Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
The ice chutes are far more prone to issues on any French door model than a side-by-side. I have never met a repair tech or even knowledgable / honest appliance salesperson that would recommend going with such a set up...
Yeah, I don't even deal with salespeople these days when possible. Mostly because they all pretend to know a lot about the appliances they sell but in reality many of them probably know less than I do after a few hours of research online about a specific model. You'll get the "yeah that's a great fridge" from any of them as long (as it isn't the bargain series since they'll try and upsale you if that's what you're looking at) even though they probably couldn't even tell you the model # without looking at the tag haha.
I would have gone with a side-by-side, but the original owner of our house had it built with the fridge right next to a wall. With a side-by-side being 60 fridge/40 freezer, + curved handles, the door could not be opened all the way on our previous fridge. The french door model gives us full and free access to the freezer and the fact that the left door can only open 80 degrees instead of 90 isn't a big deal since it is a french door setup. That's really the only reason we went with french door. otherwise we would have gone with the side by side for a few hundred less.
Hopefully this one will have no issues though. When we moved in 4 years ago, both of our parents mentioned how the through-the-door ice makers were "always a pain" and "always broke or got jammed." In 4 years we never had one issue and used that feature multiple times a day (iced coffee and smoothies mainly). Also, looking at our model, I don't see how the chutes are any more complicated than our previous side-by-side. It is almost identical actually in how it is made and how it falls into the removable bucket. Maybe ours is better than most in that department though.
We have a Frigidaire Professional Series now. Its not bad, but the ice maker constantly gets clogged (piece of ice gets stuck in the hopper not allowing the auger to turn), and we have had to get 1 new door due to a kink in the water line. Otherwise ha been OK for last 7 years.
I really would prefer to get something a little more higher end than this, both for looks as well as reliability (I hope the latter is true at least) and longevity.
Understood on the ice/water in fridge and commercial kitchens not wanting this, we are OK with it though!
As I said, water not a deal breaker, but must have ice maker.
We just had to replace a refrigerator. We had a side-by-side KitchenAid with through-the-door ice and water that was a great fridge for its age (it was 13 years old, even though we did not have it that long - it came with the house). It was really quiet, efficient, and we had no problems until the compressor died (may have been lightning as we had wicked storms the night before and our power went out).
We took a full week reading reviews and talking to refrigerator repair men and contractors/home-builders. We got a LOT of recommendations for Whirlpools and one guy we know who owns a local appliance repair company gave us a specific series of Whirlpool in our price range that he had bought for himself. After comparing reviews at Home Depot, Lowes, best Buy, local appliance stores, Amazong, manufacturer's sites, consumer reports, etc. we actually came around to agreeing that the one series my acquaintance suggested was about the most well-reviewed series in our price range. He got the side-by-side, but we spent a little more to get a french-door with the freezer on the bottom since our layout always made the side-by-side a pain previously in our kitchen.
They also have a side-by-side with ice and water through-the-door as well as one without. They also have a 5-door version. After credit card deals, memorial day sales, and coupons we were out $1400 including all taxes and delivery. Our initial reaction is that it has exceeded expectations. As far as longevity, only time can tell on that end; I wish I could see into the future to tell you if this fridge worked out for us in that regard!
Hope my rambling has helped somewhat...There are lots of good companies, but you really have to do your research on specific models/series. I would have loved a counter-depth but it didn't make sense for resale in our neighborhood and it was more expensive.
We bought a big Whirlpool Gold french door fridge two years ago, complete with ice and ice water dispenser, in the stainless steel finish that doesn't show fingerprints. WE LOVE IT. No problems whatsoever. At the time it was the top reviewed fridge according to Consumer Reports and I can see why.
It is like the one in Brian_M's link, "Top 4 Refrigerator Reviews" except a larger version. I wasn't sure I would like a french door fridge, but this one has been so easy to keep organized.
We bought a big Whirlpool Gold french door fridge two years ago, complete with ice and ice water dispenser, in the stainless steel finish that doesn't show fingerprints. WE LOVE IT. No problems whatsoever. At the time it was the top reviewed fridge according to Consumer Reports and I can see why.
glad to hear it! ours is in the gold series too. VERY happy with our decision so far!
We have a double door Whirlpool with through the door ice and water, it is about 20 years old and we've never had a problem with it. But I would never buy another double door unless it opened to a full sized fridge with the freezer drawer in the bottom. One side freezer and the other side fridge greatly limits the storing capacity on both sides.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Yes
VERY happy with our decision so far!
