[comfortablynumb]

Originally Posted by thoma

Went in for an LG 4 star rated 420L fridge. This is rated for 230 units of electricity a year by BEE, but the salesmen were of the opinion that it could take 1 unit per day max, and my initial observation is that it takes close to 1.5 units a day. Still way better than the 4.5 units sipped per day by the old 460L LG refrigerator.

Hi thoma, am planning to buy a LG 445 litre fridge, hence a couple of questions for you.

1. Should I get the 3 star or 4 star variant? Cost difference between the two is INR 2000.

2. After initial negotiation, LG showroom is quoting INR 47500 for the 3 star variant. Does this seem to be a fair price, or do you think there is room to negotiate more?

Cheers,
Vikram

[thoma]

Originally Posted by comfortablynumb

1. Should I get the 3 star or 4 star variant? Cost difference between the two is INR 2000.

2. After initial negotiation, LG showroom is quoting INR 47500 for the 3 star variant. Does this seem to be a fair price, or do you think there is room to negotiate more?

More stars is always better if you are concerned about power consumption, but 4 star of a previous year need not be better than 3 star of the current year. So, please check the year of manufacture/rating on the label, not the period of relevance for the rating. Another clue will be the total units consumed per year that will be displayed on the rating label, which I think will be almost constant for that fridge for any year.

I checked out 7 shops in my area and found Reliance to be absurdly high priced with older models (though I got the best offer from there on laptops) and LG showroom moderate.

[comfortablynumb]

Originally Posted by thoma

More stars is always better if you are concerned about power consumption....

Thanks a lot for your reply!

Eventually, we decided that 445 litres would be overkill for our family of 4, so bought a LG 360 litres 4 star model GL-T402JASN instead. Power consumption on the sticker says 215 units, which seems decent enough. Cost me 42k in the LG shoppe after exchanging my 14 year old Videocon double door fridge, plus 2k cashback more expected since we used a HDFC credit card for the purchase.

Cheers,
Vikram

[dgoyle]

Hello All,
I have a One Tr Hitachi Window Air conditioner (Quadricool)10 years old with rotary compressor. Purchase price ~Rs 20,000. Cooling is fine and is under regular CMC ~@2500 per annum. Room Size 11 x 12 ft. East facing wall

Question 1. Should I change and get a new one or continue till Hitachi agrees to maintain?
Question 2. If the answer to above is Yes, would an Inverter air conditioner contribute in reducing energy consumption?
Thank you for your kind indulgence.

[Aroy]

Originally Posted by dgoyle

Hello All,
I have a One Tr Hitachi Window Air conditioner (Quadricool)10 years old with rotary compressor. Purchase price ~Rs 20,000. Cooling is fine and is under regular CMC ~@2500 per annum. Room Size 11 x 12 ft. East facing wall

Question 1. Should I change and get a new one or continue till Hitachi agrees to maintain?
Question 2. If the answer to above is Yes, would an Inverter air conditioner contribute in reducing energy consumption?
Thank you for your kind indulgence.

In my opinion paying Rs.2,500/ as maintenance charges for a 10 year old window AC is quite high. I would have got it out of the AMC contract and used a neighbourhood technician service it. Once some part fails, sell it off.

The energy saving with a current generation 5 star inverter AC will be at least 40% if not more. If you can afford to, buy the latest 5 star Inverter models which can run without a stabiliser, that will not only give you peace of mind, but also save some electricity (as there is always some loss in the stabiliser).

On the whole it is a trade off between Capital Cost (getting a new AC) and running costs (Electricity bills). If your electricity bills (over the period the AC is run) are more than 30% of the cost of new AC, it makes financial sense. On the other hand if you use the AC for a couple of hours a day, for less than four months, then the electricity bills will be between 10% and 15% of the cost of new AC, in that case it makes not much financial sense.

