Why I'll Never Buy Another Samsung Appliance Again
The $2000+ mistake I won't make again. Here's why I'll Never Buy Another Samsung Appliance Again.
I've thought about writing this post once a month since LAST December. Every time my Samsung fridge starts making airplane noises I vow to never buy another Samsung appliance again.
In May 2014 we closed on our first house. A foreclosure that was move-in ready although a little less than visually appealing.
The whole house things was a done deal as far as we were concerned before the end of February that year. The rest was just lawyers, inspections, paperwork - you know all the annoying parts of buying a house.
I was over the moon though, and started making arrangements for all of the necessities right away. Topping the list were appliances.
Having lived in rentals for years and years, I'd had a few appliances over time, but never anything very nice. Some rentals include a refrigerator, others include a washer but no dryer - there's no rhyme or reason to any of it. So we'd had to purchase a washer at our last rental property, but the dryer and refrigerator belonged to our landlord.
As a food blogger I was obviously SUPER EXCITED to shop for a new fridge and had a list of qualities I wanted in my new appliance.
- stainless steel
- french doors
- easy-to-organize freezer space
- ice maker!
- water dispenser
- at least 28 cubic feet of space
So obviously we could have gone in a million different directions. There are LOTS of refrigerators that fit these specs. Not having a brand preference at this point in our refrigerator-buying consumer career, we were open to options and shopped ... and shopped and shopped. We did our due diligence with price comparisons, and went around to all the stores so that we could open all the doors and drawers and look at the features in person.
After all the deciding we chose the Samsung RF28HFEDBSR. Here's my fridge y'all.
(Photo from the Samsung Website)
Looks good, right?
And it was good. Until December 2016.
So first, lets review the dates.
The sticker in my refrigerator says that it was manufactured in January 2014. I bought it from a local appliance store here in March 2014. We had it delivered and installed in our new house in mid-May 2014.
That means that my brand new $2000 appliance lasted exactly 2 years and 7 months before quitting.
What happened?
Just before Christmas last year the heating element in my stove went out. I had a bunch of client work due and was not super excited at the prospect of appliance shopping (except I WAS a little excited?!) in an emergency right before Christmas. But the stove came with the house and it had plenty of wear and tear before we moved in.
One $11 heating element from Amazon later and that crisis was averted.
One day later my Samsung fridge started making a loud humming noise.
The next day it go louder.
And then louder.
And I got a little worried.
It seemed like the condenser was freezing up. So I think okay... well this thing is barely 2.5 years old. So let's see what's covered under warranty.
I called Samsung.
And it was a predictable nightmare. It was like that time I called Verizon and all I accomplished was wine and anger.
I was on hold for an eternity. I got transferred 22 times. There was a language barrier. And! I have 1 million things to do that are not sitting on hold because of an expensive-ass broken refrigerator that at this point was as loud as the air compressor in the garage.
When I finally got someone on the phone though, he was the nicest guy. He walked me through the steps of defrosting the fridge. He called me back to check on me. I was like OKAY! It's good! This is all good.
I thought it was fixed.
Thirty Days Later...
It started all over again.
I wasn't too worried this time though, because The Nicest Guy ever was somewhere on the other end. Except this time HE WASN'T. I never actually reached a person that gave a damn.
Someone finally scheduled a serviceperson to come out [which is SUPER FUN when you have 6 dogs at home] but that was a whole other nightmare. It was going to be weeks and weeks before a certified technician could come to where we live. I was worried the fridge was going to quit completely and it was SO LOUD THAT I COULDN'T HEAR MYSELF THINK.
So I Googled the steps to put the fridge back into maintenance mode, defrosted the fridge and...
... have been doing that once a month ever since.
Once a month it sounds like I have power tools in my kitchen. Every 30 Days I have to put the milk in the freezer and thaw out the fridge. Then I have to worry that all the food is going to spoil and why did I buy so much chicken?!
I'll Never Buy Another Samsung Appliance Again
This all happened about the same time that Samsung phones were banned from airplanes. Exploding phones, frozen condensers, and if you take a look at Consumer Affairs we are all having the same Samsung Refrigerator issues.
I'll never buy another Samsung appliance again.
Currently seeking a new brand to love - give me your recommendations!
I bought a new-to-me house last year and gritted my teeth at the Samsung fridge that was already in place. I've had a Samsung computer and phone and they both died about 3 months after the warranty ended, so I didn't think the fridge would be any better.
Imagine my surprise when I saw it had been manufactured in 2014 and it was still running! I quickly learned, though, that I have to defrost the fridge about every 3 months or else the food goes bad. There's no way to turn off the beeping noise it makes during the defrost cycle. The icemaker freezes up so frequently that I finally turned it off because it wasn't worth dealing with. The unit weighs 300+ pounds and is in an alcove in my kitchen so there's no way in the world I can get to the drain lines in the back.
I hate this fridge with the fire of a thousand white-hot suns. I used to think it worked just well enough that I can't justify replacing it, but after listening to it beep all afternoon I'm reconsidering.
"I hate this fridge with the fire of a thousand white-hot suns." Erica - I FEEL THIS.
We bought all new Samsung appliances 5 years ago and the only thing that hasn't broken is the dryer. Fridge leaked, oven heating element and fan replaced twice, dishwashers doesn't wash well and handle has broken off, microwave was serviced back to life, washing machine tests ok in machine test mode, but just won't turn on.
BUY AMERICAN MADE GOODS
AGREE!
@Jeannette Howard, who has anything that’s made in America? It may be assembled in the USA or Mexico but really! Look at the the little RU stamp on everything electrical on all appliances CHINA!
