Whirlpool or Frigidaire

The one with the least electronics. Their parts have a long wait time if they need to be replaced according to my local appliance store when I was buying mine. I got a Jenn Aire which is owned by Whirlpool. Whirlpool bought Maytag who owned Jenn Aire. So...Whirlpool. Had it six years, no issues. there are a lot of interior LED lights in mine. When one goes out, they all go out but you can easily replace the one that burned out yourself with the help of a video from Repairclinic.com who also sells the parts

I've had LG refrigerators in my last 2 homes, and I would not hesitate to buy another. The one in my current home is 6 years old and hasn't had any problems; I expect it will last another 6-8 years at least (unfortunately - I'd love the opportunity to replace it because I dislike French door fridges). I have had multiple LG appliances over the years (W/D, range) and only once had a problem (in my 11 year old dryer). I'm not saying Whirlpool is bad, just that I would not hesitate to get an LG if the other considerations were right (size, layout, etc).

I had Whirlpool appliances years ago and loved them. I would read reviews by owners on AG Madison website. Very helpful to hear what others think of the current models. That website also has great prices. I bought my Frigidaire cooktop from them when I redid my kitchen.

Thanks for your opinions. We've decided to go with Whirlpool. It is slightly smaller too, which is good for this small kitchen. (Depth is a few inches shorter.)

Note that that Whirlpool WRB322DMBM refrigerator is standard depth: 30-7/8" deep (plus 1" space required between the appliance and the rear wall) without the handles so it will protrude significantly beyond typical kitchen cabinets (24" + ~1" for countertop).

Thanks @wdccruise. This is not a high end kitchen by any means. The current fridge protrudes. The Whirlpool will be an improvement and is a few inches shallower than that LG.

I was glad to know that fridges no longer need 4" space around them.

“We've decided to go with Whirlpool.”

Choosing based on features vs brand name is smart, especially these days.

From my own experience I would go with LG. I have an LG french door fridge that's about 12 years old. We had one issue with it in the very beginning where the bar between the doors which is heated to prevent condensation stopped working. It was replaced under warranty and we have had no problems since. We even moved it from our original house to a rental and then into our current house. I will say that I hate the ice maker in the door and will never have another fridge with ice in the door. Bought a second all freezer for extra storage. It was a whirlpool. Stopped keeping temp at 4 years old. Got rid of it and got a GE.

There are issues with every brand out there…LG, Samsung, Whirlpool, Maytag, KitchenAid, GE…you name it. Nothing’s made the way it once was. That’s why you should shop for features and price that fit best, not a brand.

ETA - When our 4-yr-old Whirlpool washer died a sales person told me to expect 5-10 years from any new brand I chose. He also said to cross my fingers and toes at 5 years. We went with LG that’s now 8 years old. It’s been great but nothing would surprise me.

My LG is going strong after nine years - no problems. Hopefully you will have similar good luck with your Whirlpool. My Whirlpool brand refrigerators always had a problem freezing stuff in the refrigerator section - including a very expensive KitchenAid built-in model. May have been the difference between SxS models and my current FD LG rather than the brand. I also had the stainless finish on a KA range corrode shortly after I bought it and a good friend had the same problem. After that and KA fridge problems I quit buying buying Whirlpool brands.

I’d buy the extended warranty on any refrigerator these days.

^Yes. I never used to buy the extended warranties. They’re not great but better than nothing with the quality you get these days. Also, some credit card companies will extend the warranty at no charge. Ours extended it for another 24 months.

Well... we changed out minds once we went to the store and looked at both of them. The inside of the whirlpool felt junky and cheaper, drawers didn't glide as well, the plastic holders on the doors had a shallow lip, everything just wobbled a bit.

The store does all of their own repairs and we bought their $149 5-year everthing covered warantee. They said the have an equal amount of repairs on both brands and they truly could not come up with a reason that we should buy one over the other. They are priced the same as well.

BUT -- now we are realizing we can't easily get either kitchen door off the hinges to fit either fridge through. Even with the door of the fridge taken off we still need to remove either of two kitchen doors to get the unit in!

Anybody have a brilliant idea? Please comment on this thread:

https://www.houzz.com/discussions/6499662/how-do-i-get-this-fridge-in-my-kitchen

Hmmm, I’m confused. Our new refrigerator (bought at Home Depot) was taken off the truck and the door wasn’t attached. The driver/installer attached it later. If I had narrow doorways, he would have been able to install them in the house. I would ask if they come without the door(s) which would make them easier to get in a lot of homes.