In my case I was running a 1.5T seven year old, 5 star Hitachi Window AC for around 15 hours a day, from April beginning to end of September. With AC consuming 1.5 KW on average (2 KW peak) that is nearly 4,500 units. At Rs.8.5 that amounts to about Rs.40K per annum. My new LG Dual Inverter consumes 0.7KW (1.4KW peak) on average, so I save at least 20K per annum, which makes the purchase viable. An added advantage is that a new AC does not need an AMC for the first year another saving or 2-3K.

[Thad E Ginathom]

Small details... What is the vertical range of the flap on the LG?

Quite important for us to have one that points down, as my wife's table is near that wall, and she needs direct blast of cold air!

Our second-hand mix'n'march seems to have reached its end, and, anyway, would be very uneconomical, as per your post

[dgoyle]

Originally Posted by Aroy

In my opinion paying Rs.2,500/ as maintenance charges for a 10 year old window AC is quite high.
======An added advantage is that a new AC does not need an AMC for the first year another saving or 2-3K.

Thank you Aroy! The issue has been succulently stated and understood. Now I can do the maths to reach a conclusion.
I only have to state that the neighborhood technician(s) are unable to assist due to the PCBs. Rest they can manage. If there is a way to control the AC by use of non PCB based controls I would redo at the first opportunity.
CMC of 2500 gives peace of mind. They take care of everything - Coils, compressor, PCB based controls and three services per annum. Neighborhood mechanics attend these calls
I have come to know Godrej are offering 5 year warranty on new purchase. I am out to investigate.
Thank you for your response.

[NPV]

Anyone with Preethi Mixer grinder customer care experience ? How are guarantee/warranty claims in Bangalore ? Have a 1 year old mixer that seems to have a motor issue (burning smell).

It was bought online and came with 2 year product guarantee and 5 year motor warranty.

[Eddy]

Our four year old Samsung fridge has started overcooling. The milk & veggies develop a thin layer of ice even though the temp setting is at the second level.

What could be the issue ?

Samsung service team will be visiting us today (hopefully)

[NPV]

Originally Posted by Eddy

What could be the issue ?

Thermostat gone kaput ?

[Eddy]

Originally Posted by NPV

Thermostat gone kaput ?

Yeah, most likely.

How much does it cost approx ?

[dailydriver]

Originally Posted by Eddy

How much does it cost approx?

Not more than five hundred rupees for the thermostat. The service cost could be another few hundred bucks. I got mine (Whirlpool) replaced recently for a similar price.

[mvadg]

Originally Posted by NPV

Anyone with Preethi Mixer grinder customer care experience ? How are guarantee/warranty claims in Bangalore ? Have a 1 year old mixer that seems to have a motor issue (burning smell).

It was bought online and came with 2 year product guarantee and 5 year motor warranty.

Have one, the Preethi Ecochef; but shouldn't the protective cutout (with a red reset button at the bottom) have kicked in? Are you sure it is not some insect or other foreign material burning? Quite easy for insects to get inside to the live wires and get shorted.

Have no experience with their customer care, mixie has been running (over two years) without problems so far, touch wood!

[NPV]

Originally Posted by mvadg

but shouldn't the protective cutout (with a red reset button at the bottom) have kicked in?

Called the customer care centre and found that Kamanahalli outlet may be closer for me, so went there. Turned out to be a false alarm and the motor was fine. The bush beneath the jar had begun to get worn out, so that was replaced and all is well

For the benefit of others, Customer Care phone numbers:
Preethi Appliances Customer Care # is +91 99400 00005

Customer Care centre, Kamanahalli - +91 80 2545 2466

Customer Care centre, Sampangi Ram Nagar (near Corporation circle) - +91 80 2222 2583

[dailydriver]

Originally Posted by NPV

Preethi

Incidentally, my Preethi Blue Leaf Silver mixie turns ten this July .

Apart from the regular wear and tear items like bushes and screws, nothing major has been repaired/replaced. I was enticed by the Lifetime Free Service offered by the company then: however, it has exceeded my expectations by remaining service free for a decade!