Tag Archives: fridge

Kitchen Upgrade

The project to renovate and upgrade my kitchen came about from a broken dishwasher which was taken out and converted into a useful cabinet (see process and photos here). I thought, well if we’re going to get people to take the dishwasher away, why not replace the old stove and noisy fridge as well?

First, I went hunting for a new fridge and range. From my research, and looking at different places, I finally decided on buying them from Sears. They were the most knowledgeable, convenient, fair prices and good incentives, such as earning points on my Sears card which I later used to redeem interior decor.

Next was painting the neon green walls in the kitchen. Apparently, the previous owners thought it was a good idea to have these bright blinding green walls. I wanted to keep it simple, so I went with white. It also would match the rest of the suite which was also white.

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After painting the visible area of the wall white, I pulled out the fridge and painted the wall behind it. It was tricky since the fridge would only come out so far until it hit the dishwasher in front. I had to slip through the small opening you see above and painted in behind.

The new Fridge 18.2CF was for $679.99. It was difficult or limited to find a fridge that would fit perfectly into the space I had. Since it was an old fridge that was there previously, it didn’t allow for modern fridges which were much taller. Luckily, I found one. I was a bit worried when the delivery guys came and said, ‘I don’t think it’s going to fit.’ But viola! It was a perfect fit, even better than the old one. Goodbye old white fridge. Hello new stainless steel fridge!

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The wall behind the range was also green, so it was pulled out and painted white as well. Since the green was so vibrant, we needed to painted it over like 3 times.

Then the Range 30″ was delivered.  The range was $699.99 and the delivery cost (only one time fee even though they brought the fridge and range at different times) is $69.95

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I highly recommend getting appliances from Sears. I was really happy with the customer service when I was looking at their different appliances. Very helpful and knowledgeable. The delivery was somewhat of a hassle since they delivered the fridge and range on two different dates. Prices are good and have been pretty happy with their products.

 

BC Hydro: Fridge Buy-Back Program

So with the recent hunt for a new fridge, a staff at Sears told me about the BC Hydro’s fridge buy-back program, and thought I’d look into it. For a fridge that measures between 10-24 cubic feet and is still working, BC Hydro will pick it up, recycle it, and give you $30  for it. (only when you call will you find out that you will get the check in the mail many weeks later)

Sears, along with many other appliance sellers will charge $25 to take back your old fridge when they deliver your new fridge. So, I thought this was a good deal that you actually get paid for something you don’t need and they will take it away for free. HOWEVER! There is a catch – like with any too-good-to-be-true story. :P

When I called them, they told me that the staff can not set food in the building of the apartment. This meant that I would have to pull and push the fridge out of my suite, into the elevator, out to the lobby and somehow get it out onto the streets to the truck. I asked the building manager if there was a place that I could leave the fridge when the Sears delivery staff were here to drop off my new fridge. He said ‘no’. No fridge can be placed outside my suite. Even if I could, the fact that BC Hydro can not come right away, it would mean that the fridge be sitting there or in my living room for 5 days.

Also, they only pickup during business hours – 7:30am-4:30pm. How convenient! How are people who work 9-5  and can not get time off suppose to do this? Luckily, my office was flexible.

I did make an appointment, but once the Sears delivery staff were there, I just let them take my old fridge – and I’m really glad I did! The two built men had a tough time getting it out of my apartment! Not so much because of the weight, but because my kitchen and doorway is sooooo tiny and cramped. They ended up scratching the laminate flooring T_T….not happy about that…argh. Can I send in a complaint to Sears and get some discount? lol

After the old fridge was gone, I cancelled my pickup with BC Hydro. Buy-back program fail?

Red Door Warehouse

So, the hunt for the 3 kitchen appliance begins.

When I mentioned that I was looking for appliances for a great deal, two people mentioned Red Door, so I wanted to check it out. First of all, out of the three places I will be looking at (the other two are Richmond Whole Sale Appliances and Appliance Outlet), this one had the least information available on their website. For one, their form on their contact page doesn’t even have the submit button, so can’t send anything through there. However, they had listed their email address, so I emailed them asking some questions. However, they never replied, while Richmond Whole Sale did within a day. Appliance Outlet had some of my questions answered on their site.

It’s located 165 West 4th Ave, near the Canadian Tires and Home Depot on Cambie. It’s a bit hard to miss with a red door hanging out from the second floor.

The store is nothing fancy. More like a warehouse. Walls and roof to keep the appliances dry from the rain. The guy that was there wasn’t a good salesman. He kept telling me to go to Samsung and LG website to see what I wanted or liked, when I told him several times that I wasn’t too picky on the brand and look. I came to Red Door to get a deal.

I was limited to the size restrictions of my kitchen, so it wasn’t like I could get any cheap appliances. I did see a couple of ones that I was interested in, but they already had the sold stickers on them. But at least I kind of got an idea on the price ranges and what they carried.

The size for the fridge became a problem, since the height of my current fridge of 65″ is an old size. Apparently, all new ones are usually 67-69 or taller. The problem is that I have cabinet shelves above my fridge, so anything bigger than a 65″ would mean that the cabinets had to be altered.

Contact us by E-Mail: info@reddoorwarehouse.com
165 West 4th Ave
Hours of Operation:

  • Monday – Friday ( 9:00 am – 5:00 pm)
  • Saturday ( 9:00 am – 5:00 pm)
  • Sunday ( 12:00pm – 5:00 pm

Right afterward, we went to Home Depot for something else, but we checked out the appliance section since we were already there. We actually found one fridge that was 65′” and stainless steel. The price was also good – in the $600s.

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However, it still looked outdated, and now wondering if it’s better to lift the cabinets several inches up to put in a more modern and energy efficient fridge by forking out $300+ more.

The hunt continues!