refrigerator

Green begets green

Slapping a green label on an appliance used to be something of a marketing tactic. But as we watch our energy bills grow, green has become a requirement for new appliances. Miele's Independence Series refrigerators have a few new green features that older Miele models didn't. The KF 1801 and 1811, in particular, are 33 percent more energy efficient than the standards set by the Department of Energy. The KF 1801 and 1811 are essentially the same, by the way: the KF 1801 has a right-swinging door while the KF 1811's door swings left. They're both … Read more

A fridge you can look up to

If you love the look of a built-in fridge, but can't afford to give up any interior space, KitchenAid may have a solution for you. The company's 72-inch counter-depth French-door fridge is only a little bit taller than the 69-inch standard size, but those extra inches translate to a lot of extra interior room.

Most kitchens will be able to accommodate the fridge easily- new construction in particular has a lot of vertical space that's underutilized in the kitchen. But even if you have an older home, grab a tape measure and see if you can squeeze … Read more

Japanese fridge takes its vitamins

This new Hitachi R-Y6000 refrigerator dispenses vitamin C in an effort to keep fruits and vegetables from rotting. Apparently fruits and veggies, like us, need vitamin C to stay healthy.

We already have smart refrigerators that tell us when we are running low on certain items, so perhaps this concept isn't as strange as it sounds. If my fridge wants to moonlight as a pharmacist, so be it.

I don't remember ever seeing another fridge that involved vitamins in its routine, but that's what is apparently what is happening here. By dispensing vitamin C, the fridge prevents … Read more

Whirlpool updates its French-door fridge offerings

Three years ago, we switched from an ordinary refrigerator to a French-door, bottom-freezer model, and the difference in space is nothing short of amazing. If you spend just a little bit of time planning your fridge layout, you'll quickly find that you really can open just one door most of the time to reach your favorite drinks and quick snacks. But when you need to store trays of food for easy access, you have the space, and a terrific presentation. Slide open the full-length deli drawer and wow your guests--really! I have at least two friends who bought a … Read more

Keep fruit fresh longer

We all want to eat healthy. We go to the grocery store with the best of intentions, bee-line for the produce aisle, and load up on fresh fruit and veggies. We cram all of it into the fridge and head off to make dinner. A week later, we learn that maybe we bought a bit more than we should have when we open the crisper and find our lovely butter lettuce has turned brown and begun to stink. It happens a lot; a recent study from the University of Arizona says that the average American household winds up with more … Read more

A fridge fit for the garage

What do you do when you've treated yourself to a new fridge, even though the old one still mostly runs? A lot of people drag it out to the garage and use it to store food that doesn't necessarily need to be in the kitchen. But that old fridge may not be the best choice for a garage appliance. First of all, it's probably not energy efficient and it may not be reliable. If you do plan to use the fridge in your garage for food, it may be worthwhile to invest in one that won't … Read more

A counter-depth French door fridge from Haier

When we remodeled our kitchen two years ago, we chose a bottom freezer French door fridge, a choice we have come to love and appreciate more each day. Storing groceries at eye level in the fridge just makes good sense. The interior deli tray drawer is a great place to store platters for easy serving. Overall, it's easy to find--or put back--what I need.

But my fridge--one of the earliest of these bottom freezer French door beauties--juts out from my counters and interrupts the otherwise clean lines of my kitchen. And it is just a tiny bit irritating to … Read more

Store wine in three-door refrigerator

I've been searching for a way to store my wine since my downstairs neighbor nixed the idea of me installing a Spiral Cellar in my living room. Seems he wasn't too thrilled about having to walk around a large odd enclosure protruding down into his living room. Ah, well. Such are the perils of apartment based living. I guess installing a large add-on that extends into your neighbors apartment isn't, well, neighborly.

AEG Electrolux may just have the solution to maintaining good neighborly relations. The Santo 75 598 KG takes the popular side-by-side door refrigerator approach and … Read more

French door fridge classes up kitchen

I'm a big Food Network fan, and when Danny Boome tells me to look at a product, I'll at least glance it over. He's promoting the new Samsung French Door Refrigerator, so is it any wonder I went to take a look at one? At first glance, the French Door Refrigerator is a very classy appliance. Stainless steel with French doors--it's elegant enough for any kitchen. When designing the inside, though, Samsung really went all out. I can't think of anything I couldn't fit into this fridge. Shelves fold out of the way to … Read more