dlstewart's Full Review: General Electric GTS18FBM (17.6 cu. ft.) Top Freez...
The office had to make a decision. Not only was the refrigerator in the warehouse probably one of the first refrigerators ever made, but the refrigerator in the main office wasn’t large enough to hold everyone’s lunches. So about eight months ago the powers-that-be deiced to buy a new larger refrigerator for the office and move the smaller refrigerator to the warehouse, relegating the ancient refrigerator to an appliance graveyard. Enter the GE GTS18FBMFFC 17.6 cubic foot Refrigerator.
Everyone immediately fell in love with the spacious new refrigerator (about 25 people use it). It didn’t take long for the shelves to fill. Some people even started doing their grocery shopping before work and placing their perishables in the fridge for the day (which causes some upset when there isn’t enough room for people’s lunches!).
But I’m sure you want to know about the refrigerator and not office politics.
Inside the Door
The door of the refrigerator has a butter compartment with a clear flip-open lid for easy access. There are also two shelves the width of the door. A wide piece of plastic runs like a guardrail across the two shelves to hold items in place, and the shelf bottoms are constructed of solid plastic. However, the gap between the plastic guardrails and the shelf bottoms is wide. Too wide. When the door is opened, the salad dressing bottles slide right through the gap, falling to the floor. Sometimes the shelf is packed with bottles and jars, so this isn’t a problem. But in an office, as a rule, the shelves are not jammed with enough items to keep them from shifting when the refrigerator door opens. Those unlucky enough to open the refrigerator door too fast find themselves dancing the two-step to avoid heavy glass or plastic bottles from landing on their toes.
The top door shelf can easily hold two half-gallon cartons of milk or juice. However, the shelf stretches beneath the butter compartment so that a half-gallon container will not fit there. Instead, the space holds bottles or jars about 6 1/2" tall. The bottom shelf is set low enough in the door so that two-liter bottles of soda or juice easily fit.
Inside the Refrigerator
The body of the refrigerator has a small sliding drawer, two large sliding drawers, and three shelves. The inside of the refrigerator and freezer are bright white.
The top shelf is a combination of the small see-through sliding drawer and a short shelf that rests beside it. The top of the drawer has a tempered glass surface that acts as a shelf, and there is a short adjustable white wire shelf beside it. The drawer unit is also height adjustable. The two units can be moved to match the level of each other to form a shelf that fits the width of the refrigerator. Or the drawer and short shelf can be moved so that they are at different heights, forming a split-level, which is nice if extra space is needed to store tall objects in the fridge. In the office, we use the small drawer to hold the extra condiments that come with take-out orders (packets of ketchup, mustard, mayonnaise, soy sauce, duck sauce). If I were using this refrigerator at home, I would store deli meats and cheese in this drawer or baking needs such as baker’s chocolate, semi-sweet chocolate bits, yeast, etc.
The next shelf runs the width of the refrigerator and has the option of three adjustable heights. This shelf sits in the center of the fridge, and can be adjusted for as shallow or deep as needed. It is also constructed of heavy-duty white wire.
The last shelf is tempered glass and is also the top of the two large drawers that rest along the bottom of the refrigerator. Depending upon what height the shelf above it is placed depends upon how much height is available for placing items on the lowest shelf. The two large clear-plastic drawers are roomy. The office uses them to store small single-serving tubs of creamer for coffee. If I were using this fridge at home, I would use the drawers to store fruits and vegetables.
The Freezer
The freezer is located at the top of the refrigerator and stays cold, keeping food frozen. The freezer door has two shelves for storage. The shelves have “ribbed” bottoms, which I image are designed to hold cans of condensed juice.
The body of the freezer has a non-adjustable top shelf that is set at two heights. The left side of this shelf is only big enough to set two ice cube trays side by side. The right side of the shelf is set lower, offering more vertical storage space. The bottom “shelf” is actually the bottom of the freezer.
The office staff uses the freezer primarily for storing frozen foods such as the Lean Cuisine, Smart Ones or Weight Watcher dinners. If a bin is placed on the bottom shelf to hold ice cubes, it takes up much of the freezer space. We leave the ice cubes in the trays and pop them out as they are needed. To give you an idea of how large the bottom area of the freezer is, we can stack about 28 Lean Cuisine and Smart Ones boxes on the bottom shelf with some room leftover. The top wire shelf can hold about 10 Lean Cuisine boxes and two ice cube trays.
