How I Buy Refrigerators for my Workhorse Kitchen

After seventeen years with a trusty, basic Kenmore refrigerator, I bid it a fond farewell. There was nothing wrong with the 18-cubic-footer. It kept things cold or frozen. I regularly packed it to the hilt and it never broke down. It served me well through six cookbooks. But, it loomed large in my 9 by 13-foot kitchen, positioned in the middle of a counter. I often prepped in its shadow and noise.

It took years to figure out a simple way to move the refrigerator. When I did, that was the impetus for the entire kitchen renovation. To create more workspace from a continuous countertop, I needed to relocate the fridge. The solution laid in creating a pantry space about twelve feet away. The pantry would hold a larger fridge while a small undercounter fridge would remain in the main cooking/prep part of the kitchen. That way, I still maintained an efficient triangular work space.

Once designers and contractors deemed my idea feasible and within my budget, I chose the refrigerators. I hadn’t shopped for a fridge in years and didn’t know all the options out there. It took weeks to decide and then a few months ago, slightly changed my mind. The refrigerators finally arrived and I’m ecstatic with their function and looks. I’ve added about fifty percent more refrigeration to my kitchen and they’re quiet. 

When I posted a casual video of how two strong men with moving belts lifted and carried the big fridge into the house, someone asked how I chose the refrigerator. That’s the genesis of this post. My thought process on the new refrigerators involved asking questions, shopping, research, with a little impulse buy thrown in. 

How Will the Fridge Improve Your Cooking Life?

When shopping for refrigerators, one thing is clear -- they keep things cold. That’s a no brainer but nowadays, refrigerators are designed with all kinds of functionalities that you may or may not need. 

Years ago, I regularly attended one KBIS, of the largest kitchen and bath remodeling conventions in America. Each year, the refrigerators got fancier. Some were all stainless steel ($25,000!), others promised to keep organic produce fresh for weeks and some had compartments for you to keep special diets foods separate for each household member. 

One time, when I tried opening the door of one of the super fancy fridges designed to match your cabinets, I needed help from a burly guy nearby. He pulled on the arty door handle with force and complained about it as we looked inside the fridge. We both admitted the fancy looks were hogwash. 

For my personal and professional purposes, I need a fridge to keep things cold and organized. I don’t drink sodas, juices or even gallon-size jugs of milk. We are a small household. That said, I may have multiple containers of experimental pickles, stockpots of broth, many tubs of tofu, containers of fresh herbs, plus tons of produce or fruit. 

During food prep, when I need green onions, garlic, and ginger, I want to get at them pronto! If I need to find special fish sauce bottles, I only want to reach in and grab it easily. 

That’s to say, when I open my fridge, I want to easily see where things are. I was tired of rummaging through the old Kenmore to find a tub of curry paste or searching the door for the fermented shrimp sauce. 

That’s how I ended up with a three-door “French door” refrigerator. Its open wide like a food wardrobe. I don’t have to crouch down to find things. The bottom freezer is easier to rifle through without having frozen things falling out and hitting me. 

How Much Space Do You Have? 

If you’re replacing a fridge without construction involved, your space is well defined. I had a blank wall where the pantry would be, so I could go as big or small as I wanted. I didn’t need a huge refrigerator because my design was built for two fridge areas. That meant I could have a moderate-size big fridge. A standard undercounter fridge holds about 5 cubic feet.

The counter-depth choice is because of the pantry area. The cabinets have a standard depth. Going with a bigger fridge that wasn’t counter-depth meant it would poke out more. I could have gained more storage space. 

Water dispenser, Ice Maker or Not? 

At the higher range of home refrigeration, it’s hard to avoid a water dispenser and ice maker. But just because the fridge has those things does NOT mean you have to use them. Both require water hook-up. The pantry area wasn’t plumbed and I didn’t want it to be for a number of reasons.  

First, I’m fine with ice cube trays for our small household. We don’t use enough ice to merit an ice maker, which would make so much ice that it would linger and eventually taste bad. 

Shopping at Best Buy and Home Depot plus some online searches revealed that door water dispensers take up a lot of space. And, you can simply turn off the ice maker and never hook up the water connector on the fridge. 

Finally, seventeen years ago, the helpful Sears appliance salesman handed me this advice: With no water hook up, a fridge will likely run longer because there are fewer things that can go wrong with it. 

So, for me -- no water dispenser needed. As for the ice maker, I’d never hook it up!

In summary, think about how you eat, drink and cook with your refrigerator. That helps to narrow down the refrigerator options. 

What Refrigerator Make and Model to Buy?

I’ve driven Honda Accords most of my adult life. That’s to say, I like a bit of luxury in the form of a comfortable ride but don’t need leather seats. Given that, I look for reliability in my home appliances. I scoped out reviews from Consumer Reports, Costco, Home Depot, Lowes, and also Yale Appliances. 

My old stove was an LG, and so are our microwave oven, washer and dryer. I trusted LG and so do a zillion other people. Moreover, the model I chose lacked the water dispenser. The fridge I selected is widely available, so we checked it out in person -- opening the doors and drawers to make sure we like them. The stainless steel is smudge proof, a plus. 

Fridges also come in colors like white, dark bronze, and black. How cool is that? I was attracted to Samsung’s Tuscan color until I learned through searching online that quite often, if an appliance color gets scratched, the stainless steel shows underneath. I can be clumsy around the kitchen so that wasn’t for me. 

As for the undercounter drawer fridge, I went with GE Cafe because it’s reliable, biggish (5.7 cubic feet!) and slightly less expensive than other comparable brands. What sold me even more was this: the top drawer has adjustable dividers that allow bottles and jars to be stored without clanging when the drawer opens and closes. 

More expensive undercounter units may have fridge and freezer drawers, or be panel ready so you may match your cabinets. I didn’t need either of those things but they are options to be aware of. 

When Should You Buy a Refrigerator?

With large home appliances, there seems to be constant sales, but salespeople told me to wait for the holiday sales -- Labor Day, Memorial Day, Thanksgiving, for example. With the pandemic this  year, things were a bit funny with inventory delays. That said, I purchased during Home Depot’s July 4 sales and delayed delivery until the renovation was ready for it. 

Yes, you can buy to lock in a price, then postpone delivery! I ordered on the phone because of a computer glitch and the nice woman told me this: You can move delivery days back but you can’t move them up. You can change a delivery date so long as the appliance has not shipped -- roughly 1 week before the scheduled delivery date. Once the appliance -- any appliance arrives, inspect it for dents and anything else before it’s installed. Take photos of there are issues. Once the appliance is installed it’s harder to return it to HD. 

Wherever you buy from, ask about the return policy and procedures. Appliances are costly and heavy -- lots of trouble in case it has to go back.

What about Service Warranties?

I use a Costco credit card that gives me a couple of years extra beyond the appliance warranty. But even so, I buy warranties to gain few years of extra protection. Insurance is a weird gamble but for me, these appliances are investments. I want to hedge my bets to a certain extent!

Thus far, I’m thrilled. The fridges are quiet (I barely hear their hum), handsome, and seem to keep produce perkier than the old one. But then, it’s been seventeen years since I got a new fridge. These upgrades will make my cooking life much much better. 

Please share your refrigerator wisdom via comments below!

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