THE BIG CHILL

The cold, hard truth about refrigerators

BY JERRY HALE

Thinking of replacing an aging refrigerator? Or choosing one for a new home build or kitchen remodel? With the kitchen typically the hub for the waking hours spent in a home, picking just the right chiller is key to how well a home works for its residents.

Refrigerators have recently evolved substantially from the once-standard freezer-on-top design. Side-by-side models came along to meet the demand for more eye-level shelves and easy access to chilled water and ice without opening a door, thus keeping refrigerated air inside the box. Typically between 33 and 36 inches wide, they offer up to a claimed 29 cubic feet of storage capacity. According to Consumer Reports, however, usable storage space for any fridge is usually 10 to 15 percent below what its manufacturer claims due to shelves, ice maker and other special components that take up inside space. And while a side-by-side’s narrow doors are a plus for smaller kitchens, the tall, slender compartments can make items that migrate to the back hard to find. And the doors can be just too narrow to satisfy some buyers.

What buyers want

“Only about a quarter of today’s buyers want the full-length side-byside design,” says Sydney Hailey, who manages the newer Hailey’s Appliance in Lynchburg— there has been a sister store in Altavista for more than 15 years. Both offer refrigerators of all configurations, made by GE and Whirlpool (the latter also manufactures Kitchen Aid and Maytag-branded appliances). “The French-door models with freezer space in a full-width lower drawer are considerably more popular and steadily evolving,” she notes. “There’s now a version with a separately-controlled drawer between the freezer and fresh food spaces that provides easy access to snacks and beverages ... and yet another with French doors top and bottom. One of those bottom compartments can be separately set for freezing, keeping fresh foods, or anything in between.”

About half of buyers want convenient in-door access to water and ice; the other half prefer a more uninterrupted door aesthetic, Hailey says. Most all models are now available in the fingerprint-resistant stainless steel finish that 85 percent or so of buyers prefer. GE is now offering matte finishes in white, black, slate and charcoal shades.

SEPTEMBER 29, 2023 | 1 PM

APPOMATTOX, VA

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