So far we have not had to defrost the freezer. It’s frost free, which pleases our maintenance person!
The Doors
The refrigerator and freezer doors are easy to open. If the doors are opened, closed and opened again ... a slight suction offers resistance so that the doors need an extra tug to open. The refrigerator/freezer doors are hinged on the right side so that the handles are on the left side of the door. The handles are large, easy to grasp and comfortable in the hand.
Temperature Controls
The refrigerator temperature control is located inside the fridge at the top, center front. It’s a very basic system. A dial has numbers 0 - 9 with the number 9 being the coldest setting. If the dial is set at the number 0 (zero), this stops the cooling in both the refrigerator and freezer but does not turn off the appliance. Our refrigerator is set at number 5, the recommended setting, and keeps everything cool. I have noticed that my bottle of Ken’s Red Wine Vinegar and Olive Oil salad dressing separates at this temperature (it congeals into an unpleasant milky-rose color and looks quite unappetizing) -- the other salad dressings are fine.
In case you are wondering how the light turns off in the refrigerator (I just know you are asking this question!) ... In the center of the temperature control panel is a rocker switch that presses inward when the fridge door closes. This turns off the light. When the light is on, everything in the refrigerator is well illuminated. Also, the light bulb is easy to reach as it rests at the top of the fridge just behind the control panel.
And the fridge is quiet. The coffee maker and water cooler generate more noise than this refrigerator.
Purchasing Decision & Delivery
The person in charge of maintaining the kitchens requested the new refrigerator from the powers-that-be. She shopped the sales and found her bargain at Sears for around $450.00. Sears charged an additional $45.00 to deliver the fridge, and the delivery men carted the ancient refrigerator away for $10.00. The men who brought the new refrigerator were friendly and quick with delivery and removal.
Cleaning the Appliance
The exterior of our refrigerator is a bisque color with a textured finish. Already someone who had been in the warehouse smeared a grimy hand across the front of the fridge. I grabbed a clean sponge and with a bit of water and mild liquid dishwashing soap, easily cleaned the mess. I didn’t even have to scrub hard. Other than the one grimy hand streak, this fridge has stayed remarkably clean. The handles could use a quick scrub, but that’s expected with the heavy use this refrigerator sees.
The bright white interior of the refrigerator and freezer easily shows spills, but the good news is that the surfaces are easy to clean. The manufacturer cautions not to clean the cold tempered glass shelves with hot water since the temperature differences might cause the shelf glass to crack (and don’t bump the tempered glass or it could shatter). Also, remove the glass shelf before removing the sliding drawer frame. The sliding drawers are easy to lift out and clean. To clean the inside of the refrigerator, the manufacturer recommends using a baking soda solution (a tablespoon of baking soda added to a quart of water). After cleaning with the solution, wipe the interior surfaces until they are dry. Another manufacturer tip: After cleaning the door gaskets, apply a thin layer of petroleum jelly to the gaskets on the hinge side of the door to keep the gaskets from sticking or bending out of shape. And never wash any of the appliance parts in the dishwasher.
If odors are a concern, open a box of baking soda and place it inside the refrigerator. The baking soda will absorb food smells.
Summary
The only complaint I’ve heard about this refrigerator is when salad dressing bottles drop from the shelf to the floor. We’ve affixed a magnet from our favorite pizza/sub restaurant to the side of the fridge. And there is plenty of room in the refrigerator provided that not everyone does their grocery shopping before work ... putting all their perishables in the fridge! But that’s bringing up office politics again.
I hope you have found this review useful.
Enjoy your day,
Dawn
http://dlstewart.com
Specifications
Height to top of door hinge: 67 3/8"
Width: 28"
Depth including handles: 32 3/8"
Freezer Capacity: 4.01 cu. ft.
Fresh Food Volume Capacity: 13.62 cu. ft.
Total Shelf Area Capacity: 20.3 sq. ft.
Energy: 478 kilowatt hours per year
Warranty
From date of sale, the Compressor, Evaporator, Condenser, Tubing and Refrigerant is covered for 5 years. All other parts are covered for one year. (Replacement light bulbs are not included in coverage.)
You can contact General Electric at:
General Manager, Customer Relations
GE Appliances, Appliances Park
Louisville, KY 40225
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