mom26 Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 We will have an ice maker/water dispenser in the door so this will take up some of the room in either the refrigerator or freezer depending on which one we choose...any thoughts...any regrets once you purchased one? We have been researching for weeks now...since we will likely have it for the next 15 years or so (our one that is dying is 17 years old!!), I want to make sure we get what we want ..would love your thoughts. Thanks!! Kathi Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 I have an Amana with the freezer on the bottom (french doors were not available when I bought this). I will ALWAYS have a freezer on the bottom. It's great. :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom26 Posted May 27, 2010 Author Share Posted May 27, 2010 What is it that you love about having the freezer below? Just curious...I am leaning that way too...just wanted to know why you love it so much :) Blessings, kathi Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Denisemomof4 Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 I can't stand my side by side. I want it to last as long as possible because my dad bought it for us, but I also can't wait to get another. I *love* the french doors with freezer below. The side by side doesn't have as much storage, and it's really hard to find ANYTHING. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dobela Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 My mom has a freezer on the bottom and while it is ok, she doesn't like the ice maker that is in the door. It cannot keep up at all which means she is regularly buying ice and storing it for those times when she needs more than 2 glasses. Apparently the ice storage capacity is much much smaller because it is all held in the door (??) - that is what she tells me however. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aggie Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 We left our freezer on bottom Kenmore in our old house and got a side by side. There is no comparison at all. The freezer on bottom is so much more convenient! It holds so much more, it's easier to find stuff, and I miss it! Definitely the freezer on bottom!:001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubermomto5 Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 i agree. everytime i want something out of my side by side, i have to move 3 things to get to it. it's so inefficient! i use my chest freezer in the garage the most and only a few small things like ice cream inside. btw we didn't buy it, it came with the house and i can't wait till it dies and i get a french door fridge! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akmommy Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 Everyone I know who has bought a side by side has regretted it. The freezer is too narrow, to small and it's hard to find things are the common complaints. We have the standard freezer on top right now, but my next new one will have the freezer on bottom. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laurie4b Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 Love my freezer on the bottom. It is efficient to put the stuff you use most where it's easier to get to. You use the stuff in your refrigerator a lot more frequently than you get stuff out of your freezer. You can see what's in your refirgerator. It's more comfortable--you're not bent over digging through your refrigerator for something and the hydrators, etc. are easier to clean when you can stand up and do it. The freezer doesn't get as dirty as the bottom of the fridge and certainly not as often. My in-laws have a side-by side and it seems like the space is much less efficiently used. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thescrappyhomeschooler Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 Yep. Freezer on the bottom is the way to go. We left ours at with the old house. New house already had side by side. I really miss the freezer on the bottom- for all the reasons already given. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
delaney Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 I vote keep the side by side in the basement for storage and get a french door! I couldn't live without 2 fridges! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blessed3x Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 Definitely french doors and freezer on the bottom. We purchased one 4 years ago when we bought our current house and I have NEVER regretted it. LOVE IT! LOVE IT! LOVE IT! Finally enough space in the fridge and the bottom freezer is very convenient. BTW, we had the side by side in our previous house and I promised myself NEVER to buy one of them again. Hated it on a daily basis. Hope this helps!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MommyX8 Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 I have a Maytag with french doors with the freezer on the bottom. It is great for the french door section. But I typically only use the freezer for immediate use frozen foods (ice cream, ice, maybe a bulk bag of veggies that we are using.) Other than that, frozen goes in the stand-up freezer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom26 Posted May 27, 2010 Author Share Posted May 27, 2010 Thanks everyone...I was hoping to hear you love your french doors with bottom freezer!! Blessings, kathi Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JudoMom Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 We bought this Kenmore a couple of months ago and I love it. It has so much room--I've not overfilled it yet. We were going to get ice & water in the door, but in all of the models we saw the dispensers took up so much room. This model has filtered water in the door, but the ice maker is in the freezer and is very accessible. This provides so much more room inside. I hope you find the perfect fridge! