We were lucky, again, to find just what we wanted in a refrigerator-freezer, and at a good price. It's a Beko model and it was manufactured in Turkey.
It has the freezer on the bottom, and it's no-frost throughout — what they call froid ventilé in French. I guess that would be fan-assisted cooling, or something like that. It seems to be the same principle as convection (fan-assisted) ovens. Because the air is moved around inside the appliance by an electric fan, there aren't really any cold spots (fridge) or hot spots (oven) inside to worry about. The temperature stays pretty constant in all parts of the thing.
We got the fridge from the Darty home appliances (électro-ménager) and electronics store up in Blois. It was delivered free of charge and the delivery guys took away the old fridge, which Darty said it would donate to a charity organization.
In Europe, or in France anyway, freezers are fitted with deep drawers instead of just racks and shelves. Our old fridge, a Samsung model that we bought in 2003 when we arrived here, had the freezer on the top, without drawers. It was a good fridge, but at age 12 it was showing signs of wear, so we went ahead and replaced it. We figured if it gave out on us, it would be an emergency. We'd have to scramble and maybe settle for a model that didn't have all the features we wanted. This way, we are set, in theory, for a few more trouble-free years.
The first thing we put in the new fridge, as you can see, was a bottle of sparkling wine for a celebration.
The first thing we put in the new fridge, as you can see, was a bottle of sparkling wine for a celebration.
We've been taking advantage of a relatively strong U.S. dollar this year to renew some of our systems and appliances, including buying a second car, the fridge, and soon a new boiler (furnace). There are plenty of other home-improvement projects ahead of us — a new shower in the bathroom, a new back door and a new back gate, new shutters on the garden shed, and on and on. What else is new? Home-ownership is like this. This is the first time in our adult lives that we have lived in one house or apartment for more than 10 years.
At 70 cm wide, the Beko fridge is a little bit narrower than the old Samsung (74 cm). It's a lot taller too, but not too tall at 192 cm. As you can see from my photos here and in earlier posts, space is at a premium in our little kitchen. We've kept it the way it was when we bought the house, except for a new paint job and the appliances. The white tile is very clean-looking and plain, which we like. Maybe one day we'll have the whole room redone, but not right away.
It's only been 10 days, but we are pretty happy with the new fridge and its features so far.
It's only been 10 days, but we are pretty happy with the new fridge and its features so far.
Looks really good, Ken. I'm glad you posted photos -- love to see your house, and, especially, where you cook :)
ReplyDeleteI like the double set of drawers at the bottom of the fridge. I liked the idea of the bottle rack too. Our fridge has one, but in practice most bottles are too long for it. It was frustrating to have bought a fridge with a bottle rack that doesn't take wine bottles. Ridiculous. I hope yours is better designed.
ReplyDeleteSorry to hear that about the bottle rack in your fridge. Our fridge seems deep enough for wine bottles, bubbly or still, to fit without a problem. The four drawers at the bottom of the refrigerator compartment are nice. I do miss having shelves on the freezer door, but I'll get over that.
DeleteI think it's similar to the one the previous owners left behind in our house. It's an excellent fridge but ours has the freezer on top which means we have to bend down to get stuff out of the fridge. We prefer the arrangement you have - freezer on the bottom. When we need to replace it, that's what we'll go for.
ReplyDeleteWe had a freezer-on-the-bottom unit for the last 4 or 5 years in California, and it is better that freezer on top. Before that we had a side-by-side, which we found not practical at all.
DeleteWhat's with this weather? It's almost cold...
Love it! Our next fridge will have the freezer on the bottom.
DeleteNice piece of equipment :). Congratulations! There's nothing like a well-stocked fridge, especially when you're a gourmet cook. I'm sure it will give you many years of pleasure ;)
ReplyDeletevery informative post for me as I am always looking for new content that can help me and my knowledge grow better.
ReplyDeleteYour nice new fridge is much like my Samsung in looks and size, with the freezer on the bottom. It took a bit to get used to the swing-out door, but I very much like the big drawers. And four drawers in the body of the thing, rather than two, is a bonus. Bon appétit.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if your fridge was made in Turkey too.
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