Frigidaire Professional Series : FPHC2399KF 36 22.6 cu. ft. Counter-Depth SidebySide Refrigerator Review

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(More customer reviews)EDITED to add comments after 6 months of use:
People continue to curse at the stupid design of the water dispenser, and continue to spill water all over the place. Reducing the star rating from original 3 stars to 2. I would NOT recommend this unit, especially for the asking price. If you can find one on clearance, maybe, but again, there is NOTHING special about this that qualifies it to be priced above $1K imo.
ONE year warranty people...that should tell you something right there.
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Replaced a GE fridge with this model:
Due to my space limitations, I narrowed it down to the similar Kitchenaid model (kind of wish I had gone for this), and the Whirlpool at the same level. Bought online sight unseen fwiw.
Honestly, I don't see why the "PROFESSIONAL" designation on this. Nothing about the quality makes me think it's anything other than a very average refrigerator. Cheap, plastic bins just like every other average unit I have seen.
PROS:
- Best thing about this is the good looking AND practical stainless steel finish. It's great really - NO smudging (except on the handles) AND it's magnetic (something rare in SS models).
- "theater" lighting...when you open the doors at night, supposedly it doesn't blind you immediately, but rather gradually, as the lights ramp up
- Has a changeable air filter. I like this...no more arm and hammer boxes taking up space and tipping over. OTOH, another filter to replace.
- External, digital temp controls for both sides. I like the idea of this...but in reality, how often are you going to be changing the temperature? If you have to change it a lot, maybe there is a problem with the thermostat?
- this is a small thing, but I really like that some of the side compartments in the fridge have a non slip surface. Very nice touch. Instead of your jars of jelly sliding around and clanking into each other (except when the door closes, see below), things stay nicely in place.CONS:
- OMG THE DOOR SLAM. This one kills me, and for such a small thing, makes such a big negative impression because it's EVERY time you deal with the fridge. When you close the door, there is NO "cushion" for lack of a better or more technical word. On my very low end GE (and most every fridge out there for that matter), there is a built in governor I guess that slows the speed of the door so it doesn't just slam closed. I think what happens is that the resistance is just greater as you approach the closed position. Whatever that feature is, WP for some reason decided to leave it out on this fridge (maybe none of theirs have this, no idea). It is sooo annoying. We have gotten used to it more or less, and most of the time we carefully and slowly close the door so it doesn't rattle the whole kitchen. But anybody else (who of course is also used to the normal, slower fridge door behavior) closing the fridge door is always startled and usually jumps when the door SLAMS shut with a huge rattle. This is just piss poor design imo, and is a big negative. I am sure we will eventually get used to it, but shouldn't have to.
- another horrible, non standard design implementation re: water dispener. Unless you have an extremely wide cup (think wide coffee mug or even soup bowl/mug, you can't just push your glass into the unit expecting water to hit. Nooooo. Because of the design, any normal rim sized glass will be overshot by the water squirter, so you have to wrap your hand around the glass and then insert, to make up for the space. Never seen another fridge with this problem, and like the door slam issue, because it's so unusual, every time someone not living in our house goes for water, they end up getting it all over them and the floor. That tells you right there it's not just me being picky. I swear they designed the thing and never actually tested it in a real live situation. Inexcusable imo.
Because these two things have relatively easy workarounds, I am not going to go into below average territory. I doubt there is a perfect fridge out there, but I do wish I had gone for the Kitchenaid. I wonder if their engineers made similar mistakes.
3 stars, barely, and that is assuming that this unit will last many years w/o probs.
IMO, look at the Kitchenaid before buying this one.

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When you select a home appliance from Frigidaire, you've chosen a product of exceptional performance, convenience and style; an appliance that has been designed to work in harmony with the way you live. Available at AJ Madison. Frigidaire, one of the leaders in home appliances; offers superior products and service to rival many other companies. Through meaningful innovations, they've humanized their technology to create appliance design that's uncluttered, controls that are intuitive, and features that are as sensitive as they are smart.

