I posted a scenario about my Whirlpool fridge that needed a new compressor after one year's use I'll try to make this short but thought a positive ending may encourage others to become a squeaky wheel. The warranty was for one year. Because I bought it for my cabin, delivery was three weeks after purchase. I wanted Whirlpool to cover the cost of a new compressor since I felt the warranty should begin at the date I took possession. The Customer Service at Whirlpool said no, it was from date of purchase. I filed a complaint with the Better Business Bureau (first time I ever did this) and within two weeks, I got a call from Whirlpool saying they would cover the repair cost. Maybe everyone out there knows how to file a complaint and I'm the only one who never gave it a thought, but it was so easy. Just went on the BBB website and in fifteen minutes I was done. Just have every piece of info you might need before beginning and be short and factual. Yippee! Thank you Whirlpool.

Advice appreciated! And thanks for the link, sum5463! The video on that page helps clarify, too, though that fridge is mostly hidden on the sides. (Oh, if only I were a blogger! I too would make a video where I was over-the-moon about my new free appliances!) Re: the cabinet color. I think the Benj. Moore "decorators white" is very slightly green, so there may well be a danger of dinginess against the "white ice." At least in sample size the paint looked smashing with countertop and backsplash materials, which are in fact being installed this coming week (huzzah!) The underside of the top cabinets is also being painted this week, before the undercabinet lighting goes in, but the cabinet faces won't be painted for a while yet, since the painter likes to be last. So I don't know if at this point I can change my mind about which white I want on the cabinet faces. Maybe I will just have to paint a cabinet door and trek to the nearest big city in search of a real live white ice appliance. I also have to think about whether the white ice "ipod" style cues will fit. Maybe -- the cabinets are simple in style, and my new breakfast-area light fixture will be pretty modern. It's such a huge change from the brown early 80s that it's hard to visualize, and I'm lousy at visualizing to begin with. Here follows a bit of rambling re: model choice. This model fits under the existing cabinets; other counterdepth models I have looked at tend to be a little too tall. Capacity is not an issue for me; in fact I have so much extra space in my current 18cf fridge that I store about a dozen large bottles of nonperishables like fizzy water -- because a fuller fridge is more efficient than a mostly empty one. Which reminds, me, some of those bottles have been in there more than a year. I probably should move them around! :) I thought about a 24"/apartment-size one as more suited to my own habits. I cook when I'm home, but I travel a lot, so I don't keep huge amounts of fresh food on hand. But I have a 36" x 69" space to fill. A smaller fridge, even the 28" x 65" one that's there now, looks awkward. And I'd have to buy a fullsize one anyway if I were selling the house. I want the side-by-side because I use the freezer mostly for single-serving leftovers; having those on shelves in plain sight, so that I can see at a glance what's there, is a bigger priority for me than storing large fresh or frozen things: there has never been an occasion when I wanted to put a pizza box or a sheet cake in my fridge. So I have really thought about usefulness; it's just that I use my fridge differently than people who find the french-door style useful.

txpepper, Apologies for not responding sooner! Came here this morning and found my post had totally fallen off the radar scope. lol Thank you very much for responding.....and good to know I'm not the only one with this problem! Right about now I Don't care how attractive or unattractive a solution looks....I am just tired of walking by the fridge and seeing that area get darker and darker each time I walk by. I understand your solution about putting a paper towel over the tray and as soon as I get the tray soaked and put back today, that's what I'll do. But I don't quite understand the Zip-Lock bag creating a slide for the water? Do you tape the zip-lock bag to the back of the paddle? If not, how do I make sure the zip-lock doesn't get in the way of the water coming out? OK, do you happen to have a pic of your solution? :) This morning when I went to pour my cuppa, I seriously thought about scrubbing all the areas really well and then coating them with WaterLock or some other sealer. I didn't get to the tray/dispenser area other day and this morning it looks really nasty...yuck. I'm thinking that guests popping in (which they do quite often to visit my Mom and Dad) won't even want to use the dispenser thinking that I've never, ever cleaned it...that's how bad it looks after a few days.

We are building a new house and are torn between the electric smooth top or gas cooktop. There is only a few hundred dollars between the two so price is not really a consideration. We are used to electric and like the warming spot on the electric cooktop. However, aesthetically the gas cooktop is lighter (since it's not black). The cooktop will have a stainless microwave over it vented to the exterior. Does anyone have any thoughts? We understand that electric is more consistent, and gas warms up faster. We also understand gas overall produces better quality. But we are interested in other thoughts or things we should consider.