First of all, have you been out of the country over the past year?
Then they told me we must ALL vacate the home while the technician inspects the refrigerator. I replied, wait a minute. I have masks and gloves, why do we have to leave the premises? That is our new policy during this pandemic. They went on to tell me we can sit in our car while they repair the refrigerator. I hung up.
It's bad enough I spent thousands of dollars buying nice equipment and the refrigerator peters out in a few short years. Then I get kicked out of my own home for someone I do not know, who may or may not have the coronavirus to service this fairly new piece of equipment. This is ridiculous.
Thankfully I have spare refrigerators but never again will I buy from Home Depot or a GE product. I'll add, when I purchased all my equipment throughout the home it included a washer, dryer, dishwasher, oven/stove and a microwave. The dryer petered out after one year as well.
Owning a few homes I can tell you I have purchased Maytag as well and they went up after a few years. It seems the best thing you can do is buy the cheapest products any more and just throw them away after a few years.
I can't wait until President Trump brings back quality manufacturing to the United States!
81 comments:
Agreed. I bought a Miele refrigerator for my home and started having trouble in the first year. My whirlpool washer was toast after 18 months. These appliances are not an investment like I had hoped. I even did my research. It’s all a scam. Just buy the cheapest ones. There is zero difference in quality.
"Quality manufacturing" is key. Many companies left for cheap labor in China and elsewhere. But when we get manufacturers to return expect to pay much more for their products thanks to unions and greedy business owners. Hopefully, this pandemic will change some people's hearts and minds.
Now your catching on. I don't buy the appliances from those chain stores anymore. The days of the 20 year old Wards refrigerator, and the high quality Kenmore are gone. But if you buy from an appliance store and get a speed queen washer or dryer, or a really nice fridge, I think you'll see a difference in quality and service. The theory is either buy the cheapest and keep replacing, or the most expensive for quality. Alot of landlords go by this. Chain stores don't care if it goes up in a year or bad service. They just keep pumping them out. A locally owned store survives by reputation, I think. But they have short falls too. Now you could call Nancy Pelosi. She only buys $12,000 refrigerators. She could steer you in the right direction over a bowl of ice cream.
Bought a new Frigidaire from Lowes a few years back it quit the first week took them a month to fix it and didn't hook up the water to the ice machine. In 1985 I moved into an apartment in Peekskill Ny which had a Frigidaire refrigerator made by General Motors in the USA that was 40 years old and still working great. Lowes service sucks and Frigidaire is made in mexico.The second new refigerator only lasted a year so i bought one from Lusbys in Pocomoke. Have had great service and no problems in the last 5 years.
For an expensive Frige like that the following are likely areas:
The Evaporator Coils are Frosted Over
If the freezer is cold but the refrigerator is warm and the evaporator coils are frosted over, there may be a defrost system problem. Several times a day the defrost heater assembly turns on for a few minutes to melt away any frost or ice that may have accumulated on the evaporator coils. If the defrost heater assembly has burned out, or the defrost thermostat or defrost control have failed the frost will build up on the coils and eventually no air will be able to travel through the coils to provide cooling. The most common cause for this condition is a problem with the defrost system.
Evaporator Fan Motor
If the refrigerator freezer is cold but the refrigerator is warm, the evaporator fan motor might have failed. Every refrigerator has a set of coils called an evaporator. These are the coils that get cold. A small fan and motor is mounted near the coils. This fan and motor - called the evaporator fan and motor, draws air over the evaporator coils and circulates it throughout the freezer and refrigerator. If the fan fails, the freezer or refrigerator will get much warmer than usual.
Damper Control Assembly
If the freezer is cold but refrigerator is warm the air damper control might be stuck closed or broken. The air damper control is either an automatic or manually operated door which opens and closes to let more or less cold air into the refrigerator compartment. If it doesn't open properly it won't let enough cold air into the refrigerator. If the evaporator fan is running, the damper door is open and no air is coming out. The evaporator may be frosted up caused by a defrost problem.