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EcoloBlue 30 Water Cooler - Atmospheric Water Generator Review

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(More customer reviews)I have the EcoloBlue 30. I thought the manual was good with a few omissions. The manual has photos of all the maintenance procedures that need to be preformed every 6 months to a year. You need to read the manual before you even think about plugging in the unit. This is not an unpack and plug-in device. I had to fill the bottom tank five times to prime the EcoloBlue 30 for it to get going. I called technical support and did get though directly 3 of the 5 times. I called so many times because I was not sure what was occurring was normal. They give you 30 days to return the unit if you are not satisfied. The shipping weight is 132 pounds. You do have an option to connect a water line to the unit that is filtered rather than using the dehumidifying circuit to produce water (a winter, low humidity option). You do have an option to turn heating and cooling of the water on/off. When the unit is either cooling the water (top tank) or in dehumidifying mode it has a fan that moves a lot of air. The unit produces noise when in operation and is much noisier than your typical refrigerator. You cannot put this unit in a small room because it will suck all the humidity out of the air in short order. The 30 system seems to be well designed but very complex. I wonder how reliable the unit will be over the long haul. The water tastes great either hot or cold. In the 6 months of using the system I did not have any mold or bad water smell issues. Beats carrying 42 pound 5 gallon water bottles.
Some concerns:
The minimum Relative Humidity should be 40% not 35% (readout of RH on blue LCD) as stated in the manual. Anything less than 40% does not produce any meaningful water amounts. Their charts for RH and water production are off by a decimal point at least. The manual on page 5 even states that it operates best at a RH of 50%. I can verify this, at 50% the system 30 does make water at an acceptable rate. The low humidity solution would be to use the external (tap water) connection on the back of the 30 to supply water. As stated previously this unit moves a lot of air, there is a noise issue. Maintenance, you need to monitor and clean the system 30 at regular intervals described in the manual. A new filter set will cost you $79. In fairness all water treatment systems need maintenance, the system 30 a little more than others.


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The EcoloBlue 30 is equipped with a 12-stage Water-From-Air Filtration System that includes Charcoal Filters, Carbon Filters, a Mineral Filter, a Filmtec Reverse Osmosis Membrane, a Post Carbon Filter, and 3 Philips UV Sterilization Lamps. The system features a Stainless steel bottom water collection tank and a 3 Gallon Stainless steel top dispenser tank equipped with UV Spectrum Filters.

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Royal Berkey Water Filter System With 2 Black Berkey Filters Review

