New Kitchen Appliances -

[westtexman]

Okay - I've decided that I'm going to begin replacing my BOL Hotpoint appliances that came with my house (in white, of course) with some better-quality stainless steel appliances. Now if I were planning on staying in my house forever (e.g. more than 5 years) I would go all out and get Electrolux. Since I don't plan to stay here forever, though, I'm thinking about something mid-range.

I've looked at Lowe's and Home Depot, as well as Best Buy. It looks like Frigidaire, Whirlpool and GE are all decent MOL choices, but they're just not as sexy as the LG's and the Electrolux.

I also plan to buy them one-at-a-time, which means that I want something that will be around for a while so I can get them all to match. Since my dishwasher needs replacing first, I thought I'd start there. I'm quite drawn to the Bosch and the F&P, but of course then I couldn't get the fridge, stove and microwave to match.

Does anyone have any suggestions?

 

[kinnakeettom]

1st thing that I would think of is the service after the sale.
As a retired Whirlpool tech, service is and always will be the major factor in anything that I purchase. Sorry gotta lean with the Kitchen Aid brand in my kitchen.

 

[maytagbear]

Matching is over-rated

Not one manufacturer has a totally strong line any more.

Matching came in when manufacturers, particularly GE, cozied up to contractors, starting in the post World War II housing boom.

I like my GE dishwasher a great deal, but have doubts about GE refrigerators.

I like Whirlpool for refrigerators, but have doubts about their cooking........

Most people I know in "the real world" don't care too much about what brand an appliance is, as long as it is working.

The landlord's stove and refrigerator are in Almond, which I totally hate. I'd rather they be Harvest or Avocado than Almond. My own washer, dryer, and dishwasher are white. I plan to eventually replace (with landlord's permission....I'll buy them myself, and take them, if I move) the stove and refrigerator with white appliances. I'll probably get a GE stove, and a Whirlpool refrigerator.

Lawrence/Maytagbear

 

[whirlcool]

We just went through this same thing.
We ended up with a Maytag dishwasher (based on previous experiences) and a Maytag stove (couldn't get these features on other brands for $800.00 more!) and since Maytag Microwaves seemed to have a lot of sharp edges, we went with a GE Profile microwave. They are all stainless steel so they should match.
I don't think that any one manufacturer makes the best of everything, in an ideal kitchen you would have several different brands to make sure you got the best.
So far, the GE microwave has been installed and it is certainly the best microwave I have ever used. Quiet and it really cooks very evenly. No more cold spots on the food at all!

 

[re563]

Well, just for my two cents:

I have a bosch dishwasher that I got 3 years ago. I love it. However, I do miss the open area in the bottom rack on the left where you can stand pans, baking dishes, large bowls, etc. My bosch is extreamly quiet, cleans great, only uses 5.5 gals of water, but for loading,,,,,,, well I covered that. If I was to get a dishwasher today, I would have to agree with kinnakeettom with the exception of a whirlpool. That silverware in the door crap is for the birds, it's a pain in the ass, I know, you can now move it to the bottom rack or hock in on the front of the bottom rack, but you shouldn't have to think about it that much just to load your dishes. Had one of those too, and sorry, just not worth it to me.

 

[toggleswitch2]

Ida know. I didn't mind the silverware on the door. I just loaded it before pulling out the lower rack and after loading the lower rack. Getting the silverware hodler/baske out of the way makes 4 large pots fit on the bottom better/easier, IMHO.

 

[whirlcool]

This Maytag model we have has one of those split baskets for silverware. You can use it as a traditional basket that fits in the front of the lower rack, or you can "split" it into two pieces that will fit along the side edges of the lower rack allowing for more room for such things as pots and pans.

 

[iheartmaytag]

I don't mean to dispair, but

You can look at my screen name and please understand that I was a Maytag fan, but recently their quality sucks the big one.

My Maytag Tall Tub that is only 16 months old and now on it's second control board. Ok one of them didn't need to be replaced it was incompentent service. In any case, I looked down last night and the bottom rack was rusted completely through in two places. I sent a message to May-Pool requesting that the rack be replaced under the extended warranty. I got a reply that they would make a decision and notify me within three business days.

Less than two years use for a machine that bears a name of quality and durability--Totally unaceptable. You may want to lean towards the less Whirlpool influenced brand(s).

