Yes, you are exactly in the same situation I am, and yes, those are exactly the same ones - even down to the same models - I have been looking at.

I like to be proactive, but since we are also months away, maybe I'll just wait to make a decision on that. You are smart to do so.

This whole appliance thing has just been wearing me out! :)

The Thermador is gorgeous and well made. I saw it and it was the only Frech door I would have gotten. The Bosch press release photo I saw looked like they were featuring a French DOor. I suspect they are still a few months away.

Kitchenaid make a 42" built-in that is pretty good -- I liked some of the features, but there was something that didn't work.

We started out looking at the LG or Kenmore. At least when we were looking last year, LG was making the Kenmore. I think that's the best non built-in.

An ice dispenser is still pretty tricky in a French door model and the only one I remember hearing about isn't getting good reviews. If you have time to wait, I'd pick a size you are comfortable with and make sure to leave room for the differences between models (check the height as well as width and door opening room). There could be new models released this spring that you will like better.

i'm getting the thermador. new model, so no track record but the way i figure it could go either way. i'm willing to take my chances since it's so gorgeous AND i can get a 30" fridge and freezer. as long as it's not a sub zero i'll be happy.

kateskouros, would you share your Sub Zero story? I'm still half in love with the SZ 700. Should I get over it?

several friends have the kitchenaid french door top and freezer on the bottom and love it...it's what i am getting (i like to go with what local friends have been happy with)

rcvt,

i had the 650 bottom freezer. the ice maker was giving us problems and required replacement parts on three separate occasions. there was also a problem with the seal on the fridge door. it never closed properly. i think they look great ...at least on the outside but i really wish we hadn't wasted 6k on something that never really functioned all that well. i'm willing to concede that perhaps ours was a lemon but there are plenty of others who share my regrets. how do you feel about a "butterfly" type of unit? those have bottom freezers and there are a few manufacturers putting them out. it may give you more options as long as you want the bottom freezer. good luck on your choice. whatever you decide i hope it serves you well!

Hey, there!

Gotta chime in here.. not sure about the high end SZ and Thermador units mentioned, but we have had our Maytag unit, the standard H2O model, for several months and are very happy with it. No problems whatsoever with the ice unit, produce is kept fresh and crisp, and I love the "beverage chiller" compartment on the door - keeps the milk ice cold without having having to almost freeze everything else!

This is our first bottom freezer, and I wasn't sure how I would like it.. when shopping, it just didn't seem to offer natural functionality.. but I can tell you I am sold on it now. Having all refer items at basically eye level is great, and reaching into the freezer drawer for the ice cream or french fries is very natural. We almost went with the KA, but my wife literally usess the in the door water ten times daily - didn't want the door opened quite so much!

I can say that the little holes next to the ice maker are worthless.. couldn't have done anything else there, anyway, so it's no big deal.. just curious. I know there are some out there giving these units a rap.. I did buy an extended warranty, and went with HD.. but so far, all is well and we are very happy with the decision. Good luck!

Lascatx, any news on what other manufactures are going to be releasing new French Door models in the Spring with ice/water in the door? A salesman told me it would only remain Maytag (Kenmore) and LG for at least a year. It would be great if you could share any information!!

I didn't even think to ask whether that was something in the works. My available space was already the determined and the wrong size, so I mostly told them I thought it would be neat to offer a wider FD. If I hear anything, I'll let you know.

I also agonized over this decision and just bought a Kenmore FD with water inside and icemaker in freezer bottom. Salesman said it is made by Whirlpool. While I don't like the idea of warranties, this is going to be my first exception and I plan to buy either the 3 or 5 year warranty. Bought this during one of their many sales and got $500 off "regular" price for stainless steel version. Will use this "saving" toward warranty.

We went through the same process recently and were very discouraged that there wasn't a clear front runner.
We were set to buy the GE 22 CF until my wife measured it out and discovered that there was actually less refrigerator space than in our current 18CF model because they've made the freezer section larger.
So...we started shopping again and discovered that the only larger unit (24.8CF) which would fit in out space was the Kenmore Trio Elite which is IDENTICAL to the Amana which is made by???
We've had good luck with Kenmore appliances over the years and part of that is because I feel Sears puts some quality control issues in place that the actual manufacturer complies with. Then again maybe that's a just wishful thinking on my part.
Anyway, because of space considerations having to do with how the door is positioned when it's opened, and that we didn't want ice or water in the door (water would have been okay, but the in-door ice makers take up too much interior space), we chose the Kenmore with a filtered water dispenser inside and an ice-maker down in the freezer.
The only thing I didn't like about it is where the ice maker is located. It's at the back of the upper freezer shelf instead of towards the front. But, since I'm the only one who actually uses much ice in our house, it was something that I could live with.
We've had it a week. It fits the space perfectly, looks great, is quiet, and keeps everything as cold as it should. I may be singing a different tune in a month or two or a year or two from now, but so far we really like it. In doing our research on this product we heard from owners of this machine and everyone seems to feel about the same as we do. Even those who have had theirs awhile.
I think you just need to find a model that fits, looks good to you, and has the features that you want where you want them. Every machine seems to have it's pros and cons and everyone has had their problems or they haven't and LOVE their machine. In other words - "You puts down your money and you takes your chances".
If an extended warranty makes you feel better then go for it. Once again, it's a gamble either way.

