My clients often ask me if Sub Zero refrigerators are worth it. My answer is always the same, maybe. Let me explain …
If you are talking about longevity, overall quality, and food preservation, my answer is always absolute! And if the price fits your budget, it’s a no-brainer to me. I had one a few years ago and I can tell you that my strawberries lasted up to two weeks (which was amazing considering my experience in the produce department!); cheese left on a plate (as an experiment) did not mold or crust after one month; and an open ice cream container was still fresh after discovering it more than a month and a half later.
Sub Zero claims that a family can save up to $ 25 a week in food waste due to the dual refrigeration system. I always thought it was an exaggerated claim until I had one and figured I was saving roughly $ 10 a week as a single. If you are a Costco shopper and like to buy things like the romaine multipack and find that you can’t get past two heads before they go bad, the wetter compartment Sub Zero provides will give you more time to finish. the lettuce package.
A big advantage of having a dual cooling system like the one Sub Zero has is longevity. The average life of a refrigerator today is approximately 10.5 years. The average life cycle of Sub Zero is 17 years. (Weather has a contributing factor. In the Pacific Northwest, where it’s colder than the southern US, refrigerators don’t have to work as hard due to a lower average temperature. It’s not uncommon to find Sub coolers. Zero that last more than 20 years here.) The reason for the longer life is largely due to having two compressors. One cools the refrigerator while the other cools the freezer. Most other refrigerators have a single compressor that runs most of the time. It doesn’t take much imagination to see that the dual system lasts longer.
The overall quality is great because these refrigerators are still largely made by hand and in the US They are a family business and take pride in their product.
So I hear you say, “Why does Consumer Reports show a higher repair rate?” Consumer Reports displays the service history of products under warranty. This is a bit of a disadvantage for companies with a generous warranty like Sub Zero. Most companies offer a 1-year parts and labor warranty with up to 5 years for parts. Sub Zero offers the strongest warranty in the industry – 2 full years for parts and labor and up to 12 years for the sealed system. The other thing that CR doesn’t tell you is that a lot of the service calls have to do with improper installation (water / ice machine not working because the installer didn’t turn on the water valve, etc.) or even something so simple as a broken ice machine. Ice makers are the Achilles cure of the appliance world. As good as Sub Zero is, they use ice machines made by Whirlpool. There are not many ice machine manufacturers to choose from in the industry.
If you have a large family and you are at the grocery store several times a week, you don’t plan on being at home for more than 7 years, or if you are like a disguise of mine who while writing his check for his Sub Zero proclaimed, “$ 8000.00 only to keep my beer cold, “you might do just as well with just under $ 2,000, depending on your kitchen layout. However, if you are on the budget, I highly recommend purchasing a Sub Zero.