 

[sudsmaster]

A mid-line GE package probably wouldn't be much better than your BOL Hotpoint stuff.

Here's what I'd do (as others have also said). Get the best of each type of appliance, and don't worry about them "matching" brands.

Dishwasher; Bosch all the way.

Range: GE makes the best for the money, according to Consumer Reports.

Fridge: I like Whirlpool/KA, but have recently been impressed with the Samsung line. I'd also splurge and go for a bottom freezer/french door model, but that's just my inclination.

Microwave: Countertop or above range? That would probably make sense to match the range if over the range. If countertop, any good brand would do.

As far as matching, chose a color/finish and stick with it. White is universal. Black pretty common. Even stainless is relatively constant, except for the newer faux stainless finishes which have their own look. My kitchen has a mix of black (cooktop and dishwasher) and stainless (wall oven and fridge) and it looks ok. The microwave hides behind cabinet doors and so isn't much of an issue (it's a black Panasonic countertop model). The only mismatch is the 70's vintage harvest gold NuTone island hood over the cooktop. One of these days I need to pull it down and spray it glossy black (or have it powder coated).

 

[passatdoc]

Agree with sudsmaster, go with Bosch for dishwasher. Mine is seven years old and works/looks like new. Never a service call or issue, other than that the front panel was dented when it came out of the crate. Called Customer Service and they sent a replacement panel and covered the installation. The dented panel may well have happened in the retailer's warehouse rather than at the factory.

Regarding ranges: you didn't mention whether you wanted electric or gas. Frigidaire makes two lines of convection ranges, one with the third heating element around the fan (the bells and whistles version) and one with a simple fan in the back of the oven, called Speed Bake. I bought a range with the latter feature in 2001 and it's going strong. Everything cooks evenly and it shaves 5-10 minutes per hour off the cooking time. I paid $700 for a gas convection range, when the alternatives (Jenn Air, KA, GE) were twice the price.

Frigidaire now makes a fancier version with five burners and grates that go all the way across the cooking surface, with Speed Bake. (I have the older version with four burners and grates over the burners but not across the top). The price range for this one is about $750. Another bonus is that the porcelainized grates are dishwasher safe, I have been keeping them clean in the dishwasher for seven years and they look brand new.

Now that nearly every company offers a gas convection range (whereas when I shopped in 2001, only four companies did), prices have dropped, and I believe my range, still in production, now goes for as low as $600.

I bought a Frigidaire counter depth fridge in 2004 and it has given four years excellent service. Because the fridge sits next to the kitchen entry, getting back those eight inches (the old fridge stuck out eight inches beyond the counter) was a real plus. I was looking at a KA, but I needed 72.5 inches vertical clearance and the lower lip of the overhead cabinets would have had to be cut in order to fit a KA, so I went with Frigidaire which was two inches shorter, and fit without cutting the cabinets.

(Counter depth fridges are usually rated as poor values due to high relative cost and smaller capacity, but in my case, given the location of the frigde and its intrusion into the kitchen entry, it was money well spent, plus it almost looks built in).

I've had two GE over the range microwaves. The first (black) one came with the brand new house in 1988 and I replaced it in 2001. It still worked but had no turntable, didn't heat evenly, and I was changing all the appliances from black to white. Replaced it with a new GE which was ok, but the control board burned out and it's a $200 repair, so out with the old and in with a new Amana which will be delivered on Wednesday. I selected the Amana because it had a shorter vertical profile and therefore adds an inch to the overhead clearance above the range. We'll see how it pans out. The Amana has a somewhat slower exhaust fan (230 cfm instead of 300 on the GE) but I rarely use the exhaust fan and when I do, it's usually the slower speed (I don't tend to burn when I cook).

I agree that matching appliances is silly, since no one company makes the best of each type of appliance. Bosch makes great dishwashers. I have a friend who matched her kitchen remodel appliances. Loves the Bosch dishwasher and gas cooktop, HATES the convection wall oven and says it's the worst oven she ever bought.

 

[frigilux]

Having one, I highly recommend a top-of-the-line LG dishwasher (model 9810). It's the first dw I've owned that cleans starch/water-line marks from pots and pans. It has a nifty steam feature and a separate rack for cutlery and silverware. They provide a traditional silverware basket for the lower rack, but I've never used it.

