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Original poster

Bored with sinks - now on to fridge freezers!

40 replies

CountessDracula · 17/03/2004 17:40

Right, next kitchen design dilemma

Do we go for fab, user friendly but ever so slightly Footballers Wives American fridge freezer with ice and water dispensers?

If so, could just fit one in - they all seem to be 900mm - but would be better if was 800mm. Anyone know of anyone that does them that narrow?

If not, what sort of normal fridge freezer?

Retro? Modern Stainless Steel (back to cleaning issue there!) Bog standard white jobby (already have so would save money but not big enough.

Or does someone know of some other sort of fridge freezer that is a must have?

OP posts:
Original poster
CountessDracula · 17/03/2004 17:41

ps sorry am so boring and kitchen obsessed!

OP posts:
Hulababy · 17/03/2004 17:46

I love the Smeg retro ones. I wanted a pink one but DH objected.

Never got one in end though as mardy builders here wouldn't let us reject this one and get our one choice at extra cost - so would have been a waste of the one we were geting. Which is quite nice - big stainless steel FF, beaumatic.

Original poster
CountessDracula · 17/03/2004 17:48

crunchie said Admiral on the sink thread.

here it is only 807mm wide. BUT only has water not ice dispenser. GRRRRRR I want ICE

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twiglett · 17/03/2004 17:50

message withdrawn

jmg · 17/03/2004 18:40

CD is there any chance you can get to the Ideal Homes Exhibition over the next couple of weeks. We went last year when we were planning our kitchen and a couple of exhibitors had all the top end brands at special prices.

We got them to quote for all the appliances we wanted at these prices and they knocked off another 10% for buying a lot from them. Our kitchen builders were upset when they found out that we were not buying the appliances from them and so they knocked some more money off if we let them supply them. We saved an absolute fortune!

SofiaAmes · 18/03/2004 00:31

I cannot live without my american style fridge/freezer and that's not just because I am american. It is so wonderful to have the extra space, particularly in the freezer, as I do a lot of big batches saved for later. The kids beg me to let them have water and ice to drink as they love getting it out of the door, and the novelty of that doesn't seem to wear off. I can probably help you get quite a good price on appliances. These guys have a good selection and good prices.

JanZ · 18/03/2004 11:24

I've just bought a load of appliances from appliance-city . This included the LG American fridge freezer.

The service we got from them was fantastic. Ordered on a Tuesday and got the goods the following Monday. They said the disitribution company would be in touch on the Friday to confirm when on the Monday or Tuesday (when they "did" Scotland) they would be delivering - and they did. They then delivered exactly on time.

Prices were excellent too!

The LG fridge freezer (model GRL207DXZA) (see it here ) is fantastic - it looks good in the new kitchen and probably looks better than the Samsung I was thinking of (but which were out of stock just about everywhere - although some of the internet suppliers were less than transparent about that). It looks even better than it looks on the internet (the handles are a matching titanium/stainless stele effect to the rest of it and not white). It's Energy class is also A and not B as it says in the spec.

We're enjoying the luxury of ice and water on tap!

Original poster
CountessDracula · 18/03/2004 11:29

Thanks everyone! SofiaAmes I may take you up on your offer! Need to keep trying to find a narrower one for a bit yet....

OH GOD now I'm on to radiators vs underfloor heating - can feel a new thread coming on.

At this rate will christen the house Mumsnet Mansion!

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princesspeahead · 18/03/2004 11:32

cd - missed your sinks thread I'm afraid!
was always a bit sniffy about ice and water dispensers until I had one (we have big american fridge with all the trimmings that came with the house), now I think they are GREAT! the children help themselves to water all the time, the ice is SO EASY and nice never to have to deal with a bloody ice cube tray all the time, and they are generally brilliant as everyone says. definitely white though, stainless steel fridges are passe. and were never very nice to begin with, all those smudgy fingermarks...

princesspeahead · 18/03/2004 11:33

cd I have rads, water underfloor heating, and electric underfloor heating all in different bits of the house... whaddya wanna know?

Original poster
CountessDracula · 18/03/2004 11:37

Having 200 year old french oak planks throughtout ground floor and want to know if it's easy to fit uf heating under them. Also, what happens if it goes wrong? Do I have to pull the floor up?

What are the running costs - presumably the hot water ones are no more expensive that normal rads? Will put electric in the family bathroom defo.

And how much does it cost to buy/lay in the first place per sq m?

PPH if you can answer all that you are a star!

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Original poster
CountessDracula · 18/03/2004 11:40

pph sinks thread still going strong, in fact there are two! ah just saw your msg on it.

