First of all, I should mention that we didn't have much choice about which French door refrigerator to purchase, as we needed one that would come apart enough to fit through a narrow hallway that we have.Since both the doors and the drawer fronts on this model are removable, we purchased it.There was another model I was interested in but the drawer fronts couldn't be taken off.However, we don't regret this choice at all.I LOVE (never thought I would say I love an appliance) this refrigerator!And we purchased it at an excellent price, so that makes it all the better!
There are some features that you usually see in refrigerators that are missing in this one.There is no vegetable crisper bin, no meat bin, no egg bin, and no dairy keeper.However, I found that all of those items keep very well, you just have to know where to store them.The coldest part of the refrigerator are the shelves below theice maker and they are perfect for storing meat (about 33 degrees).Vegetables seem to keep well most anywhere, as the entire refrigeration unit is humidity controlled.I kept celery for about two weeks without it going limp or the leaves wilting.And lettuce also kept exceptionally well, even though I had sliced it with a metal knife.I know this shouldn't be done, but I needed it to be very thinly sliced to make up hero sandwiches for Christmas Eve and I could have never done it with my plastic lettuce knife.It stayed crisp and never turned brown.I keep my butter on the top shelf of the right door (the side opposite of the ice maker), as this is the warmest part of the refrigerator, about 38 degrees.I also keep my eggs (in cartons) on the same side on the top shelf.Since I have my own chickens, I have a lot of eggs and an egg bin would be useless to me anyway.
The "Easy Access" drawer is also very cold, about 35 degrees--my cold cuts keep very well in there.This is my VERY FAVORITE feature of this refrigerator!This is the first time in my 45 years of being married that my smaller items don't get "lost" somewhere in the back of the refrigerator and eventually spoil and must be thrown out.Now I can just open the drawer and see everything I have!I'm sure it saves some energy as, if I need something from there, I don't have to open up the entire refrigerator.
The right side door shelves are very deep and I can store two quart containers (even though the top door shelf is the warmest part of the refrigerator, the bottom shelf is perfectly cold enough to store milk and similar perishables), one in front of the other.However, there is not much height clearance (unless you eliminate one of the door shelves, which I rather not do) but I created an area for tall items by raising the one "mini" shelf (which fits beside the ice maker) and I can fit just about anything in that area.There is minimal storage in the door shelves in front of the ice maker but overall, this refrigerator is very roomy.
I'm wondering if the bins were eliminated to create extra useable space and reduce clutter, as this refrigerator seems to hold a lot of food for the size.We kept our old side-by-side and put it in the garage, but I hardly need to use it--and I do A LOT of cooking!
The freezer is particularly roomy for the size.The cubic feet are less in this freezer than the freezer in my old refrigerator, but it appears to me that it actually holds more.This may be because my old fridge was a side-by-side and the freezer was broken up into various narrow bins.There are two large bins and two sliding drawers on top.The top drawers appear small but I can easily fit a large ice cream container in them standing up.I'm sure one of the bins in the lower section is large enough to fit a 20+ pound turkey.
The gradual "theater style" LED lighting is lovely to look at and enables you to see inside very well.
I know ice makers can be problematic, but this one is functioning fine.It is a bit loud when it drops the ice (I have never had one that isn't) but the ice cubes are a nice size for whatever you need them for.You do need to hold your cup/container close to where the ice is dispensed as, otherwise, you could have ice landing on the floor--I don't find this to be a problem, perhaps because I've had ice makers for many years.It is nice to know that the water for both the ice and water dispenser is filtered, with a filter that is easily changed.The water is also cooled, which is a nice feature.
The only thing I'm not totally pleased with is the little "computer" panel above the dispensers, but not enough to deduct a star.I feel most of it is more like a "gimmick" to help sell the refrigerator.I do like that it displays the day, date and time.However, the timer I can hardly hear at the loudest setting and the "Nutrition Center" gives a very small selection of items to choose from.I would like it to stay lit but it shuts down automatically.
One more thing I should mention, if you are not pleased with the factory settings, you can change the freezer and refrigerator temperature settings in one degree increments--unlike the older ones that only had a slide knob with numbers that gave you no idea of the temperature.I did lower both of those by one degree (I like my food to be very cold) and nothing has frozen in the refrigerator section.
Overall, this refrigerator seems to be very well built and the sliding drawers glide very easily and appear to be very strong.I am also very pleased with the integrated handles on the drawers, as this eliminates a lot of fingerprints.I did notice that not all stainless steel is alike.Some have a somewhat golden glow and others are more gray.This refrigerator leans toward the "grayer" color but I have it in my kitchen with a warmer color stainless steel range and it looks fine but they are not next to each other. As previously mentioned, I didn't have much choice about which French door refrigerator I could choose, but it's something you may want to consider. Besides functioning very well, this is a "showpiece" in the kitchen.It looks gorgeous (much better than when we saw it in the store)!
I know this review is very long but a refrigerator is a major investment and I am trying to make it as helpful as possible. I have only had this refrigerator for about 3 weeks, so I can't comment on longevity.