Thermistor
If the freezer is cold but the refrigerator is warm the thermistor might be defective. The thermistor is a sensor which monitors the air temperature. It is connected to the control board. If the thermistor is defective the refrigerator does not cool or may cool continuously.
Temperature Control Board
If the refrigerator's freezer is cold but the refrigerator is warm the temperature control board might be defective. The temperature control board provides the voltage to the fan motors and compressor. These boards are often misdiagnosed. Check all other components to be certain this is the cause of the problem.
Defrost Thermostat
If the refrigerator freezer is cold but the refrigerator is warm, the defrost thermostat might be defective. Several times a day the defrost heater turns on for a few minutes to melt away any frost that may have accumulated on the evaporator coils. In order for this to work, the defrost thermostat has to sense that the coils are cold enough. If the coils are cold enough the defrost heater will turn on. If the thermostat is defective it may not be able to sense the temperature of the coils and then won't turn on the defrost heater. If the defrost heater doesn't turn on, the frost will build up on the coils and eventually no air will be able to travel through the coils to provide cooling to the freezer or refrigerator. The defrost thermostat can be checked for continuity. It should have continuity when it reaches the low temperature of its operating range.
Main Control Board
If the refrigerator's freezer is cold but the refrigerator is warm the main control board might be defective. This is not common. The cause of this problem is almost always in the defrost components.
It could also be a plugged drain hose.
In an inexpensive frige, the likely suspects are the fan or the cheap Chinese timer.
I've been using Shore Appliance in Salisbury for my home and rentals for years and have been VERY satisfied with their sales and service. Buy Local.
GE is owned by Chinese Haier. Maytag is owned by Whirpool, which sources many parts in China and assembles here.
I have a GE fridge, bought from Home Depot, too and it also died after ~7 years. It has nothing to do with HD. GE like most appliance makers have moved to CHINA for parts and manufacturing.
Short answer is fix it yourself - YouTube it. Did you have blinking lights? or no power to front panel?
Regardless; after searching on symptoms most videos pointed to the controller circuit board (back, lower right). It can be replaced with screwdriver and ~30 minutes. Got the replacement board from Amazon (seems to be popular replacement part)for $150.
First off, it isn’t Home Depot’s fault. Didn’t matter whether you bought it from Hone Depot, Lowe’s or Sam’s Club. They have no control over the quality.
How long did it work? Two years or three? Did you bother to call GE to see if there was a known issue with that model, in which case they would have more than likely honored the warranty anyway. Perhaps there was a simple fix they could have told you about.
Then you called a local service company. Good enough. But you KNOW there’s a serious pandemic going on, and despite having spare refrigerators, you insisted someone come out right away anyway. Because inconvenience.
They were able to send someone out, if you agreed to some reasonable precautions TO PROTECT THE TECHNICIAN and his family.
The virus can be anywhere in the house. And the kitchen and refrigerator are going to be some of the worst and most risky.
He is taking his life into his hands to fix one of your refrigerators (and probably have to listen to your whining and belligerating about Home Depot and GE the whole time.
You were offered a service call subject to certain reasonable conditions. Yes, you being out of the house is quite reasonable. You don’t need to be standing over him supervising.
Nobody was going to “kick you out of your own house” you arrogant twatwaffle. You were offered service under conditions that protected the employee. You say you’d wear a mask? That’s not going to protect him with you wandering about, actively touching stuff and flailing around in your indignation, and pulling it off at your whim.
You don’t trust him to fix your refrigerator because you don’t know him? How about if he doesn’t trust YOU to keep him safe, because he doesn’t know YOU! During normal times, it’s one thing, but have you not gotten the memo that this is an extraordinary circumstance?
Fix it your own self. Damned if I’d send one of my people out. Your entitled, arrogant attitude towards people who are simply trying to protect themselves during an extraordinary pandemic, is appalling.
I don't know that it's Home Depot's fault that the GE product failed. They sell a number of brands. We pick the one we want.
I don't know about those extended warranties, either. That may be good sometimes, but if there are loopholes and exclusions, maybe not.
Anybody remember Amana products? American-made. Built like a tank.
