We also have the KA beverage center that karina has. It runs extremely quietly, but my sharp ears can hear the relay that signals the cooling cycle on and off. But other than that, it is a great fridge and highly recommend it. We spent MONTHS looking for a wine/beverage center, and if this one hadn't just come out in the beginning of the year, we'd still be looking. The 3 temp zones is great, and itis noteworthy that the KA goes down to 37 degrees whereas many only go down to 40. So if you like that beer or soda cold, this is a great choice. Also, to my knowledge, this is the only beverage center that has 3 wine shelves. Originally we wanted only a wine fridge, but could see the utility of going with a bev center that could hold beer and mixers as well. But with most bev centers only able to hold two shelves of wine, it was too much of a sacrifice for us wine lovers. The three wine shelves on the KA was a perfect compromise for us.

Thanks for the info Sid! I have zones set up already as part of some electrical upgrades that were performed and this allows me to run my gasoline generator (Honda EU3000, great little generator by the way) and power the house when the electric company misbehaves. I considered a Natural gas generator but for the cost, I would prefer to start going solar and will have my little generator in cause of a super emergency. My roof does not have shading but I do love the Sunflower and tracking solar although the cost versus value is debatable for my situation. Really I am just doing Grid tied because I can't afford to go off grid at once. Most of the grid tied credits are almost a wash in my area. Your statement is exactly how grid tied works in my area. I am actually on the waiting list for a Powerwall. It is both a backup battery and can function as a huge UPS for power fluctuations. I have noticed more and more power fluctuations in the last three months. All my major appliances and the electronics are attached to Modified or Pure Sine Wave UPS. They beep randomly when they kick in due to unstable power. For battery backup, I was actually looking at the salt water based batteries from someone like Aquion. Safety and lack of management like AGMs was my main motivation. The batteries will be in a storage space in the home. They are still quite expensive so I hope over time, they come down in price. The charge controller and inverter will be my biggest expense. Still have to make a decision whether I want to roof mount the solar or go with a tracking solar pole mount. Looking at the logic of this approach in my region. Also need to read the rules for my county about tracking solar. I know there was some hoopla a while ago about wind turbines. Thanks for all your feedback so far.

One thing to keep in mind is noise. The less expensive the fridge, the noisier it'll be. I agree that the biggest cost savings will be to avoid built-ins. For your bar, you can put in a free standing bar fridge in a space made to accommodate it. You can add some trim to make it look really nice. Some can also be placed behind doors. That might or might not save on costs depending on how deep your cabinets are (if they'll be deep enough without adding expense) and the price of the door vs. panels vs. built-in stainless. You do need some air venting, so check the specs, but you can probably just have a on the bottom edge for that. Definitely, if you have room for at least a small fridge in the basement, like an "apartment sized" one, or even a full sized one which could accommodate overflow for a big party (or just deli platters), it will save you a lot of money. You can get that at the big box store. :)

That's only if you drink 'em all up new. If you lay down cases of exceptional wines, and don't have a proper cave, wine fridges are costly spacehogs which require backups and redundancies to assure your fortune doesn't turn into vinegar during a power outage.