My wife and I were watching “Home Free” via Hulu last evening.  The HGTV show was hosted by Mike Holmes and Tim Tebow.  The appliances given to the home winners were branded “Haier”.  I never heard of this brand.  So, I googled it.  What an eye opener (for me).  Haier is a Chinese manufacturer.  More than 80% of Chinese export of consumer durables comes from Haier.  In June 2016, Haier purchased GE Appliance division based in Louisville, KY. 

 

I purchased a new GE free standing stove in 2017 and thought I had purchased a stove which was from a USA company.  The tag says it was assembled in USA.  I guess I should not assume.  It appears that many appliances and HVAC equipment are owned or mfg by an Asian company. 

 

The GE stove replaced a Samsung stove which did not work from the get-go.  We still have a Samsung refrigerator which was purchased with the Samsung stove.  The refrigerator has had numerous service calls; the ice dispenser does not work, the ice cube maker only freezes over and must be defrosted every month, and the exterior dispensary light is on 24/7.  The service man says he does not know where to start to fix the issues, but not to worry, he can not get any spare parts anyway.  At the time I purchased the Samsung appliances, I thought I would be wise, and I purchased a Bosch dishwasher.  Bosch is a Germany company.  I have had good luck with the dishwasher.  Luck??  I do not like to use the work luck, because that leaves the action to chance, but in the selection of appliances, perhaps luck is appropriate.   Danl

Your experience is the exact opposite of ours with Samsung appliances. I had quit buying GE (and Hotpoint, it's sisty ugly)many years ago because of happenings such as you describe. But with a recent kitchen remodel we did go with a Bosch dishwasher and it has been quite nice. We still have several Samsung appliance, but I may switch to the one of 2 American manufacturers I'm aware of in the future. One of them would be Whirlpool (which an enormous plant in a neighboring city) or for washer/dryers, Speedqueen. But it's getting extremely hard to find anything made in N.A., let alone the US. I should say, there are probably some extremely high end stuff still made in the US, but it's out of my reach. (Sub Zero, Viking, etc.)

Edited January 29, 20206 yr by Fred W. Hargis Jr

1 hour ago, Danl said:

The refrigerator has had numerous service calls; the ice dispenser does not work, the ice cube maker only freezes over and must be defrosted every month, and the exterior dispensary light is on 24/7.  The service man says he does not know where to start to fix the issues, but not to worry, he can not get any spare parts anyway.

We have a 3 yo Samsung French door that stopped cooling the refrig section even though the freezer was working fine.  After a search, I found a Samsung blog with numerous people sharing their own horror stories. Eventually I found a you tube vid showing a guy fixing our exact problem on the exact fridge!

Apparently, Samsung shortened the defrost cycle to meet energy star standards, which led to an ice blockage in the fridge area where cool air came from the freezer, and plugged the drain line.  

But the no parts/no service seems to be the norm.  I also heard Samsung delays payment to repair people, so the no parts thing may be their excuse.

I'm thinking Whirlpool/Maytag may be the way to go next time around.

Good luck! 

Jim

We have a local furniture store that sell appliances.  Buy it there and they come and install it and remove the old one.  If it breaks down call them and they repair it.  They service what they sell.  Doesn't get any better than that. 

Edited January 29, 20206 yr by HandyDan

We had a Maytag washing machine for 20 years. I did the repairs myself. Finally, the gear mechanism went belly up, so I researched all the brands thoroughly and found that Whirlpool ranks very near the top and would be good for us. Its a great machine, much quieter and smoother than the old machine. Our dishwasher, Hubby, made in America, has lasted for 45 years and never breaks down. Gets a little cranky sometimes. 

hat

Edited January 30, 20206 yr by hatuffej

7 hours ago, hatuffej said:

 Its a great machine, much quieter and smoother than the old machine. Our dishwasher, Hubby, made in America, has lasted for 45 years and never breaks down. 

hat

Just wait, the day is coming...breakdowns, pops, squeaks, the whole nine yards.

I have been seeing the Haier brand for a few years now.  Had no idea though that they made most all of the Chinese stuff.

We just bought a GE appliance package from Big Blue, the guy that sold it to us did say that while GE was now Chinese owned the appliances are still made in USA.  Probably not for long...

 

And hat, I can attest to what Fred said - my old Armstrong dishwasher is definitely having issues!  Hope the wife don't discard it for a newer sleeker model...