BTW - We waited until Sears was having a 20% off sale on all Kenmore appliances and ended up paying $1800 for our 24.8 Trio Elite. Also included free delivery via a rebate. That's for the SS model with the water dispenser inside and ice-maker in the bottom freezer section. We felt that was a good deal.

6K for a refrigerator??? Better come with a GREAT warranty and do everything - including the shopping.

I have an Amana 25 cu ft. Had the fridge fan break during 90+ degree weather. Took 4 days and over 10 hours with customer service(hanging up on me twice, directing me to dead phone extensions others) to get it taken care of. I would look to a brand other than Amana.

Thanks all. I'm not sure why this seems to be such a challenge for the mfrs - new technology I guess.

Right now, I am leaning toward the Kenmore and an extended warranty, but the local applc guy tells me he can give me an excellent deal on the Thermador - which is soooo nice - so I am going to see just how good the deal is.

I'm sure it will still be more than twice as expensive, and I really don't have to have a built-in or counter depth because I can manipulate the space in the kitchen when the house is built. I have a hard time justifying $6,000 for a fridge as opposed to $2,000.

I'm also considering the KitchenAid and maybe the GE. Decisions decisions...

FWIW, the Amana, Jenn-Air, Maytag, KitchenAid and Dacor bottom freezer refrigerators are all manufactured by the same company. Unfortunately, ultimately all warranty issues and replacement parts for all of these models will be handled by the same parent company.

We bought our JennAir FD almost 2 years ago and have been very happy with it. Our choices were limited at the time (Thermador didn't make FDs then, we needed cabinet depth,we prioritized other appliances over a $4K price differential for a fridge, etc). While JennAir doesn't enjoy a great reputation product-wise, we realized that these were made by the same company as Maytags and Amanas. We've been very happy with no problems since then; I understand, however, that one issue with JennAir and perhaps with its parent company is that should problems occur, we'd have to deal with them. Were we doing this again now with more options, we might choose differently, but not because of any negative experience with JennAir in this particular case. We own Thermador double ovens and a cooktop and love them, plus we own Bosch W/D and generally love them as well. I would hesitate to buy any Bosch product, however, because I feel their customer service is atrocious - at least in terms of washers and dryers. Since they're within the same company as Thermador, I might hesitate there, too - not because of the products but because of the service. Again, my Thermador products have been flawless so i haven't had to deal with customer service in that regard...

We had a 3 SS Maytag FD delivered with cosmetic damage and finally ended up with a Kenmore Elite since Sears quit carrying the Maytag here. The Kenmore is quieter than any of the Maytags. The Kenmore came with rubber inserts (light blue, would have preferred light grey) in the door trays to stop things sliding and a plastic pan in the freezer bin to stop things from falling through. The body is not quite as black as the Maytag but you can't tell unless side by side. Also the back feet are adjustable on the Kenmore. The Maytag has the roll down shelves but the mechanism takes up quite a bit of room and we didn't use them with the Maytag. Even though they are made by the same people I think the Kenmore is a better frig after living with both back to back for several months. BTW you can use dental floss to cut the Kenmore Elite emblem off and a little Goo Gone to remove tape residue for a cleaner look. Also it appears the the door ajar and temp alarm default to off after a power failure so keep that in mind.

Oakrunfarm,
On another thread I described how my wife took in a bag of empty containers of things she'd typically put in our refrigerator (milk jug, 2-liter pop bottle , Tupperware lettuce tub, ketchup bottle, salad dressing bottle, egg carton, etc.) and proceeded to put them into the two final refrigerators we were interested in. She moved shelves and door bins around to see how thing would fit. At first I was a little embarrassed that she was doing this (it did look a bit strange) but almost every other customer that went by as she was doing this commented on what a great idea it was. Worth a try if you're down to the final agonizing stages of deciding.

We also have an Amana....and even though the fan broke (as it did with another poster above) I'd buy the fridge again in a heartbeat. It has loads of configurable room. Everything but the veggie bins is adjustable. We love it!

BTW - we had NO issues getting the Amana fixed. We called the store we bought it from and they handled everything super fast.

Thanks so much everyone, for all of the info.

Good idea rh - your wife is a smart cookie!

Still deciding and still following the thread for any addit'l ideas.

:)

oakrunfarm,

Like you we are building new and can manipulate the space however we want. I liked the Kitchen Aid KBFA25ERSS which you mentioned, and think it will be the one we buy in the next 2 weeks.

I couldn't see paying $4,000 more for a built-in either. And the counter depth models had too little usuable room, even if you went out to the 42" or larger.

