Sunfrost RF-12 Refrigerator Impressions
I recently Received my Sunfrost RF-12 refrigerator. I really like the refrigerator, but I can’t say much for the service I received from the altE store, altEstore.com.
I ordered the refrigerator on 8/25/09. I paid top dollar, $2,342 for the fridge, $50 crating fee, $160 Shipping, and $236 in sales tax, for a total of $2,788. They called me back immediately to confirm color, what side the door was to be hinged on, etc. So far so good.
On 8/31 I received an E-mail indicating that my refrigerator was ready to ship. On 9/1 I reconfirmed what side I wanted it hinged on and was told that the refrigerator would ship that same day. So far so good.
I was in no rush, so I didn’t call them back until 9/18 to let them know I hadn’t seen my refrigerator. That’s when they handed me off to the customer service department. It took the customer service department at altE until 9/21 to get back to me and tell me that my refrigerator would be ready to ship between 10/2 and 10/9. On 10/12 I contacted them again and was told that my refrigerator would be ready to ship in the next week or two (10/19 to 10/26). It actually arrived on 10/19.
I was never in any rush, and I don’t mind the delay, but I don’t like being lied to. Unfortunately I don’t know who was lying, Sunfrost or altE. The good news is that I now have the refrigerator and it looks and works fine.
It came very nicely crated, on a new pallet with a cardboard box over the top. The corners were reinforced, and the top had a diagonal wood brace to prevent crushing. It was well labeled and obviously well made. I know, I am gushing about a packaging job, but I paid $50 for that package, and more importantly it helps to give me a sense for their attention to detail.
The refrigerator itself is also nicely made. I immediately liked the clean and simple design approach. It appears to be a heavy plywood box with Formica and aluminum extrusions in the high wear areas. The hinge is a full length heavy duty stainless steel piano hinge. The hinge line is flush with the outside edge, in my case on the left side. The doors are so thick you need at least 4” of clearance on the left side of the hinge forward of the hinge line. In other words the doors need to stand proud of any cabinet walls in order to have room to open.
It’s very boxy with sharp corners, rather short, and wide. The short part is because it is meant to be mounted on a cabinet about 2 feet tall, which is more or less what I intend to do. I assume that the shape is a concession to efficiency. A square box has the least surface area per volume, at least for something with flat sides. The insulated walls are also very thick, adding to the width. Likewise the doors are very thick, and the walls around the freezer are even thicker. It has 8.07 cubic feet of internal space plus 2.05 cubic feet in the freezer, so it is not a really small refrigerator.
The compressor and radiator are all on top of the unit, just like they were 100 years ago when they first started making refrigerators, and for the same reason. Heat rises, and it makes no sense to put something hot under a refrigerator. The mechanics are mostly hidden behind a short fascia on the front and sides. I really like the way it is all right there, simple and accessible. It does require a minimum of 6” clear space above the refrigerator for proper airflow though.
They make them for 110V operation, but this one will automatically adapt to run on either 12V or 24V DC. The compressor is a conventional looking jelly bean shape, though on the small side, like you would expect for a tiny under the counter refrigerator. It is made by Danfoss and comes with its own manual, which I like because it has some nice technical details like fluid pressure, schematics, alternate circuits, etc.
It’s very quiet, with the loudest noise coming from the boiling of the internal coolant.
The manual for the refrigerator itself is short but complete. There isn’t much you need to know about a refrigerator that we don’t all already know from long experience. They do make a few interesting points though. For example, the compressor will automatically refuse to start for several minutes after it has been shut down to minimize the pressure difference and the starting load on the motor.
The external wiring has to be up to the task, but it only draws about 4.3 amps when the compressor is running. That's just 52 watts running flat out. It shouldn't have to run very often with all that insulation, so it really is very efficient. The thermostat actually controls the refrigerator temperature with the freezer a roughly fixed amount colder. Even that can be adjusted by changing the quantity of coolant in the system.
