Refrigerator News and Recalls
Deciding you’re ready to purchase a new refrigerator is easy, but deciding which refrigerator to welcome into your kitchen can be slightly more daunting.
Wandering through aisles of refrigerators can begin to feel overwhelming, and scouring the web often produces similar results. To give you an idea of what’s out there in your price range, we’ve tracked down three highly rated refrigerators representing three different price ranges.
Highly rated refrigerators
These three sleek-looking refrigerators boast energy-saving lighting, food preserving features, and lots of space.
- Maytag French-door bottom-freezer. $2,999. Behind the french doors of this stainless steel refrigerator, you’ll find a roomy and well-lit interior. The LED lights provide bright, white, interior illumination that casts your food in a more natural light that is energy efficient. If long lines at the grocery store cause your fridge-bound foods to get a little too toasty, the PowerCold feature in this refrigerator can quickly get cold foods cold again.
- KitchenAid 25.8 Cu. Ft. 36" Multi-Door Freestanding Refrigerator with Platinum Interior Design. $3,999. This feature-packed refrigerator, which comes in black or regular stainless steel, boasts a five-door configuration (an industry first). Soft close drawers, a three-tier freezer drawer, and herb storage are just a few of this refrigerator’s impressive features. Its Preserva Food Care System can help keep food fresh for longer, while two Produce Preservers handle the task of delaying over-ripening. The unit also comes with an air filter that can help stave off odors. Consumers love the elegance of the platinum gray walls and the undershelf LED lighting inside this unique-looking KitchenAid refrigerator.
- LG LTCS20220S. $1,049. French door refrigerators may be having a moment, but this refrigerator has a top-mount freezer that isn’t lacking in space. At 30” wide, its top freezer is one of the largest in its category. Among other features: two humidity controlled crisper drawers, a full-width pantry door, and rear panels of LED lighting. Aesthetically, it’s more modern looking than your run-of-the-mill top-mount freezer refrigerators. Contoured doors give this refrigerator (which comes in black, white, or stainless) a sleek looking appearance.
For more information and the latest reviews on the best refrigerators for 2016, check out ConsumerAffairs' guide here.
Deciding you’re ready to purchase a new refrigerator is easy, but deciding which refrigerator to welcome into your kitchen can be slightly more daunting.
Wandering through aisles of refrigerators can begin to feel overwhelming, and scouring the web often produces similar results. To give you an idea of what’s out there in your price range, we’ve tracked down three highly rated refrigerators representing three different price ranges.
These three sleek-looking refrigerato...
There's a lot to consider before deciding on a refrigerator. French door or top freezer? Stainless or white? Is it large enough to store a Thanksgiving turkey without displacing your other groceries? What about wine storage?
There's a fridge out there to satisfy nearly every refrigeration whim, from wine racks to sparkling water dispensers. But if you're looking for the perfect combination of style and quality, check out these fridges -- many of which have recieved high m...
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Jenn-Air builds some really great-looking refrigerators. Flush design, concealed hinges, in-door water dispensers -- what more could you want?
Well, many of the consumers we've heard from say they'd like a little more reliability. Failing that, they'd like prompter service -- or any service, for that matter -- when problems occur.
After all, these things aren't cheap. Many models go for more than $2,000, which is pretty chilling all by itself.
But consumers like Judie, who recently submitted a ConsumerAffairs video review, says what irks her most is that the 12-year warranty turns out not to be worth much, at least in her case, since no one seems to be able to get the parts needed to fix her refrigerator.
Broken promises
Sad to say, Judie's not alone. Other consumers have complained of similar problems.
"Broken ice makers, doors that break. Any dealer selling these products should be investigated for deceiving the public and brought up on charges," said Jim of Edmond, Ontario.
Warren of Laguna Niguel, Calif., has also run into the no-parts problem when trying to keep his $8,500 fridge running.
"I own a built-in 42" Jenn Air refrigerator. Bought new late 2008 (6 years old). ... A few weeks ago, it started beeping. Turns out there is a bad "Gemini" control board," he said. "I called up Jenn Air - they no longer make this board! What?? A MAJOR APPLIANCE manufacturer no longer makes a part for a major appliance like this?"
"I have since read this is commonplace with Whirlpool. This board is no longer made and the company seems to not care about it. Yes, you may be able to get the board repaired (so long as the processor isn't bad), but that means the fridge is down for at least a week."
Many consumers, including Lisa of Tewksbury, Mass., trace these problems to Whirlpool's purchase of Jenn-Air a few years ago. Like Warren, Lisa spent more than $10,000 on her refrigerator, which has provided her with years of frustration.
"Whirlpool Product Review Board now handles this process and they have been nothing short of horrendous -- basically redundant robots stating, 'It’s out of warranty and we are doing you a favor with this offer.' ... All they did was delay this process so that the appliance would be out of warranty to retrieve MORE money."
Read more about Jenn-Air refrigerators.
Jenn-Air builds some really great-looking refrigerators. Flush design, concealed hinges, in-door water dispensers -- what more could you want?
Well, many of the consumers we've heard from say they'd like a little more reliability. Failing that, they'd like prompter service -- or any service, for that matter -- when problems occur.
After all, these things aren't cheap. Many models go for more than $2,000, which is pretty chilling all by itself.
But consumers like Judie, w...
President Obama has his critics, but the refrigerator industry loves him. That's because his drive to clean up power plant emissions is making refrigerator sales red hot.
Utilities like Dominion Virginia are offering to give customers a $50 incentive towards a new refrigerator and will also pick up and recycle their old refrigerators and freezers at no charge.
"This energy conservation program has proven to be popular with our customers, with thousands of them participating since it began last summer," said Brett Crable, director-New Technology and Energy Conservation. "It not only helps save energy costs, but lessens the environmental impact of appliance disposal."
It also helps Dominion as it tries to meet Obama's goal of cutting power plant emissions by 32 percent from 2005 levels. The Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers estimates there are 10 million old, inefficient refrigerators still chugging away in consumers' homes, burning excess energy and running up consumers' power bills.
Replacing those 10 million obsolete refrigerators and 5 million more that will become obsolete over the next few years would save 36 million metric tons of emissions over five years and shave consumers' power bills by $50 to $100 per year, $6.8 billion nationwide.
Today's refrigerators use half the energy of models offered 20 years ago and are prime targets for carbon-cutting efforts.
Obama's Clean Power Plan is currently under review by the Supreme Court, but five states -- California, Colorado, New York, Virginia, and Washington -- are still pursuing its goals, at least for now.
What to do
If you live in any of those states, it might pay you to contact your local utility and find out if it is offering a similar refrigerator replacement plan. Here are some programs we found. There may be others, so be sure to check with your local utility or state utilities commission.
- In New York, a program called EmPower does Dominion one better, providing free refrigerators, light bulbs, and insulation to qualifying homeowners and renters.
- Southern California Edison is offering free refrigerators, insulation, and other energy-saving premiums to qualifying lower-income customers.
- In Northern California, PG&E is offering a $50 rebate and free pick-up and installation, similar to the Dominion plan.
- In Washington State, Puget Sound Energy is also offering the $50 rebate plan.
President Obama has his critics, but the refrigerator industry loves him. That's because his drive to clean up power plant emissions is making refrigerator sales red hot.
Utilities like Dominion Virginia are offering to give customers a $50 incentive towards a new refrigerator and will also pick up and recycle their old refrigerators and freezers at no charge.
"This energy conservation program has proven to be popular with our customers, with thousands of them participati...