> big box stores for service.

I have pretty much decided to get my oven from a local dealer who
does factory-authorized repairs. I am nervous about the oven (an
Electrolux), so this makes some sense to me. I may also, for the
first time, get an extended warranty on it!

--
Jean B.

In article >,
says...
the rest were those under the Whirlpool umbrella (of the ones
> that were rated as being energy efficient). Of those 3, the LG and the
> GE were found to be too noisy (the refrigerator will be contiguous to
> the family room) with inferior hardware and the Viking ridiculously
> expensive (or course). SubZero wasn't even mentioned, but that would
> be in the Viking cost category anyway.
>
> So, what's a girl to do?
>
> Terry "Squeaks" Pulliam Burd
>
> ---
>
> "If the soup had been as warm as the wine,
> if the wine had been as old as the turkey,
> and if the turkey had had a breast like the maid,
> it would have been a swell dinner." Duncan Hines

Well, we bought a Samsung. It's quiet, set up well, and huge coming in at 26
cubic feet of storage... for under $1000! I am impressed with the design and
electronics. I especially like the little beep that goes off if you don't close
it properly but I am sure most have that now.

Scotty

On 2/15/2010 6:19 AM, Janet Baraclough wrote:
> The >
> from Terry Pulliam > contains these words:
>
>> We're moving to a new house on March 15 and one of the several things
>> that won't be making the trip across town is our refrigerator. It's
>> old, I've hated it for years and it isn't energy efficient. The style
>> I have my eye on is a stainless steel French door with the (pull out
>> drawer) freezer on the bottom.
>
> If you mean a fridge above a pull-drawer freezer, two doors, we have
> that configuration and I can certainly recommend it. It's
> much easier to manage the contents of drawer freezers than the top-lid,
> reach in lucky-dip brantub kind.
> I like being able to see (and reach) everything in the fridge at a
> glance without bending.
>
> We didn't get water/ice dispensers in the door because the saleswoman
> told me they go wrong a lot (as well as the trouble of plumbing them
> in)
>

Our current icemaker/fridge is about 10 years old. No issues from either
so far. Hooking up a water line was a one hour job. It sure is nice
knowing there is ice.


> This is also our first ever frost-free fridge/ freezer; I'd never
> go back to the kind that needs defrosting.
> Its "A" rated for energy efficiency so is very quiet; and in a long
> powercut the frozen food was still rock hard when I opened it 2 days
> later.
>
> I keep my old fridge in the garage, useful for parties, and food
> deliveries.
>
> Janet

On 2/15/2010 9:43 AM, Ed Pawlowski wrote:
>
> "The Cook" > wrote in message
>> As I told Jean in an earlier thread, make sure that you know where you
>> can get reliable service. The greatest appliance is not worth s**t if
>> it breaks and you can't get it repaired for 2 weeks.
>
> Very true. Local dealers often provide the best service and prices are
> good these days since most belong to buyer's co-ops. I don't trust the
> big box stores for service.

Quite true. The local dealers here are very competitive and provide much
better service than big box.

On 2/14/2010 7:23 PM, Terry Pulliam Burd wrote:
> We're moving to a new house on March 15 and one of the several things
> that won't be making the trip across town is our refrigerator. It's
> old, I've hated it for years and it isn't energy efficient. The style
> I have my eye on is a stainless steel French door with the (pull out
> drawer) freezer on the bottom. Does anyone have any recommendations of
> personal or tangential experience? I looked at Consumer Reports and it
> recommends Whirlpool umbrella brands which includes Whirlpool, Maytag,
> Amana, KitchenAid and Jenn-Air. Yet when I look at the user reviews,
> there were far too many negative comments to make me comfortable with
> their recommendations. The only other ratings were for GE, Viking and
> one LG - the rest were those under the Whirlpool umbrella (of the ones
> that were rated as being energy efficient). Of those 3, the LG and the
> GE were found to be too noisy (the refrigerator will be contiguous to
> the family room) with inferior hardware and the Viking ridiculously
> expensive (or course). SubZero wasn't even mentioned, but that would
> be in the Viking cost category anyway.
>


Buddy has a commercial refrigeration business and he says sub zero are
just fluffed up cheaply made units for McMansions.

