Today we explore the secrets behind appliances. How should care for them to extend their life to what are the most reliable brands? We talk all of this and more in this episode! Plus the secrets of how they are priced and how to buy them.

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[00:00:27] Eric Goranson: So there's a key right there. Next one down. It's a big job. GE profile, 6.8%. Now GE last year was a 6.1%, but a 6.8 service rate, which is pretty good. GE profile and keep in mind, GE has different brands. GE is cafe when it comes to remodeling and renovating your home. There is. To know the, we've got you covered.

[00:01:17] Eric Goranson: What are the new ones? What are the best brands? All that and more coming up in this episode. Well, today I wanted to start out with one of the most important things about your appliance. And this is how you maintain and use them. And these are kind of important things. And uh, I thought let's start out with maintenance and then we'll get into, uh, a little bit later on here.

[00:01:58] Eric Goranson: So let's dive in. The [00:02:00] first thing you need to take pay attention to is maintenance on those appliances. You know, people think, oh, that refrigerator, I plug it in and it's good to go. Well, first thing is refrigerators, and I'm gonna say most like your side-by-side are French doors. They have that little toe kick area down across the bottom.

[00:02:35] Eric Goranson: And the more blanket that's around those coils, the harder it has to work to keep things cold. Which means you can burn up and reduce the lifespan of it. So first off, I wanna make sure that you're taking that toe kick area off vacuuming underneath the fridge carefully. Now, don't just go shoving a, a vacuum one down there because one, there's electrical, two, there's very delicate pieces, so be very careful in how you do [00:03:00] it.

[00:03:19] Eric Goranson: If you have one of those clear plastic ones or some of these other hoses out there that are more. That can be a problem. I would make sure and replace it and make sure you've got a good hose back there. That is one of the leading causes of water damage inside your kitchen where floors have to be replaced.

[00:03:56] Eric Goranson: I totally agree. But you do want to change that filter from [00:04:00] time to time as well as, uh, on a lot of the newer ones have air filtration on the inside, so that charcoal filter and the filter for the ice maker and the water in the door, those are important as. Now other things you can do to maintain you think about your oven or your range.

[00:04:42] Eric Goranson: Then peek in there a normal oven. You'll see temperature swings as much as 30 or 40 degrees inside, and that's typical for many appliances out there. The nicer the appliance typically the less the swing, but you could see that 4 25 down to 3 [00:05:00] 75, 360. And up to 4 50, 4 75. Sometimes I have seen those temperature swings get huge.

[00:05:27] Eric Goranson: If it's an electronic control, many times you can actually just get in there, push a couple buttons and adjust that plus or minus temperature to get it where you want. So that is a key right there, making sure that's styled in and keeping it clean. Guys, do not run the, the self-cleaning mode right before you're gonna cook a big meal, cuz it will taste like you just ran the, the self-cleaning mode.

[00:06:06] Eric Goranson: When was the last time you wiped that down? When was the last time that you cleaned those filters? And third, it better be venting outside. If it's not, there's a great DIY project for you to make sure that that rain hood should always no if ands or butts about it. If you have a cooking surface in there that range hood should vent 100%.

[00:06:51] Eric Goranson: Now if you have front load washing machines, make sure that you're checking that filter cuz almost all front load washing machines have a filter in front of the drain. Check your, uh, [00:07:00] instructions to make sure that I'd be changing that every six months to a year. Cleaning it out, putting it back in, as well as making sure that those hoses are not rubber hoses behind the unit.

[00:07:26] Eric Goranson: And, uh, make sure those are good and, uh, that that ducting is in good condition. Make sure you vacuum out that area where the, uh, lint goes in, uh, that lint charging, you know, the changing filter thing in there. Make sure you change and get that cleaned out and make sure that's golden. Now, when it comes to dishwashers, you can run dishwasher cleaner through there to make sure that you've got all the buildup.

[00:08:05] Eric Goranson: Detergent now is not have any of the phosphates and stuff that were in there before. They use enzymes. Enzymes need food to turn on, so if you actually are washing those dishes before you put 'em in, you are getting less clean dishes because you're not activating those detergents. So make sure that you pre scrape 'em, put 'em through.