I bought a Hoover spot cleaner from home depot 2 weeks ago. Missing parts and didn't work. Be sure to check that someone didn't open it and seal it back. This has happened to me twice from lowes and home depot.
9:52- I was about to recommend Lusby's in Pocomoke, if you want great service, but it looks like you beat me to it. You know!
I've had 5 dishwashers in 9 yrs, 2 washers in 8 yrs,3 refrigerators in 10 yrs...all from different places and different brands. They are ALL crazy and all appliances come from the same 5 manufacturers. Its been like that forever but they've been getting there parts from China and thats why!
Sounds like a good project while you're stuck at home. The techs that would come to fix it aren't magicians, they learned how to diagnose then repair or replace. It's almost always a single bad component at fault, not a refrigerator Armageddon.
I had a GE with a falty motherboad. Sometimes the fridge stopped. Sometimes the freezer. To fix: turn breaker off for 10 mins then turn back on.
I have the same exact fridge with the same problem. It was the evaporator fan motor. Got the fan on Amazon and fixed no problem. Thanks. For all the info I could of used you 8 months ago.
What's the model number?
You’re only likely to get 8-10yrs out of a fridge anymore. They don’t make money if they last a long time. I would never suggest using A&E for service, and I believe that’s who has to service brands like G&E, whirlpool and Maytag unfortunately. Try to buy local or ask around to see if anyone has an independent appliance repair man. They’re invaluable, just like a mechanic or plumber.
I can sympathize with this gentleman as I had constant issues with the top of the line GE Profile. I kept it for a number of years and had nothing but problems but fortunately I had purchased a service contract and repairs were made with no additional cost. Finally I decided to stop spending on the service contracts and low and behold more problems arose. I decided at this point to just get rid of it and decided on a lesser cost model which was a Whirlpool and after 2 years, knock on wood, it has performed very well. These high end appliances seem to be less reliable than the high end ones. No more GE, to many bad experiences.
My parents had a Frigidaire stove that lasted 26 yrs. Quality went down somewhere along the line. Our last Frigidaire refrigerator died after 4 yrs.
The big box stores are the problem. I started buying from local shops (Appliance Distributors Unlimited in Easton for me) a couple of years ago and haven't had a single issue. Their customer service is impeccable, they're locally owned, and they stand by their products by having prompt service the one single time I had an issue. I will never buy appliances from the box stores again... Technically theyre the "same product" but I have a feeling there is a little bit of the "differences" between tv models between stores going on. This tv at walmart is 1/2 the price of the same brand and size at bestbuy, but the one at bestbuy has an additional processor, making it more expensive and ineligible for price matching... I think with appliances its just a little harder to discern (maybe one plant with bad quality controls goes to the big box store while another plant with great QC ratings goes to the "local" reps and local vendors)... Try local shops! You'll rarely be disappointed!!!
We bought an appliance set for our new house five years ago from Sears. I thought Kenmore was a good brand, within the year our stove started burning higher flames and putting soot on my baking pans. Then right after the year warranty ran out, within a month, the dishwasher just stopped working, they would try to fix it if I paid for it, they said forget the warranty it has ran out, it hadn't even been a month. It's sad you can't trust old favorites any longer. I see why Sears is struggling.
Your fear is showing
Easy fix: This happened to me with my fridge. The freezer works, so the compressor is fine. The vent that leads from the freezer to the regular part of the fridge got water in it. It is frozen, blocking the cold air. Defrost the fridge completely (good time to clean it) and the fridge will work again just fine.
I leaned that some Profile models (mine was bought in 2007) had an unadvertised software bug. The fix was replace the daughter card that I found on ebay pretty cheap. You literally plug it in. I wrote GE a letter about it and they send me the money I paid for the new daughter card when it was all done. Somehow, the appliance gets hung up in defrost model (top or bottom cabinet). Cycling the power got it running again but the new daughter card was needed to eliminate it.
I had a GE washer that was purchased brand new five years ago and in that period of time, I have had the service guy out at least every other year for a unbalance basket, electronic control board problem, and I had to replace the plastic control shield, which I fixed myself for 175!!! Just a damn piece of plastic that holds all the knobs!!!!!