> So, what's a girl to do?
>
> Terry "Squeaks" Pulliam Burd
>
> ---
>
> "If the soup had been as warm as the wine,
> if the wine had been as old as the turkey,
> and if the turkey had had a breast like the maid,
> it would have been a swell dinner." Duncan Hines

On Mon, 15 Feb 2010 08:44:20 -0500, "Jean B." > wrote:
>
> Heh! Speaking of cleaning... Having not learned the lesson with
> my current black appliances, my new ones are also going to be
> black--and the counters are going to be antiqued black granite.

After two shiny (not matte) black cars in a row, we got a dark gray
one and it's a world of difference. The last one showed ever drop of
mist and speck of dust, this one can be rained on and you wouldn't
know.

I still have stainless steel appliances... lost my mind and put a
stainless steel backsplash behind the cook top. What was I thinking?

--
I love cooking with wine.
Sometimes I even put it in the food.

On Mon, 15 Feb 2010 10:22:00 -0500, "Jean B." > wrote:

> Well, my current black cooktop shows even a grain of salt, so I
> expect the new one to be the same.

Just keep the paper towels near by and wipe as you go. It's routine
that isn't hard to get into.

--
I love cooking with wine.
Sometimes I even put it in the food.

On Mon, 15 Feb 2010 09:41:24 -0500, "Ed Pawlowski"
> wrote:

> In 15 years, my ice maker had to be repaired twice. I'd buy another again
> tomorrow though, I'm willing to pay for the convenience of water and ice.
> Plumbing was simple in our house, but in some it would be harder. Ours is
> a Kitchen Aid and we've been happy with it.

Just the opposite with us (GE Profile). We've had two icemakers that
needed so much repair (and they still leaked) we turned them off
permanently. I still want to try an icemaker with the next
refrigerator though, because I like ice cubes making themselves.

--
I love cooking with wine.
Sometimes I even put it in the food.

"Ed Pawlowski" wrote:
>
>"The Cook" > wrote in message
>> As I told Jean in an earlier thread, make sure that you know where you
>> can get reliable service. The greatest appliance is not worth s**t if
>> it breaks and you can't get it repaired for 2 weeks.
>
>Very true. Local dealers often provide the best service and prices are good
>these days since most belong to buyer's co-ops. I don't trust the big box
>stores for service.

I have my GE Profile fridge since 08/31/97, it has never needed
service... but if ever it needed service I'd have to contact GE
direct... I already had that experience with my GE Profile gas
stove... I have no complaints about the service I received but I don't
even live near where I bought those appliances (PC Richards - Long
Island - really not a small local store, but a large chain). My
experience is that regardless where one buys an appliance, after
market service is provided by the nearest manufacturer's authorized
service center. If your local dealer is an authorized service center
for the brand you choose fine but often local appliance stores are not
authorized to make repairs for all the brands they sell. I bought my
Maytag dishwasher from Sears but since I was willing to pay to have it
installed I had to arrange directly with Amana for that service... the
Amana truck arrived later that day, installed the dishwasher plus they
recommended I buy a new hose kit so I did, glad I did since it was
pointed out to me that the last people used automobile radiator hose,
was ready to burst at any moment... the kit was like $35. The Amana
guy was a disabled vet, one leg a prothesis... he took out the old
machine, brought in the new and installed it perfectly, and with no
lost motion. That was six years ago, the dishwasher has never needed
service... reminds me, I just ran it and will put away dishes
momentarily. With my GE Profile gas range (originally natural gas but
now propane) my propane supplier will service any parts that contain
gas for free, in fact they did the retrofit to propane and installed
the stove.

On Mon, 15 Feb 2010 08:08:59 -0600, Andy > wrote:

>
> Did you visit the "Good Housekeeping" website. They take their "Seal of
> Approval" probably more seriously than Consumer Reports takes their
> ratings.
>
> Visit: http://alturl.com/ah64
>
> This is not an endorsement for GH or for any models. Use due diligence.

I like that site! <slapping forehead> I never once thought about
putting the refrigerator thermometer on the door itself to see if it's
cooling the milk as much as it should. I just switched it to the
door.

--
I love cooking with wine.
Sometimes I even put it in the food.

