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Frank Rodriguez in San Francisco says he has been dealing with a difficult LG fridge since 2021. “This one cost me $2,000 and it’s been a nightmare,” he said. He says it’s not freezing well. Techs have repeatedly tried to fix it, but haven’t. Frank says he’s asked for a replacement or a refund. But that hasn’t happened. *snip* LG says it put an arbitration notice on the box. It’s now asking a federal judge to require individual fridge owners to move their case to arbitration -- in private. But owners we interviewed say they never saw the box because...

The Biden administration’s War on Modernity is death by a thousand regulations. It’s no secret that the Biden admin wants to ditch gas stoves as well as impose harsh regulations on washing machines, dishwashers, water heaters, refrigerators, freezers, air conditioners, and anything else they can think of under the guise of “saving the planet” from climate change. These regulations make things more expensive and people either shell out more of their hard-earned dollars for a basic necessity or do without because the appliance has been priced out of reach. It’s also a direct attack on the freedom of the consumer...

At times of peak demand for electricity, do you want your refrigerator to run at the discretion of the power company? The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has revised its Energy Star energy-efficiency requirements for residential refrigerators, and it is encouraging the inclusion of “connected” features that respond to utility signals to curb their energy consumption. The EPA announced the new requirements on June 27. Included is the optional “smart-grid” connection for customers to electronically connect their refrigerator or freezer with a utility provider. …

North Korea's Olympic athletes are thrilling their countrymen with surprising success in winning medals and they are attributing their success to their Dear Leader Kim Jong Un. But others, including former North Korean athletes who have defected, suggest the success of the country's small contingent of athletes at the games may be the result of a policy of training them from a very young age at specialized schools, backed up by rewards like cars and refrigerators for winners and the threat of labor camps for losers. North Korea ranks 14th in the overall medal count, but fifth in terms of...

Will this fall's federal rebate do for home appliances and heating and cooling systems what the Car Allowance Rebate System—aka cash for clunkers—has done for cars and trucks? The appliance industry certainly hopes so: Sales of dishwashers, refrigerators, and washing machines—the three appliances covered by the appliance-rebate program—have been off by some 25 percent from their peak during the last housing boom. As a part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, the Obama administration is encouraging the purchase of energy-efficient appliances through a $300 million appliance-rebate program that will soon dole out amounts that could reach $200...

A $300 million cash-for-clunkers-type federal program to boost sales of energy-efficient home appliances provides a glimmer of hope for beleaguered makers of washing machines and dishwashers, but it's probably not enough to lift companies such as Whirlpool (NYSE:WHR - News) and Electrolux out of the worst down cycle in the sector's history. Beginning late this fall, the program authorizes rebates of $50 to $200 for purchases of high-efficiency household appliances. The money is part of the broader economic stimulus bill passed earlier this year. Program details will vary by state, and the Energy Dept. has set a deadline of Oct....

Rebates for Refrigerators? Dollars for Dishwashers? Funds for Furnaces? The government's so-called "Cash for Clunkers" program has been grabbing headlines, but it's not the only federal program putting money back into consumers' pockets. A new government program is poised to help appliance manufacturers the same way "Clunkers" gave a jump start to auto manufacturers. As part of the Obama Administration's economic stimulus bill, nearly $300 million was set aside to fund a state-run rebate program for consumers purchases of Energy Star-qualified home appliances.

Another wave of subsidies are on the way, this time for the home appliance market. Trading in old home appliances will soon earn consumers up to $200 towards the purchase of high-efficiency upgrades. The program, authorized by Congress earlier this year, will be capped at $300 million taxpayer dollars, and will apply to household appliances like refrigerators, washing machines, and dishwashers, as well as furnaces and air-conditioning systems. The existing cash for clunkers auto program is on its second round of funding, and struggling U.S. automakers Ford (NYSE: F - News) and GM (OTC: MTLQQ - News) are both upping...

Refrigerator Recycling Programs Take Off http://greeninc.blogs.nytimes.com/

Programs that allow homeowners to trade in their old refrigerators and scoop up a rebate — a sort of “cash for clunkers” system for the fridge — are spreading quickly across the country. Last week, New Jersey began a statewide program that offers residents a $30 rebate by recycling eligible refrigerators or freezers. Old refrigerators and freezers in Vermont also fetch $30, under a program begun last month. Pickup is free in both states. National Grid began a similar program in June, in Rhode Island and Massachusetts. These programs target old refrigerators and freezers — the type often found in...

ABOARD USS JOHN C. STENNIS (NNS) -- Sailors from USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74), assisted a grateful community in Pearlington, Miss., in October by removing old refrigerators from the area, which had become a health hazard after Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast coastline. Stennis, homeported in Bremerton, Wash., sent 50 volunteers to the hurricane-ravaged area of southern Mississippi. The aircraft carrier is named for Senator John C. Stennis of Miss., and considers the state its adopted home. "These smaller communities receive little attention after [Hurricane] Katrina," said Rick Hines, a FEMA volunteer from the West Indianapolis, Ind., fire...

OCT 27, 2003 Chinese fridge, Made in the USA Apart from saving on transport costs, Haier's factory in the US is also an expression of Chinese nationalistic pride CAMDEN (South Carolina) - While many United States manufacturers look to China as a place to make their products with cheap labour, an odd turnabout is taking place in this small town north-east of Columbia. There, one of China's best-known companies, the Haier Group, is churning out refrigerators at a factory staffed by US workers. The decision to build in South Carolina was a step towards the company's goal of making Haier...

GALESBURG, Ill. -- More than a year remains before Maytag Corp. finally pulls the plug on its 1,600-worker refrigerator factory here. But already, economic shock waves from the planned shutdown have begun to ripple outward from this prairie town, killing the jobs of hundreds of non-Maytag workers and threatening to claim as many as 2,000 more, including nurses, postal workers, mechanics and schoolteachers whose work has no connection with the appliance maker. For decades, growth-minded rural towns have vied to attract manufacturers by offering tax breaks and other incentives. The expansion strategy is based on what economists call the "multiplier...