I had ice and water in the door in our old house, but don't in the house we are renting while we build. I really don't miss the dispensers at all; I'm especially happy that I'm not cleaning up the ice when it spilled all over the floor. And I prefer the appearance without the indoor dispensers.

Two very well-respected appliance stores that carry EVERYTHING from basic stuff to Viking, Subzero, etc. both recommended it. Neither had experienced repair issues with it. (There was other stuff they did steer me away from.) One person said the Kitchen Aid was by far the best value in terms of $paid/usuable cu. ft of space.

One thing my husband and I try to do is not to overbuy on features or capacity relative to what we will realistically use. We thought this model put us in the right place.

So I was curious if you have made any more progress on your decision.

Good luck!

Anyone have any feedback on the Amana FD refrigerator? Is the freezer a decent size?

Clarification - I was told TODAY that the newer Kenmore - SS, BF, FD with ice and water in the door - is made by LG. The Amana can also be ordered with the in-door ice and water. Does this sound like wrong info?
Also, one concern I have is that the idea of the indoor ice/h2o in FD is still somewhat new and that seems like it might mean there are lots of kinks to still work out. Thoughts on that?
One thing I liked is that the bottom freezer door tilts out so you can see before you open it all the way. Also the upper freezer drawer is wire and not plastic.
This salesperson explained WHY the Maytags are having so much trouble and did not recommend the Kenmore PRO - made by frigidaire.

I'm quite happy with my LG french-door frig, which is one of the wider and shallower ones. Neighbors who have the same model are also very happy with theirs. I don't have a through-the-door anything and don't use the icemaker, both by choice.

Chiming in to this old thread.

We bought a FD Jennair SS fridge about six months agao and are very happy with it so far. I originally wanted ice/water in the door, but found these models too clunky looking in person.

The filtered water spout just inside the Jennair turns out to be just right for us. Quick and easy access without the space/aesthetic issues of the indoor water. Ice is easily accessible from the icemaker in the top of the freezer.

We have yet to do our kitchen redo, but spotted this model in a scratch and dent sale, so we got an excellent deal (plus full warranty). There's a dent in the side that will be completely covered by a cabinet panel and it saved us $1000!

Bumping this up because we have thrown in the towel on our 6 yr old Kenmore Elite SxS. It has failed 4+ times in the last 7 months, plus the ice maker has broken 2 or 3 times too.

So, the local appliance store says most bottom freezer fridges are made by Amana. We are now looking for a French door model. He says LG has lousy customer service and repairs.

But in other web-surfing, I have seen people mention Amana's fan breaking, and the units being loud.

I have rarely found a consensus on what model french door is a winner, both in terms of performance and reliability.

Maybe bumping this up will get some new info from owners out there?

We just got the Maytag french door Ice2o. It was just delivered today and I have to say I love it so far. Now ask me again in a month or so but so far it's a keeper. I hope it meets my expectations because it is a beautiful fridge. I couldn't be happier.

I was also told they are all made by Amana (except the LG and the GE). However, I am thinking about the Dacor because they have a different customer service company than the others. So far, we are still designing the kitchen so as long as I buy a 36" counter deep I guess I don't have to decide on the brand yet. Maybe by 2008 someone will come out with a decent one. Or am I dreaming?

We are also looking at an Amana. I was told Amana also makes Kitchen-Aid and Jenn-Air.

I liked the new Samsung layout when I saw it. But it has no track history.

The Samsung refrigerators have been very reliable(according to J.D. Power) and have been very popular overseas. The track record is much longer overseas, too. The thing I noticed about the Samsung it it is even deeper than the 35-36 inch deep french doors of other companies. It measures 37 inches in depth. You don't realize how deep that is unless you have the opportunity to line it up with other FD models. The CD FD fridges also only go up to 20 CF. That is a loss of 5C which is hard to give up for me. A sxs model in CD that is 25 CF has drawers that do not open fully unless you are careful enough to completely swing open the doors. What a pain!
Gayle

I recently took a hard look at the French Door refrigerators, I eliminated the Amana (Jenn-Air, Maytag, Kitchen aid, Dacor, and Viking) and the LG because (so that would include Sears) of A&E service. They are the worlds worst. I chose the new GE, manufactured by GE servived by GE

I've had the Samsung for 10 days now and LOVE it! It is quiet and so much roomier than my sxs. The temperature is very consistent.

I just saw the new GE CD last nite. It is really a vast improvement over the previous model, which was cheesy in the extreme. So now I have to decide between it & LG, and I'm leaning toward GE. One thing I have to mention is the superb lighting in the cabinet--outstanding! The other is the pullout drawers in the freezer--makes things very accessible.

Should have mentioned in the previous that it is the GE Profile.

We bought a fd Samsung about 2 months ago and LOVE it.

Does anyone have any experience with the Sub Zero French Door Refridgerator (BI-36 UFD)? It's the 36" and I believe it's a newer model. I am considering that or a Thermador or Bosch french door. Any insights would be helpful. Thanks