This time it completely failed and the service guy, who I totally trust told me not to waste anymore money on it. So I replace it with a Maytag. Hopefully better quality, but of course only time will tell!
Never had a problem with the ice box. And, the ice man was right on time. The kid next door got a nickel to empty the tray under the box. I’m that kid.
I am still using a GE fridge that my parents bought in 1935.... Mostly for drinks..
At 10:11 a.m., you are a wealth of information, thanks. I'm going to Print the list out in case I need to do repairs in the Future. thank you
They sub out their repair crew and they sux. One idiot put a shim between the frame and fridge as a repair once on a new fridge with a broken frame.
I was like wth dude, are you an idiot?
i think you have something there they are run by a computer they just need to reset
What a whiny little man of course they want to protect their worker. Things break that’s life but to scream and cry because they don’t want their worker to be exposed because you wanted the opportunity to whine and complain to the repairman is ridiculous. I see the public everyday during this Pandemic and they still don’t know how to distance themselves properly get a grip
That’s what u get for buying GE. Absolute trash !
Put your food in a cooler and unplug the fridge overnight and let it thaw with the doors propped open. Plug it in tomorrow and see if it's working.
1:52 I don't know how to print this info but want to, can you explain?
Big home appliances are now manufactured for the express purpose of planned obsolescence. Had a side by side fridge that broke, to replace the motherboard was more expensive than purchasing a new side by side. It's just how it works. The only difference being, commercial quality home appliances. Like Nancy Pelosi showed off in her recent late night interview. If you can afford a couple Viking fridges, go for it.
My house is 10 yrs old and I have replaced every appliance in it almost. All bought from Lowe’s
10:17 - Going to your car and letting a repair technician, that you don't personally know, in your house alone is most definitely an unreasonable condition. Not happening in my house.
I can see them wanting to protect their worker, but saying the homeowner has to leave the house while they are working on the unit is crazy. Be in another room or stay say 10 feet away but leaving the house doesn't make any sense.
I'm a appliance technician for over 40 years I totally agree with you buy the cheapest and through it away when it breaks!
I'm a appliance technician for over 40 years I totally agree with you buy the cheapest and throw it away when it breaks!
A consumer can buy an appliance (GE, LG, Frigidaire, Samsung, Whirlpool) at HD, Lowe’s, Sam’s, Best Buy etc...There’s no guarantee it will last 20 years. You get what you pay for, my last choice would be GE!
Wow, it's a pandemic killing people and your complaining about service. You need a reality check about a humans life.wow just wow.
Speed Queen is clearly the exception to that.
I have been in the Appliance for over 50 years and the truth is that it is the Box Stores that are driving down the quality. And your local dealer's reputation depends on quality appliances and standing behind the products they sell. For some reason people give the Box stores a pass and go back and buy there again. Speed Queen does not sell to the Box stores.
All of them have Chinese or Korean compressor repair cost around $700 dollars Kenmore has the same compressor
The high end refrigerator cost around 10,000 and has a much better warranty than any of those big box store brands. One brand of refrigerator is made in Wisconsin. It will last 30+ years. So you decide to invest in a brand that will last or buy a throw away.
I was in the appliance business for almost 50 years. I sold appliances to stores. I never sold GE but they make a good product. Even in the old days appliances broke down. They aren’t made in heaven. From my experience the most important factor is the dealer one buys the product from. The big box stores like Lowe’s, The Home Depot and Best Buy do more appliance business every year. They have the resources to promote and drive the market. They’ve created an image of the best value. They try to do a good job and take care of their customers but in many cases they can’t. What you missed when you made your purchase was asking the question “what happens when it breaks down? Who does the service?” I strongly urge folks to buy from a local independent appliance dealer that has their own service department. Many of these folks belong to buying groups. They have purchasing power. They can compete with the box store price. Most importantly they can take care of you when you have a problem.
