New Refrigerators - anyone have advice or warnings?

[sunflour]

My 26 year old GE side by side may have to be replaced. It still works great but the ice maker needs repair - doubt we can find parts, so have been researching for a replacement.

But everything I have read and been told is overwhelmingly bad.

Anyone have advice on brands and longevity.

Should I just buy bagged ice?

And go for a record on how long can a fridge last?

 

[SunHwaKwon]

What is the ice maker doing? Some repairs are quite simple.

 

[sunflour]

What is the ice maker doing? Some repairs are quite simple.

Likely leaking from the Solenoid, and don't know if can find any parts.

Have excluded everything else that could be the cause.

 

[cmom]

Have you looked into a new ice-maker and just replace it? We replaced our fridge in the house with a Samsung French Door counter depth fridge and it works great so far and no problems. We bought a whirlpool to replace a fridge in an apartment we have. The Ice-maker in our old fridge in our apartment worked great but the plug on the end where you plug it in was different so we had to get a new ice-maker. I guess we could have cut the old plug off of the old one and put a new plug on the end of the old ice-maker but had a hard time finding the right plug so we just bought a new ice-maker and put it in. We should have bought the fridge with the ice maker already in it as the cost was the same for us to buy one and put it in ourselves. Good luck with your research.

 

[sunflour]

Have you looked into a new ice-maker and just replace it? We replaced our fridge in the house with a Samsung French Door counter depth fridge and it works great so far and no problems. We bought a whirlpool to replace a fridge in an apartment we have. The Ice-maker in our old fridge in our apartment worked great but the plug on the end where you plug it in was different so we had to get a new ice-maker. I guess we could have cut the old plug off of the old one and put a new plug on the end of the old ice-maker but had a hard time finding the right plug so we just bought a new ice-maker and put it in. We should have bought the fridge with the ice maker already in it as the cost was the same for us to buy one and put it in ourselves. Good luck with your research.

Thanks for reply. The dual water supply to the ice maker and water dispenser is what we need to replace - this fridge is 26 years old, and have done on line searches and my model doesn't show on any of the parts sites.

And since it is such an old model, wondering what will be the next failure? So have looked at the new models - really would love a French Door one and they are on sale for Labor Day.

- but have heard and read horror stories about all brands. And for sure won't find any that can last as long as this one has

 

[SunHwaKwon]

I have a whirlpool refrigerator that was in the house when we bought it in 2013. I'm not sure how old it is but I think the previous owners bought the house in 2008. It didn't match the stove and dishwasher that were in here so I think its 2008 or newer. Its a decent french door with the lower freezer and then in the top has a large pullout drawer and two smaller drawers. I've looked at other refrigerators during my many trips to home depot and lowes and think I would prefer the large pull out drawer to be separate from the french door section. It seems it would be roomier and with easier access. That and the microwave are the only appliances I haven't replaced since we bought the house. For everything else I did a lot of looking at store displays to figure out features I liked and didn't like and what certain "features" actually meant coupled with online research of reviews and prices. I expect I'll do the same for the refrigerator when it needs replacement. I bought a GE stove and dishwasher, and a Samsung washer and dryer. One thing I would consider if if you want it cabinet depth. My current one is not and it is kind of annoying, though I do like the capacity of it. If your refrigerator fits into a cubby and it is limited either in height or width, make sure you look at that too. It would be a real disappointment to get it home and have it not fit!

I do have a friend who works in appliance repair and he may be able to locate the suitable replacement part number for you, if you decide you want to go that route. Though, with the labor day sales it is a good time to buy. Make sure you also look at display, discontinued, etc.

ETA While a lot of brands have historical longevity records, todays technology has changed the way a lot of things work (prime examples being appliances and automobiles), especially with all the computers that are now in everything. Generally, I don't buy things assuming they will last as long as the old stuff. Digital controls can be great when it comes to diagnostics or such, but it also adds in another element for premature failure either because of the physical part of because of software glitches and the biggest aggravation is its harder to repair yourself. The upside with the refrigerators is that they tend to be more energy efficient, environmentally friendly (as long as they last and don't end up in the dump), consistent in temperature and easier to make adjustments, and of course you always have a lot of style options, though I try to go for more classic looks so, should they actually last 20+ years as hoped, they won't be too dated looking.