[00:08:40] Eric Goranson: Wipe 'em out. Make 'em look good. And you'll be good to go there. And another thing out there that I want you to take a peek at, you know those mic over the range microwaves, make sure those are cleaned out as well. And, uh, you'll be good to go there. And, uh, any other appliances like steam ovens, things like that, make sure you're freshen up the water.

[00:09:14] Eric Goranson: They make really good little. Tablets you can drop in to make those things smell fresh. What I do is when I'm using lemons or limes in the, in the kitchen, I run those through there with some ice and uh, that acid of those as well as the ice will go through there and really clean things up and it makes a huge difference, aren't we?

[00:09:46] Eric Goranson: should I be so hot?[00:10:00]

[00:10:25] Eric Goranson: That could be the around the house. Uh, on Facebook, Instagram, and make sure that you're falling around the House Northwest. That is the television show, and that is where you can catch new video every single week. It's one hour of fresh television that we do, including some segments called Perform like a Pro, where we take on a DIY project, as well as our maiden Northwest series, which is made in USA stuff that's made around my hometown here in the Portland metro area.

[00:11:20] Eric Goranson: Um, I do not use the. Consumer magazines, and I'll leave it at that because I think those are flawed. There's a company that I follow out of the Northeast Yale Appliance, and they do every single year, they keep track of all their appliance repairs and the percentage of repairs, and I think it works out really well that way and it's a little bit better measure of what it is.

[00:12:19] Eric Goranson: Cuz that's an important one. So let's talk about the least reliable cuz it kind of makes a difference on the brand because if a company makes a lot of this certain type, then guess what? That can skew those numbers a little bit. So the least reliable appliances for 2020. Counter depth French door refrigerators, and usually it's the ice maker which has a problem because the ice cubes are traveling through a warmer refrigerator and those can refreeze again.

[00:13:22] Eric Goranson: And so that's one of the things here that, that kind of interesting. Those are the, those are the, some of the biggest issues right there. Now let's get into the brands here that are the most reliable. And per that, uh, Yale appliance list here, I'll give them credit for this, for their statistics. And it's interesting, so their their top brands, this is shocking, LG at 4.4% service rate, and they base this on about 40,000 service calls logged by their service team last year.

[00:14:18] Eric Goranson: That's one of their biggest movers. But, uh, LG had some problems back in 2019 when they had a, uh, had a, um, a really big class action lawsuit. And I think that really helped them do, and now here's another one. Um, you know, and here's one of the things about lg. They manufacture a lot of their core components like motors, compressors, so they have a better control of that where other companies don't.

[00:15:15] Eric Goranson: And keep in mind, GE has different brands. GE is Cafe, um, which is interesting. And um, you know, they've got their other stuff as well in. But that's kind of where that is. Now, the interesting thing here too with GE is GE is not an American company anymore. They were bought by Harrier, the Chinese company, and so I don't know if that has anything to do with them going from a 6.8 to a 6.1, but that's something that happened a few years ago.

[00:16:09] Eric Goranson: So, um, Bosch 10% previous service rate in 20 21, 11 0.7. So they've gotten. Uh, dishwashers reliable with a service rate of 5.1%, but the refrigerators, you know, stoves, wall ovens, you know, were there. Now here's an interesting one. This is one that, uh, that I'm surprised with. Speed Queen 8.9% service rate, previous service rate at 10.3 speed Queen in my mind, used to be in the wa in the laundry world, the most reliable period.

[00:17:09] Eric Goranson: Uh, and that's interesting. Number seven. 10.4% service rate. They've popped up just a little 9.9 last year. And uh, those guys really are incredibly sophisticated, so I'm not surprised. I mean, they have heat pump dryers, advanced washers, dishwasher, the with automatic ex, you know, dispensers. There's a lot of features with Mila and so that's a big one there as well.

[00:17:53] Eric Goranson: So that is their high-end professional ranges, and that's at 9.3%. Number nine, Gaggenau [00:18:00] 9.4%. Uh, they were 7.7, so they slipped a little bit. Uh, it is the exclusive cooking line, by the way, from Bosch. So German designed, manufactured in France, you know, that kind of stuff. And number 10 is GE appliances at 10.2% service rate.

