About 2 years ago I bought a GE refrigerator. I have never been more unhappy with a refrigerator than with this thing. It’s very loud, but more importantly, the functionality is crap. When the temperature is set to 38 degrees, ice builds up on the back wall, stuff near the back of the fridge literally freezes, and stuff at the front doesn’t get colder than about 50 degrees. I had an appliance repairman out to see if something could be repaired. He tried replacing the fan & motor but it didn’t help. He said he has seen the same problems with this model in other houses.
I want to replace this with something that works well (that is, keeps the food at the selected temperature throughout the interior). I would like a 36" French door design. I don’t want through-the-door water or ice (in fact I’m not going to connect the fridge to a water supply at all). I don’t need any “smart” features but I won’t reject a fridge just because it’s smart. I’d be very leery of buying another GE model. Price is no object. Any suggestions?
Based on the recommendation of our local appliance repairman, last year we purchased a 36" French door KitchenAid. We have through-the-door water & ice. We haven’t had a bit of trouble with it; my only complaint is that the icemaker is damn noisy when it drops a tray of ice. But if that’s not a feature you want, then that won’t be a problem. It keeps the food cold and has handy sliding, adjustable shelves.
KitchenAid is a subsidiary of Whirlpool.
Repair guy also recommended fridges manufactured in Korea: LG and Samsung.
When I moved into this condo 7 years ago, it had all GE appliances. The stove and dishwasher are more or less okay, nothing to brag about but the fridge had exactly the problems you described. We finally replaced it with an LG, the largest that fit in the space and we are quite happy with it. It had no water dispenser, but it did have an icemaker that I finally figured out how to disable (so it never tries to make ice). No more frozen veggies in back or warm milk in the door.
FWIW, GE appliances aren’t made by GE anymore; in 2016, GE spun off their appliance division to Haier, a Chinese appliance and electronics corporation. Apparently, they still operate GE appliance manufacturing plants in the U.S.
I’ve always thought of KitchenAid as high quality but expensive, but with all the mergers going on now, who knows. But I absolutely love my heavy expensive KitchenAid saucepan!
Back to refrigerators. When I bought the present house, the refrigerator was an LG. It worked fine for about a decade, but kept making loud popping noises whenever the cooling cycle stopped. I also bought (of my own accord – I’m fully to blame) two LG laundry appliances, a washer and dryer.
After about a decade the LG refrigerator compressor stopped working and could barely keep things cool. The LG front-loader destroyed its main bearing after just a few years. I know that YMMV but as far as I’m concerned I’m totally done with LG appliances.
I now have a Maytag top-loader which has been working just fine. And, back to the subject of refrigerators, I’m very happy with my basic Frigidaire top-freezer. I especially like the “meat keeper” tray which is usually a half-width tray, but in this model extends across the full width of the fridge, which seemed like a very practical innovation.
If money is no object go straight for the top. A Sub-Zero fridge is THE best on the market.
I can’t say if you need an appliance guy how successful you’re gonna be able to find a competent or qualified one. It matters where you live.
They are the best. I blew through a GE and 2 LGs. They all cost way too much for their performance levels. I said no more.
About 20 years ago, we bought a Kirkland (Costco) refrigerator made by Whirlpool. In fact, the nameplate says “Kirkland Signature by Whirlpool”. The ice maker crapped out a couple of years ago, but since the kids moved out, we don’t have much call for ice - in the summer, I buy a 7-lb bag about every three weeks and dump it into the hopper. We haven’t bothered to have the ice maker fixed because we expect the refrigerator to die, but it just keeps plugging away.