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(More customer reviews)Not to be a buzz kill, but I spend DAYS researching these berkey filters. I even tracked down a gentleman who claimed to be one of the heads of the Toxicology Department, Dr. Portier, at LSU. He said that LSU did infact do ONE water sample on the Black Berkey over 10 YEARS ago and that neither he or LSU endorses their product. He also said that while the test did take place, that not Himself or LSU authorized a document to be placed on the internet. He said the reason that he was so quick to call me back is because he has had nearly 20 different inquires in the past 10 years asking about this "so called" lab analysis document that Berkey puts on their website. He also went on to say, that SOMEONE had to of manufactured the "LSU document" because he did not provide ANYONE with that document. So, even if LSU did do a sample, and if everything went alright, then why did New Millennium Concepts have to manufacture a LSU lab analysis report? Then I got to thinking, if New Millennium Concept (the company the main distributor for Black Berkey filters) is soooooooooooo confident in their product, then
Why don't they have any Quality Assurance procedures put into place?
Why don't they have their filters annually tested?
Why don't they get an NSF (National Sanitation Foundation) certification.
Why don't they have a Micron Rating for their filter...Nominal or Absolute?
There I spoke with Valarie who was also very nice, she spend nearly 30 minutes talking to me on the phone about my questions. However, even though she was nice, she wasn't able to provide any logical explanations on why New Millennium Concepts did not provide any quality assurance testing on their filters, or why they do NOT recertify their filters annually to ensure that they are still working properly. When I pressed her on this issue, she explained that the tests were several hundred dollar a piece and that's why they did not do them frequently. Furthermore, her testament as to the quality of the Berkey Filters was that, "no one had ever gotten sick from using our Black Berkey filters". She went on to say that New Millennium Concepts has been in business since 1997 and they do a lot of business. She said that they sold over 350,000 dollars of product in December 2010 alone.
In conclusion, if New Millennium Concepts has been around as long as they say they have, and if they are selling over a quarter of a million dollars a month; then there is NO acceptable reason why they have not obtained an NSF certification, fail to conduct quality assurance on their products, or subject their filters to annual independent lab tests. These three steps would ensure the quality of their filters beyond doubt. Simply saying, "that no one has ever gotten sick using a berkey filter" is impossible to prove and meaningless. I have been drinking tap water for 30 years with all the fluoride, chlorine, and bacteria, and I have never gotten sick either. The problem is that unless the quality of water that you are drinking is SEVERELY contaminated, you won't get sick right away. Instead, it will be a slow cumulative effect on the body. That fact that Berkey manufactured lab analysis reports from LSU also scares me!!!
Bottom line is that the Berkey filters make some pretty awesome claims, but do very little to PROVE this to their consumers. History shows us that when a company makes great and unusual claims about their products, they NORMALLY back it up with proof; Berkey has failed to do that. As for Spectrum labs and the University of Arizona... I have yet to hear back from them.
This review is not meant to be negative in any way, it is solely to spread information and get to the bottom of this.
From what I can tell for sure, the best part about the filter is that the water collects in a 304 polished stainless steel basin, which is far superior to plastic! For this reason alone this filter might be worth buying? As was stated by the original person of this post, "Berkey filters will remove a portion of the substances that are attracted to activated charcoal if the black berkey option is used, and a portion of the substances attracted to alumina if the fluoride/arsenic option is used. It's funny that a "minute" un-quantified amount of aluminum compound (presumably mostly aluminum oxide otherwise known as alumina) introduced by their fluoride filter is harmless; but a minute amount of fluoride and other substances is a serious health hazard?"
The Berkey filter will remove "some stuff", and in a survival situation this is definitely better than nothing. However, I am not able to use this filter for my everyday drinking water needs as Jack Spirko of The Survival Podcast suggests. Granted Jack seems like a great guy, at the same time, an independent Berkey Filter Distributor is one of his sponsors.... Conflict of interest....you tell me?
If you want more info on how to contact New Millennium Concepts, or University of Arizona, or LSU toxicology department....feel free to contact me by replying to this post and leaving your email address. If we put enough pressure on Berkey, they may spend the extra money to bring peace of mind to its consumers, that is if they past the lab tests?!?

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The versatile Royal Berkey system is the ideal system for use at home with large families, travel, outdoor activities or during unexpected emergencies.This powerful system purifies both treated water and untreated raw water from such sources as remote lakes, streams, stagnant ponds and water supplies in foreign countries, where regulations may be substandard at best. Perfect for outdoor activities and a must in hostile environments where electricity, water pressure or treated water may not be available.The Royal Berkey system removes pathogenic bacteria, cysts and parasites entirely and extracts harmful chemicals such as herbicides, pesticides, VOCs, organic solvents, radon 222 and trihalomethanes. It also reduces nitrates, nitrites and unhealthy minerals such as lead and mercury. This system is so powerful it can remove red food coloring from water without removing the beneficial minerals your body needs. Virtually no other system can duplicate this performance.Constructed of highly polished 304 stainless steel, the system comes complete with two purification elements and utilizes the latest technological advances. This system has a storage capacity of about 3.25 gallons (12.3 liters) and when in use it stands 23" in height with a diameter of 9.5". The upper chamber nests within the lower chamber for transport and stands only 15.25" in height.Configured with two Black Berkey purification elements the system will purify up to 4 Gallons (15.1 liters) per hour. This system can be expanded to use four purification elements and is capable of purifying up to 8 Gallons (30.3 liters) per hour.