[00:19:10] Eric Goranson: Welcome back to The Round The House Show. This is where we help you get the most outta your home through information and education. Thanks for joining us. Well, if you want to comment on this, make sure you head over to Facebook on Around The House Show. You can send over, uh, messages there or over to me at around the house online.com.

[00:19:52] Eric Goranson: Number 10. GE appliances number 11. Is Thermador, and that's [00:20:00] an interesting one there too. They're a very nice luxury brand. Um, they've really got some neat stuff. I'm really impressed with Thermador. Um, they simply, they just build mostly builtin refrigerators, pro range wall oven, steam ovens, cooktops, range tops, that whole thing.

[00:20:41] Eric Goranson: And that tells you really kind of where there are. Um, you know, they're dishwashers again, well manufactured, reliable. Um, they struggle when it comes to refrigerators and stoves and, um, I like the brand. But yeah, that has really been hurting. [00:21:00] Now I noticed that there's brands on this, in these top 12 here that are not here.

[00:21:36] Eric Goranson: But there's a lot of things on here. Um, you know, Samsung's probably the biggest one that it looks like to me. And, you know, I, I have LG in my house, so, um, and then the other one on here that's not, and it's a lot of, a lot of this is because they're not common out there. You know, I do have, in full disclosure, I have Z line appliances in, in, in my range and my dishwasher, [00:22:00] which is made by Bo.

[00:22:30] Eric Goranson: Um, You know, a lot of the great brands out there, you know, Zephyr, which is one of my favorites, best by Bro, um, those are all under 5% service rates. So that's really, uh, really incredible. I like a good hood and that's where you don't wanna buy the off brand. You want to get one of the better ones with that, but that's kind of the key right there to all those.

[00:23:14] Eric Goranson: But like for instance, right here, the most reliable induction, cooktops and induction's, a big one. Uh, the most reliable is GE profile, but here's the. When I first designing was first designing kitchens back in the nineties, GE profile had an induction cooktop. So this isn't new technology, but GE profile and Bosch 0% service rates.

[00:24:29] Eric Goranson: And then you start going down the list a little bit. But here's what happens. You know, when you start to get into these Samsungs and Whirlpools and stuff like that, you get to be less reliable with these. Um, and some of the problems that you're seeing out there too with these brands, the, the Maytags of Whirlpools and the Samsungs, they have also had some considerable issues with people trying to get them, and the parts.

[00:25:25] Eric Goranson: And so, you know, and here's the other thing too, um, and this is where we're gonna talk a little bit more in this last segment today, but, uh, you have to start looking at how companies decided to market. Some companies out there have decided, okay, we are gonna, we're gonna focus on the big box stores and we're gonna stay away from the local distributor.

[00:26:10] Eric Goranson: You're seeing ranges like the one from, uh, LG signature that we talked about in my, uh, around the House Northwest Show, which had one range that had a sovi cooking surface on top. And if you don't know, what suvy is, is that you're basically vacuum sealing food, like meat for instance, or vegetables or whatever.

[00:27:03] Eric Goranson: Um, there's so many different appliances out there that you see in a kitchen now. Coffee makers have been around for a couple decades, but you're really starting to see that you're seeing, uh, a lot of ware things from, uh, you know, ice makers that make that little pebble ice to the round ball ice makers that you see that come from lg.

[00:27:43] Eric Goranson: They don't work well for either thing. I don't like reaching across a. Cooking surface to put something in a microwave. I don't like kids to have to jump up on a range to get to that microwave. I don't like having a hot surface over that. I'm grabbing like a bowl of soup over [00:28:00] my arms being level. So that is my kind of least favorite out of all of those.

[00:28:34] Eric Goranson: All right, we come back, we're gonna wrap up. How to go out and find that special deal just as soon as around the house returns.[00:29:00]

[00:29:26] Eric Goranson: And this is one of those things that, uh, I think is really important. Now, if you're catching us on the radio and you're just joining us, make sure you grab the podcast out there because we have covered a lot of information on appliances here for you in, uh, this episode today, this hour. I want this segment here.

