We like our Liebherr a lot, but I think it's taller than 70 inches. Are you absolutely sure the cabinets can't be modified to accommodate this? Otherwise your height restriction is very limiting...

We had some ice maker repairs but supposedly the newer design addressed the earlier issues.

Billy

KitchenAid, Whirlpool, Maytag, Jennair, Bosch, and Viking counter depth french doors are all the same (made by Whirlpool). I haven't read anything about Whirlpools causing fires, would be interested in seeing your source.

You want reliable, avoid ice makers and water dispensers. The most reliable fridges are basic top mounts.

Don't get scared by online reviews -- every product shipped has problems, albeit some more than others. Online complaints usually represent a very small fraction of the total number of products shipped.

JD Powers and Consumer Reports (whatever you think about their reviews) do publish surveys on repair rates. I think you may have consulted them. Given your parameters, I'd look into the various iterations of the same basic Kitcheaid/Whirlpool design (no in-door water/ice) as @hvtech42 pointed out above -- I think the issues with the drain have been addressed. I have the Viking Pro version (got a deal on it) -- but the Viking D3 used to be priced comparable to the KA but with a better warranty (3 yrs)

This post was edited by gooster on Wed, Oct 29, 14 at 12:25

We did tons of research and ended up buying the LG counterdepth LFC21776ST about six months ago. So far, so good. The biggest complaint people had about this one is that the narrow center fruit/veg drawer only opens when both doors are open. This is true, but the only thing we store in there are lemons, which we don't need to access all that often.

I probably searched 20 sites to scour the reviews. I agree that there's not much good news about counterdepth fridges these days.

(I ended up actually making the online purchase from Lowes, which offered the biggest discount during that period.)

Here is a link that might be useful: Picture of our fridge

I purchased a Fisher Paykel, mine though is single door with freezer on bottom, smaller in width 33 inches.
I've had mine for about 6 months now and love it but obviously not long enough to know how reliable but It is so quiet - I live in a condo and kitchen is open to dining and living room area. I can barely hear any noise at all. They do have french door fridges counter depth but slightly over 70 inches high, height includes feet and hinge. So it may be a little tall for your opening. The smaller width FD is shorter in height.

Here is a link that might be useful: Fisher Paykel

I don't think you will get to pick and choose too much if you need 70" height. So, I'd worry less about brand research and more about actually finding that size!
Most are taller than that. It's an absolute PAIN to go through each manufacturer website looking for specs and so frustrating when you see most of them are 72" or more!
I was looking to replace my Amana which is only 67.5"! Very frustrating.
I know the Dacor 36" french door is 70.25" tall. Do you have an extra quarter inch?!
The Fisher & Paykel 36" is 70 15/32" tall. Probably too high by just a smidge for you.

Oh, I can definitely go the extra 1/2 inch or so if needed, I just can't go into the 72 inch range.

Aine, my Amana's exactly the same height as your old one was. Isn't it frustrating how the standards have since changed? It's something I never anticipated when I started looking into fridges the other day, and I was horrified when I realized that there's basically nothing made at that height anymore these days.

I have a Jenn-Air french door, counter depth. It's about 4-5 years old. I can't remember the height (68 or so inches I'm guessing) but it's almost the largest they made at the time other than the sub-zero size. I wish I had held out for another brand, but I wanted the model with the ice and filtered water dispenser in the door as I am a total water drinker, as in all.the.time, so it's an important feature for me. At the time, KA and JA were about the only brands with this feature. Now there are several. My old refrig died and this one was in stock; I would have had to wait almost 2 weeks for the KA. I should have stuck it out. This thing has cold spots leading to ice chunks in the milk. Several times a year I have soggy, frozen lettuce in the crisper. Those may have been due to an inadvertent movement of the crisper setting but I don't think so. I think the dang refrigerator just ices up and thaws at random.

Sometimes we have to take the ice maker out and shake it to get the ice to dispense. It's a wimpy size ice maker too, so I'm glad I don't rely on it for large amounts of ice.