Gotta laugh at these comments, I'm 70 years old and unlike you idiots, I've gained knowledge,the reason manufactures aren't building anything to last anymore is because the people that are putting the most money into the manufacturers end are the 25-35 year old group,not you old farts,these people have 4-6 cell phone a year trade cars every year,they know these appliances have a one year warranty, they aren't buying extended warranty and when it does, they have already been looking at another, so why should manufacturer build to last 20 years
anymore? But what about my generation? Simple,we are old farts that don't fit into the equation,not home Depot or Lowe's or china
GE has their own service technicians so see if it's a different policy. But GE did manufacture in the US. High end French door refridgerators is one of those products made in Louisville so it's not that China built it.
Made in China, just think of all extra trash we are producing, I have old washer over 20 years old. Made in usa
You are not very smart. Move the broken refrigerator to the garage and have the tech work on it outside.
After retiring we replaced our appliances with Samsung two years later our dishwasher stopped working and one day before tech came out our icemaker went out. After those repairs the freezer went out after that repair and a loss of food the refrigerator and freezer went out and couldn't be repaired. This started in December and we're still waiting on Samsung! We has an extra refrigerator/freezer and bough another but Samsung is hard to deal with and Lowe's is no help.
Did anybody think about buying that added guarantee at my age I buy the insurance the warranty whatever I can I just want to be able to pick up the phone and tell him to come and get it
Just replaced my 28 yr old Amana fridge with a GE Profile just like the one pictured here. That Amana never skipped a beat in all those years, but sadly it did not fit the "profile" of our complete kitchen remodel. I will definitely keep it in the garage in anticipation of this GE crapping out.
Home Depot, Lowes, the big box companies do not manufacture the appliances. Unless you buy warranty through those big boxcompanies you cant blame them. Manufacturers are to blame....GE, Samsung. etc!!
The same thing happened to me with my GE profile model a little over a year of having it. I had called GE and had a fit and they sent a technician out to fix it for free. Once that happened I then added there warranty.
As well My G E PROFILE fridge HAS BEEN A NIGHTMARE something always Not working RIGHT 4 how much it cost OVER $1900.00 JUNK G.E
Had the same issue.
11:08, You're absolutely right!
I bought a Frigidaire in 1999 for $399. New. It's still working. Probably made in USA.
I bought a washer and dryer from home depot last August 2019. The washer did not work properly from day one. I have called, texted and been left on hold for 1hour and ten minutes. They won't take it back. Repairman has been here 3 times. Does anyone have a lawyer that I can deal with? They are ignoring me.
Trump 2020. It's a no brainer.
I bought a Samson refer from lowes great price was a floor model never used. The compressor would not come on.called Samson was told they will not cover a floor model.i bought this refer because on the door it says 10 year warranty.all I wanted was a repair. But Samson's management said go fly a kite.lowes was great and I repurchased a ge.dont trust samson. And dump trump in 2020
YouTube the GE French door evap fam replacement. I’ve done this job twice on my GE Adora (slate) since 2013, most recently, this afternoon (4/23/2020). Same symptom...fridge temp 61°, freezer -2° - culprit was the evap fan again. Prior to going out it sounded like a diesel motor running inside the fridge. Running smooth as silk and purring along now. Hope to get another 3.5 years or more before I need to replace again. Able to purchase the part locally for under $40.00 luckily. I think I’m going to purchase another to have on hand in case they discontinue. But at the rate these GE models are constantly having evap fan replaced, I’m sure they’ll keep a full supply in stock.
Why are people getting mad at the retailers they don't build them only sell them be mad at the manufacturer im a service tech work on all brands nothing is built that great people just have to get used to things breaking down until manufacturers start building appliances better
I'm having the same problem the only thing that is different my spouse passed away last week I'm still waiting on the so called stimulus money
We have LG with freezer on bottom always made noises one day I heard the most awful noise sound like a steel ball shaking in tin can we pulled the fridge out the Compressor was shaking and Hot about 7years old. $2500. My Aunt bought it from Sears.