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blessedfamily Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 (edited) The ladies here helped me decide on my Amana french door/freezer on the bottom and water/ice in the door. It also has the wide deli drawer, and a milk in the door compartment with separate temp control. It's a year old now, and I love it. Got it for a great price at Home Depot, and got a great price on the GE extended warranty they offer. The only down side to my model is that one of the doors wastes space with a beverage holder. We use it for yogurt cups. Edited May 27, 2010 by Blessedfamily Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FeFe Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 I love my french door/freezer on bottom. I feel like I can fit so much more in it than I did with my side by side. Of course, I love having everything practically at eye level too. I feel like the freezer is bigger but I have a full freezer in the basement that I use too. I tend to keep only veggies and flour in my freezer in the kitchen. Some things to consider though: If you have young children and it's important to you that they be able to reach in and help themselves, it may be too difficult or dangerous (if they climb) to get in the french door fridge. An ice maker/water dispenser does take up additional room as well as make the area next to it much colder than the rest of the fridge. There is a long, narrow shelf next to mine and I thought it was perfect for eggs until they kept turning up frozen. Now I keep things that I don't mind getting that cold. No big deal to me but something to think about. We opted to get one without the large deli drawer that spans the entire width of the fridge. Though the idea of it was really neat I decided I thought it took up space that I could use however I wanted. Not just for things that would fit in the drawer. For us, having the ice maker/water dispenser was more important than having the drawer. Of course, you can have both. I have a friend who has both and she loves hers just the way it is. HTH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pippen Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 Everyone I know who has bought a side by side has regretted it. The freezer is too narrow, to small and it's hard to find things are the common complaints. We have the standard freezer on top right now, but my next new one will have the freezer on bottom. We have a side by side as a garage fridge and I hate the narrow spaces. We replaced our old regular fridge with a french door, bottom freezer. I like the french doors but would probably hate it if I had smaller children because they wouldn't be able to reach anything. Even my 12 yo daughter can't reach stuff on the top shelf. I also miss storage space for bottles and the egg dealie that was in the door. I found I had far more usable space by removing one of the shelves and putting a tub in to hold the various bottles. I'm not totally sold on the bottom freezer. We have water in the door (not ice--that was $800 more) and ice is constantly falling through the baskets to the floor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MaMa2005 Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 French doors with bottom freezer. We have ice/water in the door. Ours has been a great investment. It is just shy of 3 years old and we haven't had one problem. It is a Maytag. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hsbaby Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 Side by sides are AWFUL!!!! We just bought one as our old fridge (with bottom freezer) didn't have a water and ice dispenser. I regret it. We should have spent the money to get the French doors with water and bottom freezer. Side by sides have NO room and are impossible to organize. Luckily we kept our old fridge out in the garage!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hoosiermom Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 We have french doors w/ freezer on the bottom--Love it! Ours is a Kenmore. If I recall, we bought during summer months and got a great deal because they were closing out previous year's models. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JenC3 Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 The most energy efficient is a freezer on top since cold air sinks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
~Tara~ Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 I can't vouch for the freezer on bottom models. I also have my reasons for *not* wanting one of those right now (littles can't reach the bottom shelf in fridge). But I can say that I loathe side by sides! One came with this house and it could die at any time and not hurt my feelings. Well other than the fact that we can't afford to replace it any time soon LOL We've had side by sides at other times as well (not bought by us, came with the house) and I have always hated them. Can't fit anything in there. Although, you can fit a truck axle in the freezer when all the shelves were out, in case that sways you at all. LMHO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teachin'Mine Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 Freezer on the bottom is awesome! It puts everything you're looking for in the fridge at eye level. No more ... I forgot I put those peppers in the crisper kinda things going on. I miss my freezer on the bottom. :drool: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matryoshka Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 I love my freezer on the bottom and wouldn't get anything else - except French doors with a freezer on the bottom - I'm drooling over those! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Susan in KY Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 One thing to consider with french doors and a freezer on the bottom is that (at least for the model we had) the seals on the fridge weaken and need to be replaced. Ours wore out yearly, to the tune of $70. It was a pain. BUT, the freezer on the bottom was nice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BamaTanya Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 I measured our space and it wouldn't fit. :glare: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OnTheBrink Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 I measured our space and it wouldn't fit. :glare: Same here. :glare: But, I do have a bottom freezer and LOVE it. I'd never get a side-by-side. