2 fridges, same problem
Submitted by DLL1 -
6/24/2026
I bought the GE Energy Star 27.0 (GNE27JYMFS) from Costco. At delivery it was factory-set at 0*/37* and I was told that I could start putting food in right away, but to allow 24 hours before adjusting temps. After more than 24 hours, my digital thermometer read 24*/51* -- well over the set temp. I reset the hi/lo on my thermometer and waited another 24 hours, it got down to 14*/48*, and the lowest fresh food temp was 44* -- not safe for food storage (FDA says below 40*). I then adjusted both fridge and freezer to their lowest possible settings, -6*/34*, and gave it another 24 hours. The freezer eventually got plenty cold, holding in a -6* to +6* range. The fresh-food compartment never got below 39* (barely food-safe), and ranged up to 44* (not food-safe). I called Costco and got the fridge replaced. The second unit had the same problem, but not as severe. It ended up taking 8 days, but I finally got the fresh-food compartment down to a range of 35* to 38* when set at 34*, and I decided to settle for that. BTW, I added two more digital thermometer units, and all 3 agreed on the temp, so it's not that my thermometer is inaccurate. I think the manufacturer got a batch of inaccurate thermostats, and both my fridges were part of the same manufacturing run.
I chose this particular fridge because it is same style as several I have had in the past and like -- french door, bottom freezer, icemaker, water inside (not thru door). This is the least-nice of all four. The adjustability of the shelves & door bins is very limited, the freezer drawer easily jams and won't close. (This happened while I was waiting for Costco to come pick up the first unit, and I had to just leave it open until they arrived. Before they took it out, I asked them to show me how to fix it in case it happened again to the new one, and it took them several minutes working with it before they finally just slammed it so hard I thought it would break or put a hole in my wall.) The ice-maker shut-off switch is kind of difficult to reach and can't easily read which way is on vs off, but it does make lots of ice fast. The water dispenser tube on the first fridge was installed crooked so that instead of curving out, it curved in toward the fridge wall and pressed against it, so that it was impossible to fit a glass behind it -- water would just run down the side of the fridge. I had to use a hair dryer to heat the plastic and bend it the other direction so that I could use the dispenser (the second fridge did not have that problem). The LED lights are nice.
Except, obviously, for the faulty thermostats and inoperable water dispenser, it's not a terrible fridge -- it's just meh. Now that I got the temp down to hold at a food-safe temperature (which still shouldn't have taken 8 days!) and I have a functional water dispenser, I will be satisfied with this fridge as long as it keeps working for a good long time -- but that's not something I can predict. The fridge I had to replace was only 6 years old. Fridges should not be considered "disposable," they should last way longer than that. I can only hope that this one does.
Originally posted on www.ge.com
No, I do not recommend this product
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