Danby DAR195BL 1.8 cu.ft. All Refrigerator - Black
CUSTOMER REVIEW
I wanted a refrigerator that would get really cold, was black and had more room than one with a freezer which I knew I would rarely use. So, based on the good reviews I purchased this Danby DAR195BL 1.8 cu.ft. All Refrigerator - Black.
This compact fridge is very nice. I wanted to mostly use it for drinks, and some lunch stuff/snacks and quick meal items like a carton of eggs, salad dressings and cheeses/luncheon meats; maybe a loaf of bread. They went in with room to spare. The slots for soda/beer cans and my once a day 9.5 oz. bottles of iced Starbuck's Frappucino are nice, everything slid in perfectly. Plus it fits a 2-liter bottle of soda in the door or a quart of milk and a quart of orange juice. Nice 11" depth on the top 2 shelves but items can overhang by another 2", so ideal for leftovers or take-out. Only the bottom shelf is shorter, about 6.5" deep. But so far great! And when you get the temperature dial just right and figure out where to put the soda cans so they get a bit of a freeze on them, you get a heavenly cold drink on a hot day.
Although you can't tell from the pictures, the top of the fridge is not just a shiny flat metal top but instead is a scratch resistant work top that overhangs the door and has a slight depression to it. This means that if you open a can of soda and accidently knock it over the liquid won't run down the sides or into the door crevices but stays on top where you can clean it up easily.
At first I wasn't sure I would be happy with those 6 can slots in the door but soon realized that other things would fit in them too. Right now I have a package of Vienna hot dogs and an onion in the top 2, but often I use these for fresh fruit or yogurt cartons. Just make sure to keep things like fruit at the top if you have the fridge temperature set low or they may freeze.
The AC plug is a "flat to the wall" type so the cord(measuring 6 feet 3 inches) runs against the wall instead of sticking straight out. This means you can push the fridge quite close to a wall. This is a small feature but one I like a lot.
The outside dimensions are approximately 20" high x 17.5" wide x 19.5" deep. The fridge has a drip pan which is about 1.25" high and doesn't rest on the floor but is securely screwed into the back of the unit about 6 inches off the ground. My unit has never leaked any water, the drip pan is always dry when I check it.
No matter where you buy the fridge it comes only in factory packaging which is not very protective. However, neither this unit (nor the replacement I ended up needing) was dented when I received it.
(*** ---> If you don't want to read about all my woes with getting a bad unit, skip down to the UPDATE section ***)
So, that's where the good part ended. It was supposed to be quiet according to most reviews. So I waited a few hours before firing it up (as was recommended) then plugged it in. To my dismay, when the compressor came on it was pretty loud. But I shrugged and just thought it needed about 24 hours to cool itself down and figured it would adjust itself. Well, that didn't happen. It sounds like a mini airplane running it's engine all night long in my bedroom(I've got it set about mid way on the dial). I can even hear it in the living room, over the sound of the television. It makes a constant humming sound at a pitch that just can't be ignored. And we have moved it to different locations/positions too, to try to get it to make less noise but to no avail. The left side also gets VERY hot while the compressor is running.
I love everything about this little fridge but the noise is driving me crazy. I've turned down the dial to a less cool setting to keep the compressor from coming on as often, but now my drinks aren't nearly as cool and refreshing. It's kind of ironic though, because I read a comment about the Emerson 1.8 Cu. Ft Compact Refrigerator (not currently available on Amazon but sold by Target) which is also supposed to be very quiet. That person said his fridge sounded like an "airplane overhead". So I'm thinking this is a quality control issue with these type of fridges or possibly cheap Chinese compressors. Maybe it's just the luck of the draw if you get a quiet or noisy one.
At any rate, I'm thinking maybe I got a defective one, because no one has complained of noise like this. I plan to call Amazon and get a replacement. I'm just hoping that I WILL actually get a quiet one. I really don't mean to discourage anyone from purchasing this unit, because I REALLY like it. But I did feel I should point out how noisy mine is, because maybe they're not making them as good as they used to or maybe they are now being manufactured by another company. Don't really know, just very, very disappointed.
UPDATE 4/3/12: Noise Problem Resolved: Contacted Amazon and asked for a replacement fridge which is great. It's VERY quiet and is warm, not hot, on the sides when the compressor is running. Did have a wobble but was an easy fix. With the dial set to 3/4 my coffee drinks are freezing cold at the bottom level in the door and the back of lower shelf. Need to do a bit more fiddling with the dial, or not. I'm definitely keeping this one!
UPDATE 5/12/12: Fridge still running great and I still love it. Holds so much stuff.
UPDATE 6/14/12: The back of the middle shelf is the coldest shelf in the fridge as it sits directly in front of the cooling element. With the temperature dial set at a little past the 3/4 mark, food can freeze on the middle shelf. Once you're past the 3/4 mark on the dial the areas with the greatest freeze potential are anything closest to the back of the middle shelf with the exception of the top shelf. The top shelf is the warmer of the 3 shelves; hot air rises physics I guess. Fridge working good and I'm still amazed at how much stuff it holds.
UPDATE 8/7/12: As I know that people look for compact dorm fridges to send their kids off to college with I will just mention that this item is also sold by Home Depot but may not be available online. $109 is a good price if you can get it for this fridge. That's about as low as it ever goes, except for one day in June, 2012 went it hit $101 on Amazon.
UPDATE 8/7/13: I've had this fridge a year and a half now and am still very happy with it.
Just to update you on the alternate Emerson 1.8 Cu. Ft Compact Refrigerator which I bought at Target at the same time, it also is still running well and is quiet. But, the fridge door was left slightly open once and the entire freezer compartment turned into a brick of ice. In the process of removing the ice the freezer door hinge broke off and can't be put back on. Also, the thin wire retaining bracket that hold things in the lower door section is too flexible and we often have problems with bottles or jars slipping under them and out onto the floor. I think it's a decent fridge as it is also quiet, plus it can often be found on sale for about $60, but it doesn't hold nearly as much despite being the same size because the freezer compartment takes up too much space. It keeps things cold enough but will not ice my beverages like the Danby does.
To those that have read that the Danby makes noise I do not believe that this is specific to this manufacturer and I advice those buying any compact fridge to make sure you know the return period(30 days with Amazon), set it up and test it DURING THIS PERIOD, and to NOT settle for one that seems too noisy for you. If it's noisy it's defective, simple as that. Let them pick it up and send you another one or two until THEY get it right or you just don't want to deal with it anymore. Best of luck!
UPDATE January 2014: The price on these units is usually at least $109, since December, 2013 they have dropped to about $96 (likely only a seasonal drop)
UPDATE 4/1/14: I've had my fridge two years now(the replacement unit) and it is still working well. It's still quiet, keeps things very cold, and hasn't developed any new problems. Very satisfied.
