Refrigerator Buying Guide

The biggest decision you’ll have to make when it comes to selecting your new refrigerator is the style.  The style issue is simply a matter of where you want your freezer compartment:  at the top, at the bottom, or alongside a refrigerator compartment of equal height.

Ever since freezer compartments found their way inside our refrigerators after the Second World War there has been continual shifting in where to put them.  Indeed, all contemporary refrigerator styles can be traced back to the evolution of the placement of freezer compartments

We still have bottom freezer refrigerators with a pull out drawer style compartment at the bottom of the refrigerator.  The newest models have improved storage with easy to move shelves and individual compartments and even doors that swing out with pullout shelves and baskets to store frozen food.  But they still suffer from their early disadvantage:  too much bending over to retrieve frozen foods.

The top freezer refrigerator, which is still with us today, was the next stylistic evolution.

This eliminated the bending problem but the design has a new problem:  instead of bending down for frozen food items you're bending down for refrigerated items since they are not all at eye level.  That is their biggest disadvantage:  the area of the refrigerator you visit most is in a less convenient position.

The solution was the development of the side by side refrigerator.  Both the freezer and the refrigerator compartments are at eye level.  However, the refrigerator side is typically slightly wider than the freezer side, leading to a new problem:  neither compartment is wide enough to handle larger boxed items and food trays.

Despite this disadvantage side by side refrigerators are now the most popular style of refrigerator.  Perhaps the most popular feature of side by side refrigerators is the "in the door" water dispenser and ice maker.  However, they are the least energy efficient, as they can leak lose cool air since the seals of the doors are constantly rubbing together.  Another downside is repair.  The most frequent repair calls for refrigerators involve ice maker and water dispenser issues.

Now we have a new style, designed to overcome these disadvantages:  the French Door Refrigerator.  First, the refrigerator compartment is at eye level behind two separate doors, with no divider between the sides.  Each door exposes the entire compartment.  The result is no bending for any thing refrigerated whatsoever.  It's all at or slightly below eye level and all easily accessible.  And it's a wide enough space to fit just about anything.

The freezer compartment in a French Door Refrigerator is at the bottom.  Some manufacturers have pull out style freezer chests while others have the compartment contained within and accessible behind single or double swing out doors.  These models include slide out shelves and baskets.  The baskets are generally removable as well.  With either the slide out chest or the behind the door option the freezer compartment is wide enough to fit just about anything.

These new French Door designs eliminate the seal problem of side by sides by adding a vertical panel, or "smart seal" between the doors so the seal of each door always closes tightly.  In addition to the stylistic advantages, these models are more energy efficient since you are not constantly opening the entire refrigerator to get a single item.

The style you choose is a matter of personal preference and budget.  Top and bottom styles are generally much cheaper than side by sides or French Door styles.  The finish is also a matter of preference, although the very popular stainless steel finish is easier to clean and repair than any other finish available.