The driver also checked my space before even unloading the fridge. You need to find out how these are delivered.

Yes, the fridge door will not be attached. But, this is an old building with narrow doorways and even with the fridge door off the hinges and the kitchen door off the hinges, it still might not fit. The two are the same size, but with settling, door frames can often be askew, and it is likely that it won’t fit.

There is another wider kitchen door that would work if we took it off the hinges but it is a swing door with ancient mechanism and I’m not sure we can get the door off.

They will come check out the doors before unloading.

"RedRyder: Hmmm, I’m confused. Our new refrigerator (bought at Home Depot) was taken off the truck and the door wasn’t attached. The driver/installer attached it later."

That's surely because the delivery crew removed the door before loading the unit into their truck. I've never seen a refrigerator shipped from the factory with the door(s) detached ... except perhaps built-in models that may be designed for a choice of door styles which the buyer chooses at at the time of purchase.

I bought a SxS refrigerator direct from Whirlpool last year, delivered by JB Hunt trucking (the two-man crew also installed it). The door was not detached, and didn't need to be removed to get it into my house.

My mother got a WP French door refrigerator (and other kitchen appliances) last year. The doors were not detached when it was received. The delivery crew didn't install it being that kitchen remodeling was still in progress at the time. My sisters and I did the install. We removed the doors to get it through the passageway into the kitchen.

I've never had a fridge delivered with detached doors), though I've known people who detached the doors once delivered (to fit through a narrower space).

Well, this entire post was not needed. Why? Because the LG specs are in correct. Their claim of 29” deep without door attached is wrong. It is 29.75”. It will not fit through our kitchen door. Thus, the appliance store is taking it back and bringing the Whirlpools instead. They swear the entire unit is 28.25 with fridge door off. We shall see on Monday… It is irritating that the specs are wrong but the store is at least a pleasure to deal with. Independently owned.

Maybe it is a blessing. I recently moved from a place where I had resided for 15 years. There was a Whirlpool fridge there. The fridge was about 20 years old when I moved there. It was still working fine when I left. Never had any issues with it.

I don’t know what new Whirlpools are like so I cannot attest to that. But the Whirlpool in my former place was really amazing. I’m glad I never changed it out. If I had to buy a fridge, I would take a chance on Whirlpool.

"Their claim of 29” deep without door attached is wrong. It is 29.75”."

The Owners Manual (which includes installation instructions) shows the depth without the door is 29-7/16".

The LG specs online and the appliance store spec print out both showed 29". The box that it came in had printed on the outside 29.5"

They need to get some consistency. At least I didn't have cabinetry or something else built upon poor specs.

Kendrah, we bought our current fridge a couple years ago. I bet I went to the appliance store and measured myself 3 times to make sure it would fit inside the space. It did but I wouldn’t have bought it had I gone by the incorrect online specs.

Just for general interest, for anyone who may read this. Looks like a good article.

6 Most Reliable Refrigerator Brands, According to Repair Techs:

https://www.familyhandyman.com/list/most-reliable-refrigerator-brands/

And on this list it seems Whirlpool is at #1. LG #2. Of course YMMV.

In my new to me place, I have a Summit refrigerator. Stainless with bottom freezer . Seems solid. I love it so far. Have never had a Summit fridge before and I am just now learning about them! Made in NYC.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Summit_Appliance#:~:text=Summit%20Appliance%20is%20the%20residential,manufacturing%20and%20operations%20are%20done.

We had a repair tech come when our 4-yr-old washer died. He walked through the kitchen and pointed at the 9-yr-old fridge and said ”That will be your next problem.” He was 100% right.😖

I think different technicians can give different answers regarding recommendations. The guy that came to look at our fridge said he’d just replaced his with an LG. I think it’s more or less a crap shoot.

So the lesson learned is: always read the Installation Manual before buying an appliance.

Whirlpool is garbage now. Not the same company from a decade ago. I recently bought a brand new house with smart whirpool appliance package. The "built in" appliances are so poorly designed the digital display features are failing due to moisture. They refuse to honor warranty costing me $1200 to fix or buy new. This is not an easy fix, I have custom cut cabinets that cost thousands to replace if i try to reconfigure for new appliances. I explain this to whirpool and they could careless about my satifaction as a customer. WILL NEVER BUY WHIRPOOL AGAIN!

craftlr: "I have custom cut cabinets that cost thousands to replace if i try to reconfigure for new appliances"

An excellent reason to get free-standing and standard-fit (e.g., dishwashers, OTR microwaves) appliances that can be easily installed, removed, and replaced without disturbing the rest of the kitchen!

