Fridges: above-stairs and below

What could be wrong with a gorgeous new fridge like this?

Nothing that a reconditioned second fridge can't fix. John on Saturday, after wrestling our latest addition into the basement.

Everybody likes my new fridge except me. Ever since I got it about a year ago, design-minded visitors have applauded its sleek and gleaming design, its chic French doors and bottom freezer, and how neatly it fits into an awkward corner by the passageway into the dining room.

The old fridge it replaced never drew wows. Big, white and bulky, it pushed rudely into the passageway, blocking it completely when the fridge door was open. I never thought much about it until it died and we began searching for a replacement, preferably one that fit the space better.

Things had changed in the fridge world, I learned. A fridge might look perfectly adequate on the outside, but inside, the addition of extra insulation had chopped precious inches from every side and every shelf. “It’s a play fridge,” I said, when I got my first glance at one that would fit into our space. It was a fridge for nibblers, for eaters-out, for non-cooks; I couldn’t imagine it handling a week’s worth of real groceries.

I tried to be reasonable. After all, there’s only two of us and a cat (who, however, requires a whole shelf of his own). I shopped more often, bought less, and kept fridge space in mind when tempted to double or triple recipes. When Christmas dinner loomed and there was no cold space for vegetables, I stored them in a camping cooler. But I never – as John will attest -- stopped complaining.

On Saturday we went to McIver’s, a longtime Vancouver company that sells new and reconditioned appliances. We left with a second fridge wrestled into the back of the pickup truck. Half the price of a new fridge and with a few dents in its plain white hide, it will be a “below-stairs” fridge, keeping company with the washer and dryer. From now on, I will bask in the reflected glory of my stylish “above-stairs” fridge. And next Christmas, I won’t have to use the cooler.

We had help at the store in getting this fridge into the truck, but I was a bit worried about what would happen when we got home. John, who has manoeuvred go-karts and motorcycles all his life, had a dolly and a plan.

We scooted it off the end of the truck, and  lowered it -- slowly -- to the ground and onto the dolly. Then it was through the back gate, down this path, and into the basement.

This was the tricky part. The boxwood hedge on one side and rocks on the other didn't leave much space for a fridge.

Two boards served as a ramp to get the fridge down a couple of stairs and into the basement.

Whew! Home at last. The fridge in its new spot, with the dolly that got it there in the foreground.

I look forward to a fridge with a top freezer again. 

The bottom freezer in my upstairs fridge is always a jumble. How do you keep anything organized when you're tossing things in on top of each other?

The interior of the new fridge. Very basic. And usable.

The final touch: John makes sure everything is level. The fridge has to sit for a day before being turned on.