Repair or replace fridge?

[LNC]

Our fridge is 7 years old. We paid $89 to find out why it never turns off and freezer doesn't freeze enough. The evaporator coil needs to be repladed. $400 including labor. The fridge is 7 years old, and it is a basic stainless side by side. Would you repair or replace at this point?

[Matryoshka]

Yikes that's expensive!  We just got a new fridge this week, but the old one was almost 20 yrs old.

 

Do you like the fridge otherwise?  When my not-particularly-old cooktop broke a number of years back, I chose to replace it just because I hated it and didn't want to prolog its life. ;)   My new(er) cooktop is so much easier to clean!!

 

I'm personally not a side-by-side fan - we just got a French door (we used to have just freezer on bottom, one big door).  I'm liking it so far!

[Tammyla]

I would replace it; that repair bill is too high for my comfort.

 

Consumer reports has an article about repairing vs. replacing appliances.  We have free on-line access through our library.

[unsinkable]

Consumer reports, replace or repair? http://news.consumerreports.org/appliances/2011/07/new-refrigerator-ratings-plus-repair-or-replace-timelines.html

[Dana]

Replace.

Appliances just are NOT being built to last. We just replaced our 7 yo dishwasher because it was apparently leaking through the motor. We're lucky there isn't water damage on the floor. We went with a relatively cheap model and figure we'll be replacing it in under a decade. I'd be happy to pay a lot more for something that would last.

[JFSinIL]

Unfortunately, replace.  We paid a repairman $90 to be told our ten-year-old 'fridge would not be worth fixing - they just are not made to last anymore :-(   I figure - earmark a hundred or so in a "fridge fund each year to have the money to replace them once a decade. Sigh.

[Ali in OR]

Our fridge will be 20 this autumn. I would love to replace it, but so far dh fixes everything! So in our house, there wouldn't have been an $89 bill (dh would take it apart then hit the internet to find probable cause), he would find the part on-line or through a local place that has now ordered many parts for him for all of our appliances, then he would fix it himself! I guess I would be tempted to replace it but I would do some research to find one that is pretty reliable. I don't need fancy features but I do want reliable and easy to repair. No plastic parts would be a plus!

 

[Crimson Wife]

If the new fridge is more energy efficient than the existing one, it could pay for itself fairly quickly.

[texasmama]

I would replace it. We are on fridge number three in thirteen years.

[crazyforlatin]

We have problems with our appliances and even though I keep wanting to replace all of them, DH goes online to search and buy parts. There is this one shop online that allows you to return a part that is not the problem you thought it would be. If a part itself costs $400, I would replace the whole thing, as we had to do at one point.

 

How much is labor?

[trulycrabby]

I asked my handy husband, and he said don't bother to repair, get a new fridge. Evaporator coils are a tough repair, and when you are finished you will have spent $500 on a fridge that is no longer under warranty and can break down agin at any time. 

[crazyforlatin]

I would replace it. We are on fridge number three in thirteen years.

Ouch, they don't make them like before. My parents owned the same fridge for 20 years and only replaced it because it looked like it was bought in the 70's, which it was.

 

OP, we're having a problem with our fridge as well. It won't evaporate the water so the water leaks into the fridge, but DH is stalling. I'm fighting for a new shiny one.

[gingersmom]

The new fridge I want is $2000 so I would do one repair and hope it lasts.

 

My mother has a giant subzero fridge and when it broke she was told to replace it, the fix was major $$$$$. She had a second repairmen in who fixed it for $ and it is going strong years later.