 

[cmom]

The dual water supply to the ice maker and water dispenser is what we need to replace - this fridge is 26 years old, and have done on line searches and my model doesn't show on any of the parts sites.

And since it is such an old model, wondering what will be the next failure? So have looked at the new models - really would love a French Door one and they are on sale for Labor Day.

- but have heard and read horror stories about all brands. And for sure won't find any that can last as long as this one has

I have a whirlpool that was in the house when we bought it in 2013. I'm not sure how old it is but I think the previous owners bought the house in 2008. It didn't match the stove and dishwasher that were in here so I think its 2008 or newer. Its a decent french door with the lower freezer and then in the top has a large pullout drawer and two smaller drawers. I've looked at other refrigerators during my many trips to home depot and lowes and think I would prefer the large pull out drawer to be separate from the french door section. It seems it would be roomier and with easier access. That and the microwave are the only appliances I haven't replaced since we bought the house. For everything else I did a lot of looking at store displays to figure out features I liked and didn't like and what certain "features" actually meant coupled with online research of reviews and prices. I expect I'll do the same for the refrigerator when it needs replacement. I bought a GE stove and dishwasher, and a Samsung washer and dryer. One thing I would consider if if you want it cabinet depth. My current one is not and it is kind of annoying, though I do like the capacity of it. If your refrigerator fits into a cubby and it is limited either in height or width, make sure you look at that too. It would be a real disappointment to get it home and have it not fit!

I do have a friend who works in appliance repair and he may be able to locate the suitable replacement part number for you, if you decide you want to go that route. Though, with the labor day sales it is a good time to buy. Make sure you also look at display, discontinued, etc.

This website is great and will tell you when your refrigerator was made. Put in Make, Model and Serial Number and it will tell you the likely date is was made.
http://www.appliance411.com/service/date-code.php

 

[SunHwaKwon]

I think it probably says manufacture date on the same tag as the model and serial number, I just haven't paid much attention to it (no need). I did have the ice maker stop working because of a seized dispenser motor but I was able to fix it myself.

 

[sunflour]

@SunHwaKwon Thanks for your input. You have made some really good points.

Thanks so much for the offer of help with parts location. We have a local appliance parts store and if the part or an acceptable reproduction is available they will either have it or can order it for me. My DH is very good at mechanical and electrical repairs of almost anything.

Just cannot make up my mind to fix it or replace it

Guess if I didn't already have a refrigerator/freezer and a free standing freezer in my basement/garage - I could just move this one there and put a new one in the kitchen

But there would be no where to park my car.

The dilemma began when I got home a few days ago and we discussed fixing it or replacing it - and decided to just get a new one. It is a side by side, but I I really love those french door fridges with the separate "convertible" drawers -So went to investigate and had actually picked out 2 I loved and came home to double check my measurements, make a decision and send an order. But got cold feet after checking on line reviews.

A cabinet depth would not be of benefit to me or be necessary in the location. The area I have can easily accommodate the larger sized models... Except for a short wall on the right side of the area - not a big problem with my current fridge which has much thinner doors than the new ones. So would need to revisit the showrooms and see how accessible the right sided stuff would be with door at 90 degrees? Or pick a model deep enough to make sense in pulling it out a few more inches?

This website is great and will tell you when your refrigerator was made. Put in Make, Model and Serial Number and it will tell you the likely date is was made.
http://www.appliance411.com/service/date-code.php

Nice to know, I have my model # but think the serial number is on the back, and don't want to roll out that heavy gal again until I have to Pretty sure mine was 1990. On line parts places list models close to mine - but have additional A,B,C or K behind what mine lists.

 

[cmom]

We bought the french doors cabinet depth because of the space it is in and it still sticks out a little bit from the counter, the door (2 inches). Actually the regular depth fridges cost less than the counter depth but DH wanted the counter depth to give us a bit more space where it's at and it's just the 2 of us. We also have a chest freezer.