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Photo Ninja Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 I like french doors and freezer on the bottom as long as there is not a door ice/water dispenser because it takes up too much space. The other thing I don't like, which probably varies by model, is that both french doors have to be open to open the produce drawer because it spans the width of the refrigerator. I would prefer two produce drawers that can each be opened with only one french door opened. Other than that, I really like the extra space it provides. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LuvToRead Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 I don't have a side by side, but I know people complain about the freezer. It's just to narrow. We bought a new fridge 3 years ago, and I really wanted to French doors with the freezer on the bottom, but we couldn't afford it. They look so classy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom26 Posted May 27, 2010 Author Share Posted May 27, 2010 We bought this Kenmore a couple of months ago and I love it. It has so much room--I've not overfilled it yet. We were going to get ice & water in the door, but in all of the models we saw the dispensers took up so much room. This model has filtered water in the door, but the ice maker is in the freezer and is very accessible. This provides so much more room inside. I hope you find the perfect fridge! Thanks ....we actually looked at that model for the very reasons you noted. With our 6 kiddos filling their water bottles at least once a day we figured it might make sense for the refrig door not to be open multiple times for extended times ...oh, such a nice 'problem' to have--too many options to choose from!! At least I'll know we totally thought this through before making a decision!! Thanks for your input.... Blessings, kathi Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
*Amber* Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 We have a french door with the freezer on the bottom and it is so amazing!!! I don't have the water and ice in the door (it was too expensive) we have a water dispenser inside the fridge and the ice maker in the freezer and it has worked out well for us. Lots of room in the fridge. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momee Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 (edited) I love my 26 cu ft Samsung. Black, french doors, freezer on bottom, water dispenser inside and these magnificent trays that go the WHOLE LENGHT of the fridge. There are also big milk jug size holders in the door. VERY important with many teens here. It's my new best friend. I hug it when I walk by. Two notes. don't get a surface that scratches when you put magnets on your fridge And the water inside is fantastic. I haven't had to clean that dumb tray, and the ice maker has given some problems, so watch how that's constructed. OH YES< do your research and wait for a sale if you can. We got scratches on ours and ended up getting 50%off!!!!!!! What an amazing story that is, but anyway, hth. I want to say once more. I love my fridge. Like this but black http://www.samsung.com/us/consumer/appliances/refrigerators/french-door/RF26VABBP/XAA/index.idx?pagetype=prd_detail And you didn't ask but for the life of me, please, please, please don't buy from Sears. I absolutely think it's the worst place EVER to buy an appliance. Their repair service is my nemesis. It still makes me mad years later to remember my dealings with them. Edited May 27, 2010 by momee Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scuff Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 We have a side by side. I'll never buy one again. It's such a pain reorganizing everything every time I want to put something in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom26 Posted May 27, 2010 Author Share Posted May 27, 2010 One thing to consider with french doors and a freezer on the bottom is that (at least for the model we had) the seals on the fridge weaken and need to be replaced. Ours wore out yearly, to the tune of $70. It was a pain. BUT, the freezer on the bottom was nice. I did hear about the seals breaking :( And believe me, our fridge is opened and closed a bazillion times a day with 2 teenagers in the house now :)!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ferdie Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 Interesting thread. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheTwinsMom1 Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 We have a kenmore french door, freezer on the bottom and we love it. Our ice maker is in the bottom part so it takes up very little space. Our old side by side the icemaker took up so much room in the freezer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 One thing to consider with french doors and a freezer on the bottom is that (at least for the model we had) the seals on the fridge weaken and need to be replaced. Ours wore out yearly, to the tune of $70. It was a pain. BUT, the freezer on the bottom was nice. Ours is over 15 years old and we've never had to replace *anything.*:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 The most energy efficient is a freezer on top since cold air sinks. Hm. I doubt that makes much of a difference with a refrigerator, what with all the insulation and whatnot. But having the fridge on the top is SO convenient. I'll never go back to freezer on the top. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 My mom has a freezer on the bottom and while it is ok, she doesn't like the ice maker that is in the door. It cannot keep up at all which means she is regularly buying ice and storing it for those times when she needs more than 2 glasses. Apparently the ice storage capacity is much much smaller because it is all held in the door (??) - that is what she tells me however. I've never had ice/water dispensers on the door. Never wanted them, never intend to have them. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.