How to buy the right Refrigerator?

Nowadays every household has a refrigerator somewhere in the kitchen as they have become an integral part of our daily lives. Whenever you think of the refrigerator the first thing that might come to your mind is a boxy boring cupboard like thing which holds your food items and keeps them cool.

And that is somewhat true as most of the refrigerators resemble the same design. But in the past few years, a lot of innovations have been made in the field of refrigerators and companies like Samsung, Whirlpool, LG has focused and design to produce a better class of refrigerators that are not only good in aesthetics but also has a ton of features that weren’t there earlier.

If you go out to buy a new refrigerator, you will be bamboozled by the varieties and range of refrigerators that you can choose from. Options ranging from multiple different colors and styles to personalized refrigerators that can suit your home decor. With all these options available out there it becomes quite difficult to pick a particular refrigerator and the whole process becomes quite overwhelming.

To solve this very problem we will guide you through the steps you need to choose the best refrigerator possible for you by the means of this article.

What kind of refrigerator do you want?

Starting with the basics the first question you to ask yourself is what kind of refrigerator do you want. With the wide variety of refrigerators available in the market, the first thing you need

to ask yourself is, what are your needs and which refrigerator will suit them the best.

To simplify the choosing process we can divide the whole class of refrigerators into four main classes depending upon the position of the freezer and the refrigerator compartment.

the four categories then can simply be stated as a top freezer, bottom freezer, side by side and french door.

Top freezer – the top freezer refrigerator is the most common refrigerator out there and it is probably the one that comes to your mind when you think of a refrigerator. this kind of refrigerator has a freezer sitting on top of the refrigerator compartment covering one-third of the total body of the refrigerator. This style of refrigerator is the most common and therefore are available in abundance and so you can pick them for a cheap price. If you aren’t looking for something fancy or something vibrant, then these can be the best choice for you as these are available for a very low price as compared to the other three categories.

Bottom freezer – this type of refrigerators are similar to the top freezer category and the only difference is the position of the freezer compartment. unlike top-freezer refrigerators, in bottom freezer refrigerators the freezer is located at the bottom. The bottom position of the freezer in these types of refrigerators makes it easier to access fresh foods. nowadays most of the bottom freezer refrigerators come with a drawer-style freezer that can be pulled out for easy access. These types of refrigerators are slightly bigger than top-freezer refrigerators and have less variety in terms of colors and designs.

Side by side – Side by side configuration in a refrigerator divides the refrigerator into two halves where generally the left side is reserved for frozen foods while the right side is for fresh foods. Mostly all such refrigerators have equal space on each half but some manufacturers tend to allocate a bit more space on the fresh food halve. This, in turn, makes the freezer section narrower than what it normally would be. This means that you can’t put food items with a larger size such as a frozen pizza in there and this fact can be a bit constricting aspect for many people who prefer having a not so narrow freezer. Refrigerators with this particular configuration of doors cost a bit more than the previous two types ranging from $1200 to $3000. This type of refrigerator is a very good choice for people who are space-conscious but still want a feature rich refrigerator.

French door – A French door refrigerator is basically a combination of a side-by-side door and a bottom drawer style refrigerator. This allows you to have a full-width double door refrigerator with plenty of storage space. Since the refrigerator door is split in two, every time you open any of the two doors to take out any item off the refrigerator you’ll allow very less air to pass through as only one door will be open at a time.

Since the demand for such refrigerators is high, you’ll find a good variety of such refrigerators in the market. Most manufacturers provide such refrigerators with customization options too which you can modify according to your personal choice. These refrigerators cost the most among the above-mentioned types and generally fall between the $1500 to $4000 price range

How big the refrigerator should be?

How big the refrigerator should be, mostly depends upon your family size and how big is your kitchen. Few things that you need to keep in mind while choosing the right size for your refrigerator are, how much space each person in your family needs in the refrigerator? How big is your kitchen and how much electricity bill you can spare?

Also, bigger the refrigerator bigger will be the electricity bill. So make sure that you don’t buy a too large sized refrigerator if you have a very small family or live alone. So it’s better to buy a small sized refrigerator that suits your needs the best.

Should your refrigerator be counter-depth?

A counter-depth refrigerator means a refrigerator that is perfectly aligned with the edges of your kitchen counter-top. These refrigerators mostly serve a aesthetic purpose and don’t necessarily provide any extra features whatsoever.

But bear in mind that these refrigerators are generally more expensive than normal refrigerators of similar category. Also, these refrigerators are slightly shallower then their counterparts as most of the kitchen countertops are lower in depth than most refrigerators. Moreover, these refrigerators are custom built so you can modify the aesthetics of these as per your choice.

What features you should look for?

With the advancement in technology, manufacturers try to introduce new features in their refrigerators regularly. Now, most of these refrigerators have features that might not be very useful for you personally but will surely cost you extra money. So it is always better to look for refrigerators which have most of the features that benefit you personally and not just buy a refrigerator that comes with fancy but not very useful features.

Do you need a water dispenser?

Nowadays most of the new refrigerators come with water dispensers which dispense water as per your requirements. Usually, the water dispenser nozzle is present at the front side of the refrigerator door and most new models automatically detect whenever a glass, bottle or jug is placed under the nozzle to collect water. Some models also have a special place for water pitchers to be placed inside the refrigerator which gets automatically filled whenever you place the pitcher inside the refrigerator.

Should you buy a smart refrigerator?