The machine is very, very quiet in operation. And the interior is lit with cool blue LEDs. And it plays a little song when the cycle is completed. You can also set it for a maximum-strength spray in one rack and a gentler spray in the other. This is very handy when cleaning fine glassware in the upper rack and pots/pans in the lower.

You can also choose to wash only the upper or lower rack on any cycle. There's an extra rinse option, which I've never used; doesn't need it. It uses 2.5 to 5.5 gallons per normal cycle. It's also the first 'sensor' machine that, more often than not, chooses to use less water rather than more.

The stainless steel interior is of very high quality and it doesn't get 'stained' with water marks, as did my SS Maytag and KitchenAid.

It holds HUGE pots/pans and other weirdly-shaped items, has an adjustable upper rack and the door closes with the panache of a Lexus.

Mine cost $1500 at my local LG dealer.

 

[kenmoreguy64]

Bryan -

First, you asked an interesting question, and you've already received some very competent answers, which is what you can expect from the more thoughtful members of this site. In the last year I was very involved in helping my mother select a double in-the-wall oven, and we almost replaced her 2004 GE Triton dishwasher (thanks to AW.org we didn't). I built a new home in 2003 and selected all my appliances, so here's what my two cents can offer:

First, nearly everyone we spoke to while oven shopping said the same thing - go with GE cooking unless you're going way high-end. Even some sales people who would have preferred to sell other brands told us that. Mom's last GE oven lasted 21 years and got so much use, I replaced the bake element twice due to wear and tear. We sold it on Craigslist and I presume it still in use. Mom loves her new GE ovens, and I think they we very well made, though she's had to get used to convection cooking and I don't think she's sold on it. I have a Profile smooth-top 30-inch range and I am very happy with it, though Hamburger Helper isn't very picky.... (I do cook for real from time to time however).

For dishwashing, we both have GE tall tubs, mine is a Profile also and a far cry from the Potscrubber 1200 I had prior, which I'd give some of my cherished possessions to get back. We are happy with our dishwashers but their water-misery ways makes them harder to live with at times. I think I would buy a Whirlpool product next time, or believe it or not, an old-timey standard tub GE.

For refrigeration, I would definitely buy Whirlpool. I am very happy with the one I have now, and my mother has a 1995 Kitchen Aid that's been great. My 1990 Whirlpool is still slaving away in the garage, and we get upwards of 100-degrees plus in garages all summer long here. I would NOT ever by a Frigidaire product for refrigeration. Just go to an appliance resale shop that has repairs and a junk yard in the back - one nearby me is full of 5-year old and sometimes younger Frigidaires, and from what they tell me, it's not at all uncommon. Leaky compressors that are uneconomical to repair seem to be the culprits in these premature demises.

So, in a nutshell, for me its GE cooking, and Whirlpool dishwashing and refrigeration (a Kenmore branded Whirlpool machine would be fine too). I would stay away from anything Frigidaire in my own shopping, but have one more personal point - ABSOLUTELY no imported brands.

I am very pro-American on certain things, and though I've never owned anything but a Ford, I don't have much sympathy for our auto industry. However, we are quite capable of making our own appliances, and we make a whole range of very good ones. It would be a frosty day you know where before I bring the likes of Samsung, LG, etc. into my house, heck, into my neighbor's either if I can help it. I simply feel that if we don't want the rest of the infrastructure of our U.S. economy to crumble, we need to buy our own wares whenever possible. I don't argue much if someone selects a Toyota, but nobody could convince me why they needed a Samsung or LG appliance, etc. I only wish we made more front-load washers in this country.

Good luck in whatever you choose to purchase, please let us know what you decide, and most of all, enjoy it!

Gordon

 

[passatdoc]

Frigidaire is owned by Electrolux of Sweden, but.....

....all of their appliances that I own (range from 2001, fridge from 2004, FL washer and dryer from 2006) were manufactured in the USA, if the sticker inside the machines is to be believed. Most seem to originate from Augusta, GA.

 

[johnb300m]

my two cents, but I wouldn't trust the new Whirlpool tall tub Voyager module.
I'd stick with GE tall tub dishwashing all the way, with Maytag (so far) in 2nd place.