Columnist Muriel Stevens: A Monday frozen in time

Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2002 | 8:19 a.m.

Muriel Stevens' dining column appears Fridays. Her shopping and travel columns appear Wednesday. Reach her at (702) 259-4080 or muriel@lasvegassun.com.

Songs have been written about blue Mondays; my dear departed mother, who lived by her superstitious beliefs, warned me about everything bad always happening on a Monday.

She also cautioned me not to walk under ladders, not to open an umbrella in the house, not to put a hat on a bed and never to cross the path of a black cat. Doing any of these things, she assured me, would bring bad luck.

When still a small child I tried to prove how silly her superstitions were by constantly tempting the fates -- always when I was with her, of course.

Monday morning when I opened the freezer of my fancy Amana refrigerator to get some ice for my daily protein drink, I could sense her presence when I discovered the ice melted and the temperature in both the freezer and refrigerator was at 60 degrees. It was the Monday she had warned me about -- and more!

By the time I'd discarded the abundant contents, the realization hit that I had to find someone to fix it ASAP.

The first person who responded to my emergency call was not an authorized Amana service representative, but he was available. He informed me it was the compressor, the dreaded word I didn't want to hear.

The amount to fix it was about half the price of a new fridge. The price for the service call was $50. My next call was to the company that had sold me the appliance. The representatives were most helpful and gave me the date of purchase, model and serial number and all the information needed when I called Amana.

Of course, the five-year warranty on the compressor had recently expired.

From there, things got worse.

Calling the 800 number and having to determine from the litany of options which one I needed was maddening. When I finally reached a rep who could help and told him my tale of woe we were disconnected. When I called back at least I knew which buttons to push to get help.

A new rep popped up my telephone number and was able to pick up from there. But (there's always a but) I had to wait to be connected to the service appointment person who turned out to be in Iowa!

It immediately became obvious that I was not going to have a refrigerator fixed this week. First she had to send someone to confirm that it was the compressor. Then she had to order the parts.

"Don't you have the parts?" I asked.

"No we have to order them."

How strange that the company service department did not stock parts.

"Don't you have Las Vegas businesses authorized to do your work? They could probably come sooner. Would they have access to parts locally?" I asked.

"Yes, we do," was the reply.

Of the two mentioned, one was a company I knew and trusted, Brownie's Appliance Service. The rep said she would wait before canceling my appointment just in case they couldn't come.

Brownie's answered my plea for help pronto and a service person arrived about noon. It was from this person that I learned that Amana had sold its company to Maytag and in his opinion no longer kept the standards of the original company.

It became my opinion, too, after seeing the back of the unit when it was pulled out and I was able to see the flimsy construction. Can't blame Maytag for that.

My unit, supposedly, was the last made by Amana and had experienced many problems. I'd experienced some of them, and they were always easily corrected, but I did think that the repair rate was excessive.

No wonder Amana sold the once-wonderful company. Like so many other proud old firms, Amana was losing its edge.

Having the unit repaired was something I'd considered after Amana offered a 50-percent cost reduction on the parts and labor. When I related this to the local service person he was astonished. The quote I'd received was an impossible one.

My home is in a high rise. The logistics of installing a new compressor and fan and anything else that was needed would require three times the amount quoted. The local company was adamant.

How could anyone bid to replace a compressor without seeing the site? For this info I paid $68. I had now spent $118 to learn that I should buy a new refrigerator and that it should not be another Amana.

It was a lesson worth learning. The Amana was purchased for a number of reasons. It was the first and only refrigerator at the time that gave the illusion of being built in, extending just a few inches beyond the kitchen cabinets.

The freezer was on the bottom, not on the top as most are. This was a feature I really appreciated. Refrigerator freezers belong on the bottom since they are an adjunct to a fridge and are opened less often.

Many upscale companies, such as SubZero, have freezers on the bottom. I know better than to buy the first release of an appliance, small or large. The second take usually solves any problems consumers have complained about to the company, and many companies continue to improve their products.

So why didn't I wait? Because I was redoing my kitchen and needed a refrigerator and Amana was a brand that had served me well in the past. Regardless of the brand, very few major appliances are made to last the 20 to 30 years that once was the norm.

My stylish and costly Amana lasted less than six years.