New a new refrigerator - any recommendations?

[Robert Green]

Our 17 cu. ft. refrigerator has finally gotten to the point where I can't find parts or keep it alive any longer and since older units are not very energy efficient, I have decided it's time for euthanasia.

So I am looking for an equivalent (or slightly smaller) unit as a replacement.

Anyone have any recommendations as to brands and models? Don't want to spend a lot because we'll be moving soon and the unit will likely be staying behind. Don't need an icemaker or cold water dispenser, just a straight-forward food cooler.

Thanks in advance for any input!

-- Bobby G.

[Ralph Mowery]

I think you answered your own question when you said you do not want to spend a lot and you are moving soon. If that is anything less than two years, then look for the least expensive price and do not worry about the modle.

If I was wanting a good one, then it would be Whirlpool.

[dpb]

Robert Green wrote: ...

...

In that case, I'd suggest looking for used via the local free radio ads call-in show, newspaper, etc., ... there are almost always well-working units available very inexpensively even in this pretty small town from moves, remodeling, upgrades, etc., ...

--

[Nate Nagel]

Craigslist.

nate

[Robert Green]

Thanks. We've been moving since 2008 when the real estate market tanked, so we could be here until the market "shakes out." How long that will be is anyone's guess, but I suspect that by 2011, people will be unable to wait out planned life changes much longer. My wife's decided she needs to continue to work as long as she can instead of retiring last year because the future is so uncertain. What was once a nice nest egg is a runny, soft-boiled mess.

-- Bobby G.

[Molly Brown]

I recommend buying a refrigerator that has its condenser coil on the back and preferably covers the entire back and not just half way.

[cshenk]

Or Freecycle. Whichever is locally better run. In my little neck, the craigslist isnt well run but the Freecycle is. Just has to do with the local moderator is all. I see Fridges (working) at least once a week.

[Ed Pawlowski]

"Molly Brown" wrote

Do they still make them like that?

[ransley]

Whats the point of having it on the back as a peference, I got a sears a few years ago because it was the most efficent I could get, the coil is underneath, so efficency isnt a reason, The old 20 yr unit I replaced is on the back, so it shoudnt be resessed in a tight area.

[ransley]

Probably not.

[Molly Brown]

Yes they do. My mother bought a new one for my son=92s house a few months ago and I she had me pick it out for her. If you want I can call her and ask her if she knows the make and model.

[Molly Brown]

quoted text -

quoted text -

Unless you have a character like Felix Unger or Monk you either will neglect to clean the coil under it or you wont be able to clean it enough which will cause the compressor to overheat and shorten its life or the condenser fan which is a necessity when you have the condenser coil in the bottom will burn out its motor for one reason or another and you will not notice it which will again cause the compressor to overheat and shorten its life. As far as efficiency goes I don=92t know what kind of logic or formula the air heads use to calculate that but how is running a condenser fan motor which uses electricity more efficient than not running one? They probably use the same logic they apply to dishwashers that use less water but take twice as long to wash the dishes, and no it shouldn=92t be recessed in a tight area but thank God we don=92t live in a third world country where every home is a tight area.

[Nate Nagel]

so you can clean it.

nate

[Stormin Mormon]

Swapsheet, craigslist, Goodwill, referalls, word of mouth, etc. Buy used.

[Robert Green]

That's a good idea. I'm leaning towards new just because it's too easy to inherit someone else's problem, which I definitely don't want to do) and because the vendor will deliver the new and remove the old, saving me much hassle. I'm too old and beat up to wrangle anything bigger than my head around and I have the strangulated hernia scars to prove it. Double!

Thanks for your input! DPB - mind if I call you D?

Pet peeve, why do people like DPB not adopt a first name of some sort just to make it easier to interact? It seems more and more the style. Maybe I am just an old fogey . . . If "initial only" posters are not proactive enough, they could get stuck like Piggy in the Lord of the Flies with a first name they don't like at all!

D for . . . hmmmm (-:

-- Bobby G.

[Robert Green]

Thanks Nate. I watch the People's Court a lot because the judge Marilyn M. comes from a contractor family and thus they have a lot of small claims contractor related cases. My own sister is a judge - more like Judge Judy, so it's a bit of an addiction because sis watches too, and it give us something to talk about at holidays. Anyway, more and more cases are starting out "I found the defendant on Craigslist."

As I noted in a previous message, my double hernia (with revisions!) dictates I not wrangle refrigerators around, so I guess that means buying new. I'd also be afraid of getting one that had roach eggs or worse in the innards. The box I have now, which came with the house, had the coils coated in strawberry jam which I only discovered when I took it apart after a freezeup. In fact, it failed because I manhandled the coils during the cleanup.

Thanks for your input!

Did I really right "New a new" - I mean write! God, senility is gaining on me!!!

Anyway, NEED a new - I should have indicated that NEW meant brand new and not just new to me.

-- Bobby G.

[Robert Green]

Gawd, it's tempting, especially if I find someone who's willing to deliver and haul the old one away for some extra $. But I remember working on the refrigerator in the walkup I lived in. It was basically the Kingdom of the Roaches. I am sure experienced appliance repair folks have seen it before. Warm, dark, near food - a perfect roach mansion.

I am afraid I will be sticking with new units and looking for advice and which have been the most trouble free for users.

Thanks for your input!

-- Bobby G.

[Robert Green]

What are the other options and why are they not good?

-- Bobby G.

[Robert Green]

I would appreciate knowing the make/model if you don't mind, and any gripes she might have about it. I've been Googling about what's best, side by side, freezer top and freezer bottom. I think, because it's a small kitchen, I would go with side-by-side, although one site claimed they were less efficient than the over-under design.

Thanks for your input, Molly. Are you really unsinkable or is that just a rumor? (0:

-- Bobby G.

[Robert Green]

See my other notes. I'll look into it simply because I've got a lot of stuff to sell before we move, or so my wife says when she stands by my bank of Pentium III machines with her arms crossed saying "THOSE are not coming with us."

I should have said I wanted experience with people who have bought new units recently. We might move next month or it might take years. My wife now wants to work until they force her out because her pension savings took such a mighty hit when the market collapsed in 2008.

-- Bobby G.