At least one of the small, local appliance stores has the same attitude as the big box stores...my refrigerator "died" after 9 years with one person living in the home. It was not cheap at all. Having "been there, done that" with a front load washer that passed after 7 years (rubber around the drum completely rotted and I was told it would be $900 or more to repair, and to expect the dryer to die shortly, too). I called about the refrigerator and the owner said, "I don't know, but it'll cost you a hundred bucks to find out" if it can/should be repaired. Wow. I purchased ALL of my appliances from them. Never again with that kind of attitude! I totally agree that we should quit buying the expensive stuff and buy basic equipment b/c none of it is expected to last very long any more. I went back to a top load washer and dryer and bought my new refrigerator from a big box store. I don't care where you buy, nobody cares about their customers any more. Maybe if we all quit buying the very expensive stuff, the manufacturers will realize that for thousands of dollars, we should be getting much better quality and life expectancy. I'm disgusted.
My Referator went up last summer and the repair tech that came to look at it told me to NOT buy a Samsung or Whirlpool . They are both made by Samsung and no one wants to work on them. So.......I bought a Frigidaire and so far so good!
it aint just home depot. Bought GE fridge from lowes about 1.5 years ago. spent $2k on it. even bought extended warranty. when it started acting up called for service. guess what? there is no one down here on the shore under their service plan who can fix them. Really ticked me off.Ended up fixing myself. but will be a cold day in hell before I buy another appliance from either lowes or HD.
I had a Samsung washer a few years ago. I loved it. I spun the clothes so dry and was quiet. It had a glass top lid so I could watch the clothes. Then we received a letter that it was recalled due to a history of the top of machine that is attached to the lid flying off & causing damage or injury during the spin cycle. They did pay for a new machine but I was afraid to get another Samsung after they had that problem. So I bought a GE because it had the closest features to the Samsung one we replaced. It's not as quiet, and doesn't spin the clothes as dry.
I have the same fridge. There is a fan in the back of the fridge that goes bad. Lots of info on YouTube about it. Fan is under $100 and took me about a hour to replace.
The older GE is junk. I have the Profile appliances and nothing but trouble This because they used to be all made in S Korea. From what I understand production in the past few years on some are now in the US and they are much much better. This is why I am not at all thrilled the corona tests MD got from S Korea are going to be worth a darn. There are no if's and's or but's about it S Korea makes inferior products. They may have fooled the gov but not me
It does not matter of what brand you like, its all by chance. As to how long they will work. Don't pay more looking for better quality. It's not there. Appearance and bells and whistles, yes. Quality NO. What many of you do not realize is the global markets on electronics and manufactured products. Ansi & ISO standards were put into place as guidelines on quality requirements. There are 3 components. 3 classes of quality. 1.(General electronics)Commercial, all is required is for it to work at that moment. No more No less, toys etc is in this category, 2. (dedicated service) You want it to work but it doesn't matter if it doesn't. Nobody is going to die if the item fails. Refrigerators, Tv Washers, etc fall into this category 3. (High performance Critical). It better work. Life support, Healthcare equipment, Military etc fall into this category. Somebody could die if it doesn't work. So you see folks. The brand does not matter, the standards are the same for the US or Europe. Your junk is being built in China...They don't give a ratsass if anything works, once it leaves them. We should not be depending on China for critical medical equipment. They do not care about the quality that is built in. Buy what you like, but beware and save your money unless its the bells and whistles that you are looking for and make sure you get a good warranty! All jobs and contracts are sold to the lowest bidder! Buy the warranty!
Why buy fake over priced Chinese junk. To post a picture of it I guess. Insecure
My sis has one of these from shore appliances. Has NOT worked properly since they bought it. They tried to fix it a couple times to no avail. It's a P O S & shore appliances need to replace it.
Agreed 💯
Nice floor lol
Replaced the entire kitchen, fridge, range, dishwasher microwave, warming drawer with GE Cafe. The hardest decision was the brand to pick since every one I read reviews on there were complaints the appliances were nothing but garbage. I almost kept all the old stuff. GE held true to the comments as the refrigerator was dead out of the box. I can hardly wait for next appliance to die.
Quality went out the door with the advent of computer controlled appliances. My new refrigerator has 2 control boards, one failed after a couple months of service. The service tech replaced both on warranty and commented that was a couple hundred bucks out the window. He also said there isn’t a good, quality home appliance out there. It’s Asian or Mexican junk.
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