Let's talk about Refrigerators/Appliances

[DuffMan]

First off, why is the abbreviation for refrigerator, fridge?

What's with the "d"?

So, my Kenmore fridge seems to have given up, after 18 or so years

I know there has been talk in various threads, about good vs no good appliances. I seem to have a bad feeling about LG from those comments, both the hardware and the warranty/service.

Looking for appliance opinions, specifically refrigerators right now.

Since my washer/dryer, stove are same brand bought at the same time, they should probably all die within a week too, so....

[Hockeyguy15]

We bought this one for our old house before we moved, we liked it.

https://www.homedepot.ca/product/whi...ar-/1001087428

Had plenty of space, in the few years we had it we had no issues with it.

[Jiggy]

I bought my mom a new range and fridge earlier this year. I went with LG for both at Home Depot. I had a good experience with Home Depot, they even waived the delivery fee. I would check them out.

[GoinAllTheWay]

Originally Posted by DuffMan

So, my Kenmore fridge seems to have given up, after 18 or so years

Good ol Kenmore. I'm gonna miss that "brand". I have several appliances from them and I've had nothing but smashing success.

[Slava]

I don't have a lot to add here, but DO NOT buy a Samsung. They have a design issue with the ice maker and essentially it freezes solid and becomes completely useless in short order. They know of this, and as far as I know they've done nothing to solve that.

[zamler]

Originally Posted by DuffMan

First off, why is the abbreviation for refrigerator, fridge?

It comes from the brand Frigidaire.

[DuffMan]

Originally Posted by GoinAllTheWay

Good ol Kenmore. I'm gonna miss that "brand". I have several appliances from them and I've had nothing but smashing success.

no kidding, easy to fix too, I've replaced timer in dryer x2, something in the clothes washer which I forget. also, a module on the fridge about 10 years ago, which I forget what the issue was, but I think this is beyond a module replacement problem.

I seem to be crossing the line of diy fixable appliances to ones with too many computer boards prone to failing, era. Just like vehicles.

[InglewoodFan]

Have a look at the various warranties. I just had the coil replaced on my Kitchen Aid (sub-brand of Whirlpool) at year 8 for the cost of labour only. $500 to repair a fridge that would be $2500 to replace was worth it to me. (It saved me about $900 in parts) I seem to recall that different Whirlpool sub-brands had different warranties depending so it was worth paying attention to.

All in all, I've been happy with Kitchen Aid/Whirlpool so far.

[DeluxeMoustache]

Originally Posted by DuffMan

no kidding, easy to fix too, I've replaced timer in dryer x2, something in the clothes washer which I forget. also, a module on the fridge about 10 years ago, which I forget what the issue was, but I think this is beyond a module replacement problem.

I seem to be crossing the line of diy fixable appliances to ones with too many computer boards prone to failing, era. Just like vehicles.

I replaced a computer board on my fridge. Easy to do. Costly part.

[DuffMan]

Originally Posted by DeluxeMoustache

I replaced a computer board on my fridge. Easy to do. Costly part.

I'm sure it is. It's the being sure it is that exact part, because it is expensive and there is a no return policy, is the part that makes it annoying

[DeluxeMoustache]

^ yes, agreed, and in my case I was lucky because I was, firstly, fully confident in the cause and solution, and also 100% on the part.

[DuffMan]

Also, I did troubleshooting anything with power 101, this morning and rebooted it (flipped breaker for a few minutes), if that doesn't fix by lunch, definitely need a new one.

[morgin]

Originally Posted by Slava

I don't have a lot to add here, but DO NOT buy a Samsung. They have a design issue with the ice maker and essentially it freezes solid and becomes completely useless in short order. They know of this, and as far as I know they've done nothing to solve that.

FYI, 9/10 times this is due to improper install where the fridge isn’t leveled properly such that the front is higher than the rear (fridges shouldn’t be perfectly level front to back, front needs to be higher). If you don’t do that, any moisture tends to pool and not drain to the back like it’s designed to do. Ice maker freezing on Samsung fridges is usually the first sign of this.

[bob-loblaw]

We picked new appliances for a new house a few months ago. Prices on American brands were supposed to go up because of tariffs but I don't know if they actually did.

We have nine year-old appliances that are all Samsung. I'd never buy a Samsung washer and dryer again. Fixed them three times each. Our built-in microwave started being really loud about two years, so went with a Panasonic. The stove and fridge have been fine so we went with those again because we couldn't get LG.

I would say get LG for everything. I bought a subscription to Consumer Reports for appliance research, and LG is at the top of every category except for dishwashers (Bosch better). 9/10 top washers are LG, 5/10 top dryers are LG. I can't remember the other ones but I really couldn't believe how they were at the top of practically every category.

[DuffMan]

Looks like the reboot this morning worked as 6 hours later things seem almost back to normal temps.
At least the immediate panic of rotting food is over and I can take my time to look around

[Erick Estrada]

Originally Posted by Slava

I don't have a lot to add here, but DO NOT buy a Samsung. They have a design issue with the ice maker and essentially it freezes solid and becomes completely useless in short order. They know of this, and as far as I know they've done nothing to solve that.

Yep. I like everything about our Samsung fridge but the ice maker design is critically flawed and my fridge is perfectly level. Ours was manufactured in 2014 and I'm on my 2nd ice maker and it's starting to show the failing symptoms of the first one. As you say the back freezes up and becomes a big block as there's several flaws in the design as with age the sides of the fridge bow out causing a path for the less cool fridge air to get into the freezer. I siliconed this as shown by the Youtube videos but they also leak from the back and that's where the buildup just snowballed. I like the fridge but I cannot recommend one to anyone until they scrap the current design.

[zamler]

I have a 10 year old Samsung washer/dryer set they've been dead reliable. Zero issues maybe I'm lucky.

[GoinAllTheWay]

Originally Posted by zamler

I have a 10 year old Samsung washer/dryer set they've been dead reliable. Zero issues maybe I'm lucky.

You are. I have purchased two samsung appliances. Microwave and Dryer. Both have had issues. I'd never buy Samsung again anything unless it's a TV or monitor.

[-TC-]

I've got a Kitchenaid and it's excellent, highly recommend.

[Northendzone]

we have always skewed towards kitchenaide stuff.

we seem to have off and on issues with our fridge - the ice-make has been the most troublesome. Recently our stove needed a control board fo some type so that was $500.

we have kenmore washer and dryer. a bunch of years ago the washer needed a control board and that was $600 by the time the dust settled.

the repaitr guy we had out for the stove commented that parts for kitchen-aides have gone up 20% to 30% recently, and as i recall he recommened whirlpool stuff.

my conclusion is that calling a repair guy will likely result in a $500 repair bill for almost any appliance.

i also think that there is a bit of luck in getting a unit that runs great or one that needs a lot of fixing