Ask Lemmy

I had one with a bottom freezer and also a side by side and hated them both. A traditional top door freezer really is the best.

We've been happy with our Bosch.

In my experience side by sides are the least efficient use of their space. Its hard to stack most frozen foods up tall and narrow because they slide around and will slide out the front every time you open the door. Freezer top or freezer bottom units can be packed a lot more efficiently since it maximizes horizontal space and I vastly prefer them.

"Nothing smart" is the only other appliance rule.

Liebherr is European and good. Expensive though.

Depth is the measurement most forget, check it fits. A deeper one is a good way to get more capacity.

Make a decision on your fridge freezer split. I do a lot of batch cooking, so went for 50/50 to get more room in the freezer.

This is not helpful but I just want to kvetch. It seems like any appliances you buy nowadays are just so shitty compared to even ten years ago. Even brands that have long been reliable are so hit or miss. I have a mini-fridge that's almost 30 years old and still works fine. I keep being tempted to buy one with a better freezer or that's more energy-efficient but I worry it would kick the bucket and be unrepairable within 5 years.

Small thing, but if you're torn between two or more choices look and see if one uses accessible screws to attach handles. Mine are kind of snap on and one of them is loose. I'm thinking I have a 30% chance of breaking something plastic during removal and having to buy a completely new handle.

Make sure that the door style you choose fits with the space you have available. My fridge is kind right by pathway, so we have the dual-door style, to minimize blocking the path.

I also like using magnets on the fridge. Iirc, some stainless steel refrigerators aren't magnet-sticky (10 pts if you can tell me what word I forgot).

Get one with as few chips and features outside of it making things cold. The dumber your fridge/freezer the less problems you'll have.

I prefer an under fridge drawer style frezzer. I find it easier to use and less likely to have to chase a frozen whatever across the kitchen.

Stainless or white smooth finishes can work as a whiteboard for DRY ERASE markers.

If you want an ice maker do NOT get an in door model. Those will freeze up and break non-stop. Get a top fridge/bottom freezer with ice maker in the freezer. There is less of a thaw freeze cycle in the integrated cube maker vs the in door version. That's what breaks in door ice makers.

If you're interested in energy efficiency, here's a great video from Technology Connections!

Yes the headline is about chest freezers, but he just uses that as an example of highest possible efficiency before getting into other design of fridge/freezers

You can get a freezer that makes sphere ice. Do what you will with that information.

I've always went with the freezer compartment below, and the fridge "on top".

It's just so much more convenient.

Also, go with ventilated cold if you can, there is zero ice buildup and no "cold corners" (like you find out the salad just froze in the fridge because it was stuck against one of the cold walls) with that system.

Good luck!

It's worth it to pay extra for anything that doesn't need an app or WiFi connectivity.

Those are huge red flags. Avoid anything "smart" like the plauge.

Appliances with "smart features" are simply scraping your whole home, not just your phone, for data to sell to advertisers. Very often the app or even the company won't outlive the appliance itself, so as happens frequently, in 2 years you'll be stuck with a perfectly workable appliance that refuses to work because some server in China went offline.

Not a Samsung. My wife used to be a big fan, but the last two brand new Samsung fridges broke within weeks, and their product support was terrible.

(Our current fridge is LG and we haven’t had any problems with it. There are probably other brands that are also reliable and well built).

We switched from side-by-side to a pullout drawer freezer on bottom and could not be happier. Side-by-side really limits your storage space, whereas top and bottom units allow you to store larger or unusually shaped things. And having the freezer in a drawer is clutch, way better than having it on top

Don't get an in-door ice maker. If you have to have an ice maker, have it internal to the unit.

Check out what maintenance you need to do before you buy it, and how easy the maintenance will be given the space you're putting the unit into. Like, if it's a tight fit and surrounded on three sides, cleaning the coils might be problematic, etc.

most or should i rather say all of fridge nowadays has "auto defrost" systems that lets you forget about drain pans. Initially, most would think that it is a neat design in which the heated freon pipe passes over the drainpan and evaporates the defrosted liquid/water.

unfortunately, thats a very nasty design, its like a ticking timebomb that forces you to purchase a new fridge every <10 yrs

the copper freon pipe would go on a cycle of heating up, getting exposed to water, dries up and repeates the cycle over and over. Take note that metal + water + air = rust

and these rust can cause freon leaks and makes your fridge useless, also, these fixes costs like MF(almost half the price of a bnew fridge)

I would advise DIYing a flexible tube on its drain hole and routing it on a condensate pump, I would not advise routing it to a sewer line because nasty sewer gas will get in the fridge.

Fridge ice machines always break first. Just don't buy such a headache. Silicon ice cube trays are fine I don't really get how the ice machine is all that much more convenient. You have to clean them too which IMO undoes the few seconds saved not filling an ice cube tray once a week. They can also jam with fused cubes, what a PITA!

Frost free freezer, it's a pain in the arse defrosting. You do lose a tiny bit of capacity but it's a trade off with making imo

Something that works without WiFi.

The classic ones with the freezer on top are the most reliable but the hardest to deal with as you age as youll have to squat. they will all fail though. if your flat has room get a chest freezer and use fridge separately do that. check out technology connections on YouTube for some good general advice.

Look into the reviews to see if it cools evenly. I've seen surprisingly many fridges/freezers that have "hot spots" which is less than ideal

Having spent a year selling appliances at Home Depot, I will rank the following brands of refrigerator in order of quality. Beyond that, it really just comes down to features.

• LG - they used to have a lot of problems with their compressors, but they solve that a couple of years ago. They make honestly the best refrigerators for the money. They come in some cool designs.

• GE - if LG is the “modern look”, then GE is the “traditional look“. That’s not to say that GE doesn’t make very lovely refrigerators – – they do. And they are very high-quality as well. However, unlike LG, the lower end GE refrigerators aren’t as high in quality as the lower and LG refrigerators.

• Samsung - some of the most pretty most expensive most feature filled refrigerators. And they’re absolute fucking garbage. You’ll own it for two or three years before something. Major goes wrong. Within five years you’ll have to replace it. And, again, they cost, hundreds, even thousands of dollars, more than their competitors. Avoid Samsung appliances at all costs.

Size: height depth width.... Can be easy to miss one dimension. Energy rating - obvious reasons Noise depending on the room it's in Ergonomics - can you reach all the bits you need to... Imagine filling it with your weekly shop. - better energy rating=more insulation=less space. Doors can generally be reversed, but check. Some FFs have two compressor circuits, others only one. Can be important if keeping it in a garage. Do you need a water cooler/ice maker thing? More to clean, more to go wrong. YOUR FRIDGE DOES NOT NEED AN INTERNET CONNECTION Nor does it need funky windows & stuff Self defrost is a must. We spent ages discussing colour, now you can barely see it behind pictures & papers etc.

Think " is this a useful feature for me, or is it marketing fluff? "

Finally, while a fridge should be a long term purchase, is just a box that gets cold. Don't lose sleep over it.

Hi, the main thing to look out for is that the two compartments should have separate temperature controls. As for brands, well I like Electrolux but it really depends on where in the EU you are to really get a local one.