However, the second one was about this sink which I adore but am worried (a) will be permafilth hand marks etc and (b) looks like thing nurses wash bedpans in. But I STILL WANT IT!!!

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Original poster
CountessDracula · 18/03/2004 11:44

ps was thinking of black fridge to go with worktops as agree ss would be mare

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JanZ · 18/03/2004 11:53

If you get black, make sure not to get a mirror effect, as that would be just as bad as stainless steel!

Having said that, the "titanium" fridge freezer we've just got has a brushed steel effect which doesn't seem too bad for finger marks.

oliveoil · 18/03/2004 13:22

In the frebie Tesco magazine I picked up at lunch, there is a competion to win a £20K kitchen from MFI and a Siemens american fridge/freezer for £2.5K. Not that it matters posting it here as they are MINE ALL MINE. But you can waste a stamp if you wish

princesspeahead · 19/03/2004 11:23

hmmmmm. won't it look a bit 70s? (black fridge I mean)
I think any colour other than white is generally a mistake. but maybe that is just me.

Original poster
CountessDracula · 19/03/2004 11:29

Maybe you are right. I have thus far not had any colour fridge other than white. I just saw a black one on the web and thought it might fit in quite well.

Have not gone to see any fridges or sinks or anything in the flesh yet.

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princesspeahead · 19/03/2004 11:36

you def have to pat them before you choose!

Crunchie · 19/03/2004 11:44

I case they bite

Original poster
CountessDracula · 19/03/2004 11:47

Will pat and stroke

But sherioushly it is one thing looking a 3inch high black fridge on web and looking at one in the flesh....

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princesspeahead · 19/03/2004 11:48

oooh, sorry cd o\nly noticed your heating questions now. not sure I'm going to be much help. can't answer questions about installation costs because all of this came with the house.

need to ask your flooring supplier whether underfloor heating is suitable for use under old solid wood boards. I would suspect not - might cause the wood to warp etc. I know it can be used under more "processed" wood (eg Kahrs) because I think the construction of the wood means there is less movement etc. sofiames will probably be able to tell you. if you can, then you would have to pull up the floor if it goes wrong, but I don't think it ever does. i know ours all has a 25 year guarantee. there isn't much TO go wrong - either it is just an electric element, or it is literally a squishy pipe with water in it. once it is laid, it is in. our water heating is under limestone, so you would have to lift flags if anything went wrong - but it just doesn't!

re running costs, again I'm not going to be too much help. our water heating is run on oil, so that doesn't help you much. the electric one does seem to be fairly expensive, but then electricity is expensive, and where we have it is in the front part of the house which is high ceilinged, with a big hall etc. And 3 of the 6 rooms there are not much used - guest beds etc - so the heating has to get off to a standing start when we do put it on. and that is another point of underfloor heating - it is better when put in somewhere where it is going to be used regularly - it takes it a fair amount of time to heat up from cold. if we have guests coming we put the heating on the day before, because it has to heat all the carpet etc before it then begins to make a dent on the volumes of cold air above. again, this would probably be different in london where it doesn't get quite so cold, and houses are smaller, and you benefit from eg neighbours heating a bit!

Original poster
CountessDracula · 19/03/2004 11:53

Have already ascertained that sadly uf heating is not approriate. We are knocking kitchen and dining room together and leaving it all open to living room too (to start with, if don't like it we'll chuck up a wall between new big kitch and living room) so we won't have a huge amount of wall space as all one room. so sadly am going to have to come up with some ingenious places for rads.

Still will have in bathroom at least.

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Crunchie · 19/03/2004 12:00

You can get under cabinet heaters in the kickspace under your beautiful new cupboards A company called Myson makes them - check online. Or ask for those kickboards to be fixed witha clip rather than permenantly. I use this space for all my baking stuff which I use a occassionally - large roasting tins and cake tins slide straight under easily and use that wasted space.

princesspeahead · 19/03/2004 12:00

sounds lovely though! so nice to have a project as well...

Original poster
CountessDracula · 19/03/2004 12:06

Yes it is pph - I know I must be getting better from the vile GF as now have interest in house smashing up project, whereas for several months it has filled me with dread...

Crunchie I looked into those things yesterday, the kick board heaters, but they are so ugly and would spoil the beautiful lines of my kitchen

OK, another question

If I put my washing machine in the larder, enclosed in a cupboard under the thick bit of granite upon which cheese, puddings etc will live, would the heat from the washing mach adversely affect the ambient larder temperature?

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