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Water Filter - Multipure CBVOCSC Countertop Water Filter Review

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(More customer reviews)(I would give this 4.5 stars if I could, since the negatives are minor.) I've had this for a couple of weeks now, and here's my experience so far:
Pluses: It was fairly easy to install, and the installation seems robust - no leakages, which was our main issue with a faucet-mount filter we had tried earlier. Looks good, I like the stainless steel better than some of the plastic casings I saw before I bought this one. The water tastes really good. I can only assume that the filter is removing the nasty stuff it claims to remove, if it is there in my tap water in the first place. The main reason I filter my tap water is to get rid of the Chlorine taste, I'm not as paranoid about tap water as some people are. I am glad to get rid of my "Pur" pitcher which I now fear has been a source of BPA all these years :-). It's nice to have on-demand filtered water instead of having to fill the pitcher and wait for the water to trickle down (since it's of course inevitable that you'll find the pitcher empty just when you have a desperate need for water, and the filter would have just started slowing down too!).
Minuses - I wish the flexible pipe was a little longer, so I could position the filter further away from the sink. As it is, it sits about a foot away from the edge of my sink so it could still get splashed. This won't affect the water of course, it just means I'll have to wipe the shiny stainless steel casing down more frequently.
It would have been nice if the attachment to the faucet was designed to be easily removed and re-attached. That way I could remove it and put it away when the cleaning lady is at work, or if I'm concerned that some visitor is going to make a mistake with the switch and run hot water through the filter. Because that's what I live in fear of - someone running hot water and destroying the filter before its time is up.
In spite of the above (minor) quibbles, I would recommend this filter to anyone who does not have the ability to install an under-sink filter. A HUGE improvement over the Brita/Pur type faucet-mount or pitcher-type filters.

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Multi-Pure Countertop CBVOCSC Water Filter, our finest Countertop Filter. Rugged, attractive Stainless Steel Countertop Water Filter with hose and Diverter Valve. This unit may also be purchased as an undercounter system or converted to an undercounter system with the purchase of a conversion kit (offered separately). The water from this filter system is the best we've ever tested! Filters Chlorine taste and odor, as well as: 97% Chloramine, 99% Lead, 97% MTBE, Mercury 96%, VOC's 99%, Asbestos 99%, Giardia and Cryptosporidium 99.95% and much, much more. Complete lab tests and California certifications available at our web site. Size approx. 8" Diam. x 10" tall. Includes filter cartridge CBTVOC (was MPPTCB). Replacement filter cartridges last for 750 gallons minimum. For municipally treated water only. FREE shipping in the Continental U.S.A.

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Seagull IV X-1F Drinking Water Purifier - Residential Model Review

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(More customer reviews)We had friends that were missionaries and they took this purifier through lab testing of just about every kind of water they could find. They tested filter after filter, purifier after purifier and this is the only one that would actually clean up swamp water so it could be great drinking water. We have had ours for years and am now looking at getting a whole house unit. Its the best, no kidding and we are not "sales" people, just mom and dad!

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Independently certified to meet EPA Microbiological Guide Standards for removal of bacteria, cysts and virus, Seagull IV water purifiers remove bad taste and more for great tasting, refreshing water. Seagull IV purifiers excel at removing chemical and aesthetic contaminants too. Tried and Trusted, General Ecology celebrates its 30th anniversary as a leader in chemical-free water purification with distributors in 40 countries. Sophisticated users world-wide rely on General Ecology systems for safer, healthier water. Instant, convenient, and reliable, Seagull IV systems work without wasted-water, hold-tanks, chemicals or electricity. Seagull IV water purifiers high capacity and fast flow rate make it ideal for cooking, drinks, ice-cubes, food and beverage preparation. Point-of-use enables economical purification of prime use water. Operating costs at only pennies per gallon make Seagull IV purified water easier, more economical than bottled water. Tech Specs: Self-indicating cartridge replacement. Avg. 1000 gal. capacity. Avg. 1 gpm flow rate. Operating pressure: 25-125 psi. Temp. Range: 33-145F. (Pump models also available.) Easy installation at point-of-use (DIY), Compact stainless steel housing approx. 5 inches/ height x 5 inches/diameter. Lead-free chromed faucet is top mounting with life-time ceramic valving. (Contact General Ecology, Inc. for non-faucet model or additional faucet types.) Installation tubing, mounting bracket and initial purification cartridge included.

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