On Mon, 15 Feb 2010 08:55:26 -0600, Andy > wrote:
>
> One of the nicest things we found out in the purchase process about the
> Sub-Zero is we got to choose the door facades. I had them use cherry wood
> to match the floor and counter cabinet facades exactly. When the install
> was complete, it virtually disappeared into the woodwork. At first,
> company would stand there looking around and finally ask "Where's the
> fridge?" Except for the handles it in no way resembles a refrigerator!
>
Sub-Zero certain used to be the gold standard for American
refrigerators and I coveted one for years. Some of their features
have been copied by other manufacturers these days which worked out
for me, because I've had to come to grips with the fact that I'll
never be able to have what I want (all refrigerator and all freezer,
side by side) due to the physical configuration and space limitations
in my kitchen.


--
I love cooking with wine.
Sometimes I even put it in the food.

On Mon, 15 Feb 2010 10:27:58 -0500, I am Tosk
> wrote:

> Well, we bought a Samsung. It's quiet, set up well, and huge coming in at 26
> cubic feet of storage... for under $1000! I am impressed with the design and
> electronics. I especially like the little beep that goes off if you don't close
> it properly but I am sure most have that now.

What a great price! And no, they don't all have that beep now. This
is the first time I've heard about it.

--
I love cooking with wine.
Sometimes I even put it in the food.

On Mon, 15 Feb 2010 11:45:57 -0500, George >
wrote:

> Buddy has a commercial refrigeration business and he says sub zero are
> just fluffed up cheaply made units for McMansions.

They are now, but haven't always been that way.

--
I love cooking with wine.
Sometimes I even put it in the food.

sf wrote:

> On Mon, 15 Feb 2010 08:08:59 -0600, Andy > wrote:
>
> >
> > Did you visit the "Good Housekeeping" website. They take their
> > "Seal of Approval" probably more seriously than Consumer Reports
> > takes their ratings.
> >
> > Visit: http://alturl.com/ah64
> >
> > This is not an endorsement for GH or for any models. Use due
> > diligence.
>
> I like that site! <slapping forehead> I never once thought about
> putting the refrigerator thermometer on the door itself to see if it's
> cooling the milk as much as it should. I just switched it to the
> door.

I don't put milk in the door, because it will never be as cold as I
like it there.



Brian

--
Day 378 of the "no grouchy usenet posts" project

On 15 Feb 2010 20:48:44 GMT, "Default User" >
wrote:

> sf wrote:
>
> > On Mon, 15 Feb 2010 08:08:59 -0600, Andy > wrote:
> >
> > >
> > > Did you visit the "Good Housekeeping" website. They take their
> > > "Seal of Approval" probably more seriously than Consumer Reports
> > > takes their ratings.
> > >
> > > Visit: http://alturl.com/ah64
> > >
> > > This is not an endorsement for GH or for any models. Use due
> > > diligence.
> >
> > I like that site! <slapping forehead> I never once thought about
> > putting the refrigerator thermometer on the door itself to see if it's
> > cooling the milk as much as it should. I just switched it to the
> > door.
>
> I don't put milk in the door, because it will never be as cold as I
> like it there.
>
That area is as cold as it gets. When I turn down the temp, I end up
freezing my vegetables which are at the same level as the milk on the
door.

--
I love cooking with wine.
Sometimes I even put it in the food.

sf wrote:

> On 15 Feb 2010 20:48:44 GMT, "Default User" >
> wrote:

> > I don't put milk in the door, because it will never be as cold as I
> > like it there.
> >
> That area is as cold as it gets. When I turn down the temp, I end up
> freezing my vegetables which are at the same level as the milk on the
> door.

Not really. The door sections swing through the warm room air every
time the door opens.



Brian

--
Day 378 of the "no grouchy usenet posts" project

On 15 Feb 2010 21:07:48 GMT, "Default User" >
wrote:

> sf wrote:
>
> > On 15 Feb 2010 20:48:44 GMT, "Default User" >
> > wrote:
>
> > > I don't put milk in the door, because it will never be as cold as I
> > > like it there.
> > >
> > That area is as cold as it gets. When I turn down the temp, I end up
> > freezing my vegetables which are at the same level as the milk on the
> > door.
>
> Not really. The door sections swing through the warm room air every
> time the door opens.
>
Fluctuations like that are insignificant. I want to know what the
temperature is when the door is closed.

--
I love cooking with wine.
Sometimes I even put it in the food.