- 5 Spillproof Glass Shelves
- Reversible Door Swing
- Clear Humidity-Controlled Crisper
- Slide-Out Freezer Drawer
- Factory Installed Automatic Ice Maker
1) Fridge space:Lots of room inside.I was concerned that the controls near the top would get in the way when putting tall bottles on the top shelf but that hasn't been an issue.
2) Drawer space: I specifically selected a fridge without the "catering drawer" because I eat lots of veggies and wanted the space for them. I really use all the space in the vegetable drawers.While I'm not disappointed, I could even use more veggie space.
3) Freezer:It works great, but I have a couple of issues.
The first is that with the curved back of the freezer, it feels like I have less space than my prior 18.5 cu.ft. fridge.Not sure, but it just seems like now that I have a freezer that actually works, I don't have enough space to do the cook-ahead and freeze stuff I would have liked.Also, I would really have preferred a door rather than a drawer. To get to the ice, you have to pull the entire bottom drawer out and only then can you pull out the top shelf which holds the ice cube bin at the back.It's do-able but it just doesn't make sense to have to pull all the frozen stuff out into the room when all I want is a handful of ice cubes.
4) Noise level:I know folks have had issues with noise but not me.This fridge is really quiet, making just a bit of noise when it fills the ice cube tray
5) Surface texture:I don't know why another review complained that the sides of the fridge were texttured rather than smooth --I am happy with the texture.I like it.
Quick note on size: I had to get this fridge into a small space as I have an old-fashioned kitchen.The published depth is 33" including the door but it is actually just over 30" including the door, which worked well for me.
So, despite my nit-picking, I'm very happy with the fridge...
4/3/2012
I'm still really happy with the fridge.I took a very expensive extended warranty out on this fridge because of all the negative reviews but I'm happy that I've not had to use it.The freezer still seems a bit small compared to my old fridge, but I love the refrigerator.
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We LOVE this fridge.The Fridge space is great and organized well with shelves that slide out to make everything accessible.The fridge is quiet, it can be noisy at first when it's making ice, but after the tray is full, it runs quietly. We love the ease of the of the bottom mount freezer, it's seems so much easier to open then the side by sides.The freezer seems smaller than a traditional freezer, but the drawer feature and the divider does help with organization.The only real problem is it doesn't fit a large frozen pizza real well.
The biggest problem with this fridge is the door doesn't shut well. Even if you push it shut you really need to push it hard and make sure it shuts.I have found it slightly ajar more than once, and we are a family with teens who certainly know how to slam shut a fridge.I wish it had a door alarm to alert you when it's open. It's the only thing that we don't like about this fridge.
After 18 months, my refrigerator drain froze up and dumped water into the floor of the freezer which froze in a sheet of ice.It then partially thawed periodically and leaked water out the front onto the floor. Yes, I did not buy an extended warranty contract for this refrigerator.
I took the refrigerator apart, removed all the ice and cleaned the drain, and am waiting to see if the problem reappears.If it does, it is either a defective defrost control or a bad fan.Either one of these will cost you $300 to get a service tech to repair it in your home.
For a DIYer, to remove an ice blockage, you have to remove the bottom door, drawers and part of the drawer tracks, as well as the ice maker to get the back panel out in the freezer.Then, to ensure you have gotten all the ice out, you have to remove the panel on the back of the refrigerator and inspect the drain all the way to the evaporator tray, which is hidden behind the back panel.This took me about 3 hours.
I wrote a bad review on Whirlpool's website, where I found several similar complaints about the freeze-up problem, and was contacted by a customer relations person via email.She demanded my name, address, phone number, and the serial number of my refrigerator.Then, by return email she said they have no service bulletins indicating that this is a problem with their refrigerators.Then she volunteered to sell me a service contract.She also said they do not have any service technicians available to talk to customers.
Then, Whirlpool REMOVED MY BAD REVIEW FROM THEIR WEBSITE!
Actually, we like the refrigerator and I would have given it a higher rating if it went problem free for 4 or 5 years, AND if Whirlpool was helpful.Neither happened so I would recommend that you find a company with a better record.
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I bought this refrigerator May 28th 2011. For several months it worked well but then we started noticing droplets of water, ice and eventually a sheet of ice covering the very bottom of the freezer compartment. We defrosted it and left the door open for awhile to make sure there was no ice left and tried it again, same result. Figuring that this could be a problem with the cabinet not being level that was checked and found good. The icemaker was also checked and level and turned off for awhile. Again it sheeted ice in the bottom. After pulling the panels and testing the drain (no easy task given the design of this unit) the drain was found to be open. While in there it was a good time to clean the condenser coils located on the very bottom. These are designed in such a way that it's impossible to get a coil brush thru them or near enough to do any good. Compressed air is about the only option and that really doesn't get them clean. This somehow got an energy star rating but the design is so poor that it certainly would not maintain good efficiency over the appliances lifetime unless the owner was able to keep these coils clean and dust free.Whirlpool's Customer Experience Center has been emailed and contacted also by phone. Their rep "Terry" in Cleveland Tenn was very polite but said "youre out of warranty" and got a supervisor to speak with me. The supervisor "Joetta" commented that I was "Well out of the warranty period" at 3 months and 3 weeks and offered to fix my appliance along with a years extended warranty for $319.99. After a little better than a year I regret buying this refrigerator and regret that I chose Whirlpool.
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This is an update, on Sept. 4, 2012: The original, high pitched whine that was terribly annoying has ceased. The only unusual noise now is an occasional clicking sound, attributed to expansion. Otherwise, the refrigerator has quieted down nicely, and is performing well. I can more comfortably recommend this Whirlpool now.I only received the refrigerator today, so I cannot comment on its operation yet, other than to say that it seems well-made by today's standards, and it cooled quickly when I fired it up. Here is where the problem lies (at least for me): While the fan noise is acceptable, the unit makes a high-pitched whining noise while running that is fairly irritating if you have a sensitive ear. Some people may not be able to hear it, others may find it minor, but for me, it's like having a mosquito in my ear. I'm not sure that I'll be able to live with it; time will tell.New refrigerators are supposed to be quieter than the older ones, but this one is actually noisier than my 12-year-old GE side-by-side. I say this only as a warning to those who are looking for a quiet model, or who are sensitive to certain noises.
As for the rest of the refrigerator, a few notes. The door storage could use a few more shelves for smaller items. If you just want to store large bottles, it's fine. The unit does not come with a filter for the ice maker, so you'll need to install an external one if your water warrants it. The smooth finish on the doors will likely scratch easily, so I wouldn't advise it if you like to slap magnets and things on your fridge. The dividers in the freezer baskets are seriously tough to remove, if you want to do so, and though I haven't filled it yet, the freezer seems to have a smaller usable capacity than it should, owing to the basket design. I was a bit puzzled by their choice of a bottom basket, rather than a solid drawer; it seems less efficient to have an open bottom in the freezer, allowing the cold to just fall to the floor when you open the freezer.
Whirlpools have a good record, in terms of reliability, and I'm hoping that this one will continue in that tradition (if I can get past the noise factor). I hope that this review offered you some useful information. I may add an update later.
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