However, as it stands now, I am EXTREMELY pleased with it!
Update 1-10-11:After having lowered the temperature in the refrigerated section by one degree and leaving it like that for a while, I found ice crystals in the milk I had stored under the icemaker, so it is probably best not to change the factory settings.I have restored mine to the original settings.
I bought this refrigerator when our 20 year old Kenmore stopped making ice, which is a staple around our house.We bought the floor model, since the dealer did not have what I wanted in stock, and this was the only one I could bring home that day.I had to remove the doors to get it through the front door of the house.It is really big and heavy, and I am glad the doors can be removed with just a few screws and unplugging a couple of control wires.Connected the water line and reinstalled the doors with no problem.The water filter is easily accessable, and it's nice to know that we have filtered water for the ice and water.Now to the PROS and CONS of the appliance...It is bigger than the 22 Cu Ft that we had previously, with ample room for everything.I had to remove one of the clear front panels on the middle shelf on the right door to allow access to the shelf when I raised it enough to get a gallon of milk in the bottom right door shelf.The second pull out drawer is very nice for storing soda cans and yogurt.A big CON for me is the ice storage.Although the ice maker recovers pretty fast, and dumps about every 40 minutes, it does not hold very much ice.I find that after filling a few glasses (about 6), it runs out of ice.I need about double of what it will store in the bin.The in the door display is more of a novelty than a necessity.With the access to the internet on my iphone, I do not need the nutritional feature that it has.Another PRO of this unit is the metered water dispenser.When you want 8 ounces of water, it accurately dispenses 8 ounces, or what ever amount you want.I was impressed.The water is not as cold as our old fridge, so I guess it does not have the cold water storage that the Kenmore had.My guess is that it just chills what is in the filter.I also like the temp control.You can set separate temperatures for the freezer and fridge.I wish it had the actual temp display.It only tells you what the setpoint is, not what the actual temperature is.I put a thermometer inside and it was fairly close... within 2 degrees of what it was set for.Since this was the floor model, we got a good discount, and still have the warranty.We've only had it installed for 3 weeks, but I am pleased with it so far... except for the ice maker.All the models I looked at essentially had the same size ice makers.It's bigger than those whose icemakers were on the left door.They seemed too small for what I wanted.I hope this helps in making your choice.The only reason I did not give it 5 stars is because of the ice maker's limited storage capacity.Other than that, it's a great appliance.
*** Update... 11-05-11...I updated my rating to 5 stars.I took off the plastic paddle on the icemaker, which allows for more ice to be made.We have yet to run out of ice, even after several parties with iced drinks.If you happen to do this, just remember to dispense the ice from the storage bin to lower the lever, before removing the maker.My favorite feature is the measured water dispenser.I can fill my glass with ice, then select the amount of water, and leave it, because I know the water will stop when it measures what I want.
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After only 4 weeks the icemaker broke and flooded our new kitchen. During repair they complely scratched up our hardwood floor. Four month later and several service calls it is still not fixed. Maytag is using unqualified 3rd party service providers. Product quality and service is the worst I have ever experienced any good company would have swapped the unit. I think I have to sue Maytag to get a replacement.
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If something goes wrong with this fridge it is almost impossible to fix the LCD screen on the door. Maytag says they will fix it but just give you the run around with no solution and you lose all the nice functions of the fridge. I would have given zero stars if I could.
I purchased my Maytag refrigerator on the beginning of Nov 2010. We looked quite a few refrigerators and liked this one a lot. Unfortunately, refrigerator arrived with a defective part. The ice dispenser on the door has a automated flap which close after serving the ice. This flap was not closing and leaking cold air. I called the customer service and the repairman confirmed that it is a defective which needs replacement. When the second repairmen arrived with replacement parts he had a hard time removing the front panel and then all the cables that attach the LCD panel to the controls came out of its connectors. I contacted Maytag to tell them that I am unhappy with the situation and I would like them to remedy the situation when I was told that they will have to order a new replacement door which will take 4-6 weeks. It has been more than 10 weeks now and every time I call the Maytag customer service center there is a different excuse. If you think something could go wrong with your appliance and would like to have good customer experience then do not buy Maytag.
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After 11 months, the ice maker stop working. There is a water leak at the right bottom side of the freezer. Since it was under warranty, I called service. After 5 days , service came in but the ice maker was working again. The water leak was due to a clogged or frozen drain. The technician turned off the unit, dismantled the freezer and used a hair blower to melt the ice near the drain. He then poke it with a metal stick to crush the ice that has block the drain. After which he said no major problems just a clogged drain.
He said there was no problem with ice maker.
The ice maker is slow in making ice, after 6 glasses it is empty. This summer, a family of four would run out of ice everyday. It also makes a loud noise when the ice drops to the bin.
Otherewise, I am satisfied with the features of this 4 door french fridge.
Later after two months ice maker stopped again for a day. I am now force to buy an extended warranty for three years at $240.
Dont waste your money in buying Maytag. Do your research.
