You've probably read a bunch of reviews
and heard many horror stories about refrigeration repair.
Unfortunately, they're mostly true.
If you're looking for your refrigerator last 20 years, I have some bad news.
French door refrigerators require the most service
of any appliance outside of professional ranges.
In this video, you'll learn the most
reliable brands and their first year reliability percentages.
Let's dive in.
We logged over 100,000 service calls in less than 3 years.
37,061 in 2020 alone.
So let's discuss how we calculate reliability.
The average service rate is 21.1 percent for French door
counter-depth refrigerators versus about 10 percent for appliances in general.
You know, these numbers seem bad, but most of the issues are not.
Problems are more related to ice maker issues rather than compressor failures.
It isn't all terrible either.
The refrigerators are tightly regulated for energy use, so you should save $100
to $200 dollars per year in energy costs with your new refrigerator.
You'll have problems with your ice maker
dispenser will save a good deal of money yearly.
Let's take a look at the numbers.
Number five is Samsung with a 20.9 percent service ratio in the first
year. I had hoped Samsung wasn't on this list, even though their products are popular
and I happen to like them. Samsung's main issue is their lack of service.
Some areas it's nonexistent. Always
check for available service before you buy any appliance.
Beko is fourth with an 18.1 service ratio. The best refrigerator
to keep food fresh for a longer period of time after Sub-Zero is Beko,
We tested five refrigerators with fruits and vegetables for 30 days,
in our project produce experiment.
Beko's refrigerators have the most features with two evaporators, ethylene
filters to filter gases and blue lighting in the crisper, Beko's active blue light
emulates sunlight and promotes continued photosynthesis in fruits and vegetables.
And it actually worked.
Number three is Fisher Paykel with a 17.3 percent
service ratio. Fisher and Paykel isn't surprising.
Most of their refrigerators are basic without dispensers and ice makers.
As a side note,
the Fisher Paykel integrated panel ready french door refrigerators,
$5,00 - $8,000 less than a Sub-Zero or any other panel ready type.
Bosch is second with 16.9
service in the first year, which surprised me.
It's new and they have a surprising number
of features with two compressors and Wi-Fi.
It is number two on this list and 4 percent better than the average.
GE appliances are the best in the first with a twelve point one service ratio.
The base GE model has fewer features than
their more expensive GE profile and Cafe Appliance refrigerators.
But is number one on this list and a full 8
percent better than the average. Also has its own available service department.
It's a good consideration if your retailer has no service available.
One of the biggest issues, as we said,
is with the ice makers and dispensers with an ice dispenser sending an ice cube
through a warmer refrigerator, this can cause leaking.
Although this problem is so annoying,
it doesn't affect the cooling of the refrigerator, invariably.
As I said, the refrigerator will work.
You should consider one on a French door just from looking at the first year
service rates alone, it escalates in year two.
Just do not buy a warranty from a store
without an actual service department. You certainly wouldn't buy a car warranty
from a dealer without service for the same thinking with appliances.
Third-Party warranties are really not worth the hassle when you need repair
because they don't actually employ any service tax.
You may have an annoying ice maker problem within five years, statistically,
but the refrigerator will work and save money and energy costs. Top five are GE
Bosch, Fisher & Paykel,
Beko and unfortunately for me, Samsung. With a service rate of 21 percent
just on refrigerators, you'll probably need some kind of service,
especially with the whole kitchen package of appliances.
You wouldn't notice the other part of what we consider as reliable.
Bosch and GE are better at turning around parts and service than the others.
In addition to researching prices
and features, should know your service agent before making any purchases.
To learn more about the most reliable
refrigerators, download our free counter-depth refrigerator buying guide
with in-depth comparisons of all the popular brands answers
to frequently asked questions and buying strategies to save you money.
If you like the video hit, subscribe and be notified.
First of future videos. We'll be publishing individual product
reliability posts like dishwashers, washers and stoves in the upcoming weeks.
Thanks for watching.