I powered it up with 12V and put an ice cube tray in the freezer. I was pleasantly surprised to find it frozen solid about 6 hours later. Usually, in my experience, it takes a while for a refrigerator to chill all of its internal mass before it can really chill what is inside. It was all but empty at the time, but I am still glad to see that it can make ice with authority.
I only have one small complaint about the refrigerator itself, at least thus far. The internal light is very dim. So dim that I suspect that they gave me a 24V bulb. They were supposed to give me both a 12V and 24V bulb, but I only got the one. Actually the idea of an incandescent bulb in a high efficiency refrigerator is contradictory to begin with. I will soon replace it with several LED’s that will use less current, make considerably more light, and never burn out.
They claim that this refrigerator is actually better for storing food than conventional refrigerators because it maintains a more humid internal environment that avoids wilting and freezer burn. I don’t know if it’s true, but it would not surprise me given the excellent insulation.
It may be a low volume craftsman built product, but they did a nice job. I like it.
To be continued…
In the interest of fairness I will publish here the complete response I received from the AltE store in response to the above...
Hi Ran,
I wanted to respond to your impression of our service that was reported on a recent survey that you took after you received your recent order from AltE. I also want to say thank you for taking the time to let us know about how we did since we feel that all feedback is important, and it helps us to learn and grow.
You noted that you submitted your Web order on August 25, 2009, and you were contacted shortly after that with a shipping cost to ship your refrigerator, and that you agreed to this cost. You were again contacted within a few days asking additional questions about your refrigerator, confirmation that the color should be white, and asking what side the hinge should be on. At that point it was suggested that your unit was ready to ship. Unfortunately this was incorrect information, to which we apologize for providing. The representative that communicated with you at that point was not aware that these refrigerators are built to order and from the time of order, there is a 6-8 week lead time. The staff has been updated with accurate information about this product, and I noted that the information is also available on our website for folks that order through our website.
You mentioned that you did not hear from us again, and that you contacted us again until September 18, 2009 with no response until September 21, 2009. I would like to mention that I did research your correspondence and discovered the time stamp on your incoming email was September 18, 2009 at 7:09 P.M. Unfortunately our support staff is gone for the day at that time, our normal hours end at 7 P.M. E.S.T. This being a weekend, your email sat in the inbox until Monday September 21, 2009. The lack of response at this point was not due to negligence, but the fact that our store was closed.
Our office opens at 9 A.M. E.S.T. and Gaby has provided me with an email that she sent to you at 9:32 A.M. on Monday September 21, 2009, stating that your request for an update was turned over to our Support team, and you would hear back as soon as possible. Jose has also provided me with a response to your question about when your order would ship, that was sent to you at 4:06 P.M. In his email he updated you with an approximate ship date that he had received from Sun Frost just that day. Sun-Frost representatives gave us an estimated ship date, somewhere between October 2 and 9, 2009. I also see that another correspondence was sent to you on October 12, after you requested an additional update when you still did not receive any news. We should have followed up again with Sun-Frost around the second of October for a firm date and we dropped the ball here. Had we done that you would not have had the need to email us again for another update.
I would also like to say that we provided information to you based on the information that we received from the manufacturer. The estimated ship dates are based on their production lines at the time they receive an order. Unfortunately as we all know, manufacturers do run into unplanned obstacles that occur after production begins that can delay orders. In this industry it is often more frequent then we would like, but a fact. We have learned that it is important not to overpromise information to our customers, and also that we should be following up diligently so that we can remain proactive with information to our customers, and not reactive.
Overall, it sounds like you are completely satisfied with your product, and that is good news! Sun-Frost makes a good product and we have many satisfied customers that have purchased their product.
Hopefully we will learn from this situation, and move on in an effort to do our job better, and hopefully retain a good customer!
Kind Regards,
LuAnn Mattson
Operations Manager
AltE®
Making Renewable Do-able™
www.altEstore.com