@Kendrah - I read the installation nightmare post from you. I hope the new refrigerator will be able to come into the house and get installed.

I would do Fridgedaire havs had my columns for 18 yrs not one issue still going strong

So the lesson learned is: always read the Installation Manual before buying an appliance.

Unfortunately, installation manuals are wrong too. One of the LGs we looked at said 4" clearance was needed around the unit, which would not have fit. Sales people at two different stores told me the LG installation manual was incorrect, that 4" was a hold over from their old fridge which needed air flow for the coils, but that is not the case anymore because the unit no longer has coils.

The lesson is try to go to a store that has the actual unit on the floor and measure it in person. That still would not have worked in our case because everyone had just received the unit in the warehouse but nobody had it on the floor.

The PITA fridge story continues. I need more help. Can anyone find me this:

--> Appliance extension cord for a refrigerator

--> White

--> Sits as flat as possible to the wall

--> Only need one or two feet long

I'd be so appreciative of any links you can place in the comments below. I think a 12 guage is better than a 14 guage but I'm having a hard time finding a short white 12 guage. Most are many feet long and I don't have space behind my fridge to store many feet of wrapped up cord.

WHY? The MF'er at the store gave me the incorrect information about which side of the fridge the plug comes out of and it isn't long enough to reach our outlet. I was fuming mad, steam coming out of my ears when I called him while his delivery guys were in my kitchen. He said, "What am I supposed to do, know every cord from every fridge I sell and get up and tell you where they come from?" My reply: "Yes, if you are a salesman that is exactly what you are supposed to do. Either get out of your chair and look at the floor model or look it up and tell me. Instead you just made up an answer and gave me misinformation."

He was pissed as hell at me that I actually stood up to him and am not a woman who takes crap from anyone. He refused to speak to me and would only talk to his work guys who were here.

So, I need an MF'ing extension cord. Just a short one. As their other advice was to just reach it across my counter and plug it into the backsplash!!!

I'd be up in arms if this was a high end kitchen I was designing and this happend. As it is, I'm just trying to make this place nice enough to resale in a handful of years. There is nothing high end about it. I just don't want it to look 100% janky.

So much for me wanting to give a local independent place my business instead of a big box store!

Kendrah: "What am I supposed to do, know every cord from every fridge I sell and get up and tell you where they come from?"

Nope. He isn't going to know that, cord information isn't in the specs, and he isn't going to know where your refrigerator outlet is (normally at the back of the refrigerator space). The cord appears to be about 4' long.

You just need heavy enough gauge - 14g is what's usually recommended. Just google 'appliance extension cord' and you should be able to quickly find what you want. Even with a flat head, it shouldn't cost you more than $10 or so.

Yes, Whirlpool drawers are junky now. The drawer runner edges saw off as the drawers go in and out, leaving a quarter teaspoon of plastic powder fallen on the bottom every couple of weeks for months. And they fall right out with no built-in stops like they used to have. And eight replacement drawers were just as defective as the first ones. On the plus side, it does keep things cold.

Thread revival?

I can see why an appliance salesman might not know offhand what side the cord comes from, but I cannot see why he would then give an answer without checking.

The most painful part of the Whirlpool purchase is this: We took one door to the kitchen off the hinges when trying to get the fridge in. We decided we liked things better without the door because the hallways are so tight going into the kitchen, it was a real obstacle course. We just had our condo painted and the painter said - "Want me to get rid of these hinges and rip out and repair the door stop trim so it looks like there was never a door here?" Not only does it look great now, but we would have had the extra 1/2" to fit the LG through the door!!! Ugh.

Re the cord:

I was able to tell the guy exactly where my outlet was located. The unit was right there on the floor of his store. If he told me he simply didn't know, I would have walked into the other room, and looked at the unit myself. Instead he gave me BS. His chair and body indicated that the two had been melded together for decades and the one didn't leave the other frequently.

Part of the problem too is that I'm used to purchasing Subzero where the sales people are repping one brand only so it is easy to memorize and know the units. They could tell me exactly where the cord comes out and how long it is. The know their appliances inside and out.

That he didn't have accurate specs to get the beast through the door is just dumbfounding to me.

That is disappointing. But it’s done. And your paint solution for the tiles was clever!

Thanks. I'm so pleased with how the tile turned out.

Regarding the fridge, yes, I've gotten over the disappointment of the fridge. Hope others will read this and go with LG if they have the choice.

Sad that I went out of my way to purchase from a mom and pop appliance store that I was hoping I'd love and could direct more traffic to. So few of them left and I love to support local.