>I should have stuck it out. This thing has cold spots leading to ice chunks in the milk. Several times a year I have soggy, frozen lettuce in the crisper. Those may have been due to an inadvertent movement of the crisper setting but I don't think so. I think the dang refrigerator just ices up and thaws at random.

That fridge is not operating as designed, you should call for service. You can also try playing around with the temperature setting for the fresh food compartment.

MitchD - it's funny because the fridge is actually the whole reason I'm going to reno the kitchen! I started out like you, looking for a new fridge and was so shocked to discover that they are all too tall. Unlike you, I have NO room to stretch it even to 70". And there is no fridge on the market that's 36" wide and 67.5" tall and counter depth! Trust me, I have LOOOOOKED!
Turns out that my 80's wall oven is also in a size that isn't made anymore (frustrating!!), so I decided to reno all of it. Which in some ways seems like a sad waste. But, since the kitchen is 30 years old, I try not to feel too bad about it. :)

You'll get lots of reports on the internet of problems...people post when they have a problem. You'll also get lots of bad info from appliance salesmen who often know nothing about the product and recommend whichever item earns them the biggest commission. Consumer reports basically rates all the brands as having the same reliability.
Kenmore - 12% require repairs annually
Samsung - 13
Maytag - 14
Kitchenaid, Whirlpool, GE, LG - 15

Bottom line...pick the model that has the features you want and don't sweat the reliability.

I am shopping for a smilier fridge. The whirlpool made models others mentioned (Bosch is lowest in price) are nice but they lack dual compressors. The best made model I have found with dual compressors (judging by solidity of doors and the way doors/drawers close) are the LG models. The Samsung Chef Four Door is very nicely made as well but the price point is somewhat higher.

This post was edited by malba2366 on Wed, Oct 29, 14 at 16:23

The Samsung chef 4 door is huge. My DH wants it, but it will stick out 10" from the counter. I want a counter depth, but he hates the shallow shelves.

I looked at just about every brand made this week. I think you just choose the one you like best and then hope for the best.

Do you mean dual evaporators? Dual compressors are generally only found on very high end built-in fridges. And, Whirlpool does have dual evaporator models out now, but to my knowledge only in the Whirlpool, Maytag, and KA brands. They haven't made their way to JennAir, Bosch, or Viking yet.

I have the Elux FD
It is 4+ years old and love it.
I also had limited height for my fridge in my old kitchen
I went to the appliance store with my favorite items to see how they would fit.
The elux was able to fit my large round trays (and other things)
I kept the fridge when I remodeled.
The perfect temp drawer allows me to set a temp for different foods. I can defrost food, set it for beer or wine, fish etc.
The ice cream in the freezer is rock solid.
When DH passed away, I left in a hurry and was sure I would return 2 weeks later to sour milk and mushy lettuce - but the milk and lettuce were fine.

Ous has an ice machine in the freezer. I felt the ice through the door took up too much space in the fridge.

Another GWebber had trouble with hers. But all appliance brands have lemons but if every single one was a problem, they would no longer be in business.

My recommendation is to find one that meets your needs and go for it. I would avoid gasket to gasket closure as they tend to not seal as well downstream. (Ours has a flapper seal)

I have Samsung counter depth. I think the refrigerator is great from a quality and performance view. However.....counter depth stinks. No room inside, pathetic in fact. But I have a tiny room, so it seemed like the way to go. If I did not have a basement refrigerator, forget about it. It may work for a single person or couple, but add in 2 kids, another story. When I made this purchase 2 years ago, it had the most square footage inside from my research. I also HATE HATE the french door w/bottom freezer. I hate the freezer, just a big pit to lose things. The french door concept is so overrated in my opinion.

Yes, I meant dual evaporators. However the samsung chef 4 door fridge actually has dual compressors and 3 evaporators! It also solves the problem of having to dig through a drawer freezer. Price is a bit high at $4000 from online sellers, and about 4700 locally.

We have had a Fisher & Paykel French Door, counter depth Ref. for more than a year. I also did not want ice in door. but I did want water in door. They have a water in door with ice maker model. We like it very much. Very quiet, and very well designed shelves and bins. Works great. Looks good.