We bought all samsung appliances and they all are garbage. Our fridge freezes up and then leaks, samsung wanted more than it was worth to fix so we bought a different brand to replace. Came home from work and the oven was glowing like the sun and would not turn off until I killed the breaker and samsung said it "might" be the circuit board. I cant believe it broke ON and could have burned the house down. Our microwave was the first thing to stop working and we replaced it with the same one and then after 2 years the plate rotation thing caught on fire and had to be put out with a fire extinguisher. The washer and dryer had mutiple problems and have been replaced for a while now. I am here now because the dishwasher won't turn on and they think the problem is with the touchscreen, that is discontinued. Support is trash and they will NEVER see another dime from me!!
I would never buy Samsung appliances again. The worst I have ever seen. The microwave didn’t even last me 6 months, the fridge nothing but problems. Making noise and freezing up. As far as I’m concerns, they should stay away from making appliances.
Ugh! I am so sorry, Myrtle! But yes - I totally agree.
while I have never had a Samsung fridge we did buy a Samsung washer and dryer. The dryer had no issues but the washer did not even last through the one year warranty. Just quit woking we had a service call and after a month with no washing machine Samsung called and offered to buy back the washer taxes and all!
We took the offer and used the money to buy a new Whirlpool washer, that was five years ago and the Whirlpool remains reliable.
I feel we lucked out, that being said we will never buy another Samsung appliance!
Hi. My name's Bryan Jones. I've been repairing appliances about 7 years. I actually ran a store on main street in keokuk Iowa until this coronavirus destroyed our oreign-made inventory. I had excellent luck with OLDER appliances..I'm talking 15-50 years old. I avoid samsung and LG at all cost. Way too many problems on every single appliance. Made to throw away. Whirlpool might be the best but they made cheap generic crap too. Kenmore only puts their label on things who knows what brand you would actually get. I've seen a lot of GE and frigidaire appliances break just out of warranty. You're lucky if you get 5 years out of anything brand new. It's not the 80s and 90s anymore where things were actually made to last. Unfortunately now these oldies could be not worth fixing because they've been running 20+ years. But for the price difference I'll stick with my old stuff that actually works. Good luck!
Thanks Bryan!
Mine is about 4-5 years old & we defrost the ice maker monthly. Have had to remove the refrigerator panel twice for freezing up & it's humming now. It only helps to know you're not alone in this incredibly expensive, inconvenient & annoying problem with no avenue for justice from Samsung! They were unreachable when I tried so I turned to the internet for advice on handling these issues. So. Many. People. Affected. How do they continue to get away with ripping off the public?!
Yes! I literally just had to defrost mine again last night. It's definitely a monthly affair. SO FRUSTRATING!
I feel your pain, Samsung refridgerators and the rest of the appliances made by them are crap, had the same issue with my fridge, complete garbage
I wish you luck. I too am serching for a new fridge. I always look for the one star review to see what people are dealing with. Well with that process you won't buy anything!
I live in a apartment with limited space so my options are few. I have a Frigidaire and it lasted 16 years . They still make the exact model so I will probably buy the same one.
I think it comes down to a crap shoot. Good luck.
Thanks, Walter! I agree - I think it's a total crap shoot. Good luck to you as well!
Defrosting the evaporator. Is the first thing. Next you gave to replaced the temperature sensor on tbe evaporator
I'll never buy anything Samsung
again !!! Phone, TV, Refrigerator, Dishwasher, Stove, Radio, Heater,
NOTHING !!!
Sorry for your inconvenience. Samsung and LG's are a nightmare. That's the evaporator freezing up. Probably a air leak I've been repairing appliances for over 29 years and I refuse to work on any of there appliances. They have no tech support and I'm thinking they really don't care. I've asked several times for tech support on their appliances and they refuse to help. This leaves me inn a bind with the customer and they seem to not care. I never recommend their appliances
I work in the appliance repair industry and have been over 15 years. sound is the evaporator fan hitting ice buildup. The ice buildup is known to be an airleak in the insulation behind the refrigerator where the refrigerant lines are. There is a fix to this. It requires to remove the black "insulation" from thermistor area. replace the thermistor and zip tie it to the evap inlet.(where it was originally located). Using plumber's putty and aluminum tape (mostly anything copper, some aluminum along lower side of evap. Fan) this works 90% of the time. Otherwise it's an uncontrolled airleak that may never be found. Could be a small crack in the inner shell.
Besides what to replace it with. I recommend whirlpool, kitchenaid. I see them not nearly as much as LG or Samsung. Hope this helps
First off the )condesor )doesn't freeze up. The (evaperstor) does freeze up. second, people should do their (homework) by other means than consumer reports, (they compare the same exact appliance) with different names, one will rate high other will rate low. 3rd BUY AMERICAN yes that's right BUY AMERICAN!!!! Quit buying foreign junk. Oh I've been doing appliance repair for 39 years
Thanks for mansplaining, Dave. It wasn't actually helpful at all.
Unfortunately, Samsung and LG have both figured out that if a consumer will spend a thousand dollars on a new item like a phone every few years, they’ll do the same for necessary appliances. They intentionally design their units to malfunction and then make the appliances so difficult to diagnose and get repair parts for that you end up just buying a new appliance. They spot making parts for their appliances after five years so that at that point, no matter what, you MUST buy a new one. Many appliance repair people will not touch them because they are designed to make repairs as difficult as possible.
GE/whirlpool, on the other hand, have not caught on to this or have and opted to maintain some sense of integrity regarding their company policies. GE will use the same parts in their units for years (the drain pump on their bottom level units have been the same ones for a few years now, for example). While they still aren’t built like they used to be, they last a bit longer and when repairs come up - they are easy, inexpensive fixes.
I like the GE cafe series and KitchenAid (made by whirlpool) - both look and function well. Beyond that, I tend to think the investment in high end units like a Viking is worth it if you plan on staying in a home long term.