[00:29:58] Eric Goranson: I am seeing people go on, [00:30:00] you know, any of these brands. You know, finding the reliable brands on Craigslist or Facebook marketplace and trying to get from somebody that's maybe moving or something like that. That's not a bad deal. You just don't know the service history of the appliance before you got there.

[00:30:40] Eric Goranson: Now, appliance manufacturers have what they call map pricing. Map pricing is the minimum advertised price. So when you're out looking at a washing machine and you see everybody has 9 99 on it, [00:31:00] Then you go, huh, they can't sell it for less than that. So many of these things like that, you can't sell for less than that.

[00:31:38] Eric Goranson: So they keep the appliance dealers in business, whether you like it or not. That's how it works. So what happens though is, is how companies get around that. As you will see major retailers, the Home Depots, the lows. Even sometimes the Costcos will carry appliances, but they will get a special number and they'll [00:32:00] call it a special buy.

[00:32:24] Eric Goranson: So the key there is, is making sure that you find those special buys, cuz many times those special buys are that special deal one that that company will have it in stock cuz it's a special buy. So they sell 'em until they're gone. Number two. That they're usually a lower cost because that's why they're the quote, special buy.

[00:33:15] Eric Goranson: You will find that model that's there, especially the more expensive models. They will sit on the floor for a while. And my key on that is to go up and hit that person up at the manager and say, Hey, I like this $2,000 refrigerator that's marked down from $3,500. If you'll sell it to me for 1500 bucks, I'll take it out the door today, or I'll have it delivered the next available.

[00:34:06] Eric Goranson: You know, it's just not, never in a good space. So always ask on those. You might be able to get a better deal on that. And uh, one other little trick that I've done in the past that has worked depending on the store is that heading, hitting up that night manager, that evening manager at the end of the month where they're trying to get it out the door might get you even a little more discount.

[00:34:53] Eric Goranson: They are some of my favorites. And ask 'em if they have something that's a return out of box, something [00:35:00] like that. Something with a dent in the back. And then make sure from, you know, if you've got that local, regional retailer that's got three or four locations, do they have a scrunch and dent area? Or store for that.

[00:35:34] Eric Goranson: You do not want it there where you're gonna find it on the front door or something like that, cuz that can be very expensive to repair. So take a look at, uh, take a listen to water we talked about is the most, you know, reliable ones. And then turn around and go back and you'll be able to see what you can do there as far as getting a good brand at a good price.

[00:36:21] Eric Goranson: And, you know, extended warranties are an interesting one. Um, for some appliances they can work out pretty good. I am not the biggest extended warranty guy, and those are one of those things that I just, I just get really worried about it because to be honest, if you're buying a reliable appliance, you're probably not going to.

[00:37:07] Eric Goranson: It is a profit center for them. It is not a nonprofit. So think about that and what it covers and what it doesn't. You know, many times in appliance we'll have a one year warranty on parts and labor, and then they'll have a, you know, five year warranty on a big part, 10 year warranty on other parts. Um, you know, but if you're worried about it and it's something that could be an issue, like if you're buying a French Door refrigerator, maybe getting an extended two-year warranty is smart on that thing.

[00:37:54] Eric Goranson: But, uh, another thing too is if you're online buying, check with your credit [00:38:00] card companies. And I'm not saying go out and apply, apply stuff on there, but there's a lot of companies out there like Capital One and others that have these shopping programs that are tied in with their credit cards that could save you, you know, 50 to a hundred bucks on some of this stuff.

[00:38:35] Eric Goranson: But, uh, just think about where you're buying those appliances and what they're costing you. And more importantly, make sure that you're maintaining these things and you're gonna be good to go. I'd love to hear your experiences with appliances. Feel free to message me over and around the house. And you can do that around the house online.com or send a message over on Facebook.

[00:39:11] Eric Goranson: Just do a little search for around the House Northwest that is, Television show out there that you can catch every single week and stream it on Hulu. Just look for the Fox 12 app. All right, buddy. Time to get onto the next hour. Thanks again for tuning in to around the House.