Smart refrigerators are like normal refrigerators but with some extra smart features. Getting a smart refrigerator is completely an optional choice and you can do fine without it. The main factor to consider with smart refrigerators is that they don’t come cheap

The only decision you need to make is whether you actually need the smart features or not. Some of the most prominent smart features that you need to consider before buying a smart refrigerator are

Voice control

Most new smart refrigerators nowadays can sync up with modern smart-home voice platforms. General Electrics most smart refrigerators can seamlessly sync up with platforms such as Alexa and can be used for quick temperature adjustment, or it can also issue warnings when the water filter needs to be replaced. You can also control the frost and defrost cycle of the refrigerator with voice commands,smart refrigerators are the best refrigerator in India.

Smart multitasking

Smart refrigerators can also connect to your mobile devices via wifi through which you can issue it commands such as start heating up water, change the temperature, etc.

Refrigerator cameras

Most smart refrigerators come with in-built cameras that lets you check the contents of the refrigerator without having to open the door. Some refrigerators even allow you to check these details from your phone remotely which is a great feature as you can check the contents of your refrigerator directly if you are in a grocery shop and need to know what products you are running low on and what products you need to buy.

Conclusion

The bottom line that you need to answer for yourself is whether you actually need a fancy refrigerator with world class smart features or if you are just happy with plain and simple refrigerators.…

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How often should I change the water filter in my refrigerator?

Nowadays most refrigerators completely equipped with a water filter. These water filters are designed to remove any kind of impurity and bad taste from the water add by processing the water through a combination of carbon filtration and sedimentation process. The water filter in most of the refrigerators contains a black carbon block that is wrapped in a material such as polypropylene.

The water is allowed to flow through these filters mechanically and as the water flows the material removes any debris and suspended particles from the water. The remaining particles that can’t be separated by sedimentation just cling onto the surface of the carbon block.

This process where the impure particles attach to the carbon block is known as adsorption. Unlike absorption where the particles get soaked into the surface, in adsorption, the particles just stick on to the surface instead of going in.


If you haven’t changed your water filter in the refrigerator in a while you should consider changing it as soon as possible. On an average for a family of four, a water filter can last about six to eight months and need to be replaced after that period.I

f you don’t taste any difference in the water quality even after not replacing the water filter for a longer period of time it is because many of the contaminants are tasteless. It is always advised to change the water filters on a regular basis at least every six months if not earlier.

How does a refrigerator water filter work?

The refrigerator water filter makes the use of a carbon block wrapped inside out material such as polypropylene which absorbs any contaminants and removes the rest by the process of sedimentation. A good quality refrigerator water filter can remove harmful elements such as lead chlorine and other volatile organic compounds such as herbicides pesticides and insecticides.

Since the water supplied by your municipal corporation is chlorine-treated, water filtration also helps in improving the taste of the water which has been treated with chlorine prior to distribution. Chemicals such as chloramine that consists of the combination of chlorine and ammonia are used by municipalities to reduce the formation of harmful products such as trihalomethane.

Volatile organic compounds pollute water mostly by the means of air, paints, and preservatives. In certain cases, they can also enter the drinking water by means of industrial waste. Some of these volatile organic compounds are carcinogenic in nature that can cause liver, kidney and reproductive organ problems.

A refrigerator water filter helps to remove any of these chemical and reduce the number of contaminants present in the water. It also helps to reduce the production of bacteria in water and also improve the taste of the water.

What happens if we don’t change your refrigerator water filters regularly?

During the filtration process, the water is separated from the contaminants by the means of carbon which is limited in capacity. And time passes and carbon continues to filter more and more water daily it also slowly wears off. This directly means that the longer you wait to replace your filter the worse quality of water you will get.
Not changing the water filter on a regular basis can also lead to some other problems such as –

Clogging of the filters – it is the water filters separate the contaminants from the water they start to get packed with the dust and contaminants which slowly clogs them completely. This results in a complete stoppage in the flow of water./

Bacterial growth – the contaminants collected by the carbon block start acting as a feeding ground for bacterias which can also get mixed with your drinking water polluting it.

Carbon wears off – as the water continued to flow through the carbon block on a regular basis, all the available surface area of the carbon gets covered in contaminants and debris leaving no space for any new contaminants. This results in water flowing through the carbon block without getting filtered. This will either block the flow of water completely or will just deliver you contaminated water without filtration.

How often should you replace your water filter?

Typically any refrigerator water filter wars out off its effect within 6 months of regular usage for a family of 4 members. The longer you wait to replace the carbon filter after its expiry period the more harmful your water will become.

Nowadays most of the refrigerators come with the water filter indicator that shows the status of the water filter. These water filter indicators typically show a red light when the water filter needs to be replaced.

How to replace the water filter?

Water filters in refrigerators are pretty easy to replace. Though the process might differ for different models of the refrigerator by different manufacturer’s, but the general procedure remains the same. To replace the water filter of your refrigerator just follow the below-given steps –

1.Turn off your refrigerator and pull out the plug. Shut off the water supply for the refrigerator.

2.Locate the water filter. If you don’t know the location of your refrigerator’s water filter you can refer to the manual provided with the refrigerator.

3.Once the water filter is located, turn it anti-clockwise until it gets detached from the container. Now just pull out the water filter rod.

4.Sometimes you may eid need to apply a lot of pressure while pulling the filter rod out from the container as it tends to get jammed because of the excessive dirt collected by it.

5.Now insert the new water filter rod and turn it clockwise to lock it in its place.

6.Now reset the water filter button. This step might differ for different refrigerators, refer your refrigerator’s manual for more information.

7.Once all the above steps are done run water through the new filter for 5 minutes to flush the filter of any unwanted subtances.…

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