Need a New Fridge..ugh..any recommendations

[jacksmomtobe]

So the repair guy just left and it's not worth repairing our fridge due to costs of repair & age of the fridge. Any recommendations?? Looking to get a decent fridge but not necessarily looking to spend over the top dough due to uncertainty in the economy. I will probably go fridge shopping tomorrow since it's not like I can wait too long. :( Any recommedations or models/brands to avoid would be appreciated. I did ask the repair guy about brands but would appreciate more feedback.

THanks!

[lowrioh]

I wouldn't buy a Samsung again. Our's is less than 4 years old and we have had to replace a circulating fan twice already. Luckily we learned how to do it ourselves and didn't have to pay a repair guy.

[jayali]

I know that they are over the top expensive, but I love, love, love my subzero. It is the ONLY appliance I have in our newish (3yr old) kitchen that I can say that about. I was completely against it, but my SIL talked me into it and I am so glad she did. All of my produce stays fresher longer and I swear I throw out less due to spoilage. Maybe you can find a super fantastic great deal on one - if so grab it.

[ewpmsw]

The refrigerators that have freezers on the bottom are getting some good reviews. We have one (Kenmore Elite) from Sears and are very happy with it. We opted not to get the ice-maker/water system on the front in order to have a little more room inside. The bells and whistles on refrigerators now are amazing and over-the-top. Even though we have a child, we opted not to get one with a door lock, an alarm, etc.

Happy hunting!

[deannanb]

if you like the bottom freezer - don't get the double doors on top -
NEVER once have I opened just one side -
both sides are always open
(and I don't like the freezer on the bottom - but DH does -so I have a full size freezer too!)

[kcandz]

I wouldn't buy a Samsung again. Our's is less than 4 years old and we have had to replace a circulating fan twice already. Luckily we learned how to do it ourselves and didn't have to pay a repair guy.

We have an Amana and the icemaker broke 2 years in. Ours is bottom freezer and I don't like it - the produce bin on the bottom closest to the freezer is too cold and produce freezes. Adjusting the freezer and fridge temperatures have not helped. I wish we saved for a subzero.

[Tondi G]

We have a GE and have been happy with it. We got it from a Sears Outlet/scratch and dent place and paid a lot less for it than we would have full retail. It had a scratch/dent on the side.... we perfect with all the plastic inside... just the boo boo on the side that is hidden by a cabinet anyways! If you have a scratch and dent sears outlet near you I highly recommend it! Ours was an hours drive away but worth the saving.

Costco could be another good option

http://www.costco.com/Common/Category.aspx?ec=BC-EC11887-Cat4546&pos=4&whse=BC&topnav=&cat=4551&eCat=BC|103|4546|4551&lang=en-US

I have a friend who got a great deal on a fridge on Craigslist. Some people bought a house and decided to renovate the kitchen... they were selling all the existing appliances that were practically brand new!

Good luck

[jacksmomtobe]

It's funny the repair guy mentioned the side by side top french doors with a freezer bottom. I had not seen that type but it did sound sort of cool. Though it sounds like in real life it might not be so cool. We currently have a side by side and I think part of the reason is there is an island and maybe one big door might come out too far to make the flow of the kitchen work ie if someone is trying to do something on the island while someone else is opening a large door it might have us tripping over each other. The repair guy liked Amana...he did not like LE. I have to measure the space. The repair guys said any depth would work however there is a cabinet on top and walls/cabinet on both sides so that will probably have an impact on what we can choose. I would love a subzero or some really nice fridge however DH's job has some unstability due to a merger so this will unfortunately be a decent but not a dream fridge. Looks like we're going shopping tomorrow afternoon so if anyone has any more feedback on models they like or hate I'd love to hear about it. Thanks to the posters who already responded!

[cono0507]

I love our french door freezer on bottom model. Unlike PP, we do just open one door at times and I like that when we do open the door it doesn't swing as wide as a single door does. I really like the freezer on the bottom because we use the freezer a lot less frequently than the fridge, so the area we use most often is at arm's reach without bending down. Plus, when the fridge is open, little hands can't get into much because it is a little too high up. We have the Maytag Ice 2-o and it has gotten mixed reviews, but we haven't had any problems with it. My only complaints about it is that the water dispenser is SLOW and the ice maker part takes up a large part of the fridge. Not sure I'd buy the same model again, but I'd definately go for the french door freezer on the bottom type again.

[daniele_ut]

Our fridge was biting the dust a few weeks ago so we went to the scratch and dent outlet and ended up with a GE Profile 22 cubic foot French Door fridge with bottom freezer and we really love it. Ours has an icemaker inside the freezer and filtered water inside the fridge. The ones with ice and water in the fridge door lose a lot of space inside the fridge. I LOVE having the fridge items at eye level and I often only open one side of the fridge. The bonus is there's no huge swinging door in the middle of the kitchen when there are 2 of us working in there. We saved almost $800 on it because of a small dent on the side.