Rating: 8.6 / 10 (Excellent)
25 Customer Reviews - see all comments
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Big Chill is a family company that manufactures and sells home appliances. The company offers innovative products in a range of styles and designs in three lines of appliances: Retro, Pro, and Classic. The Retro features fun colors and big styles, the Pro line contains appliances with a more contemporary design, and the Classic Line was inspired by the industrial movement which includes velvety colors and distinct finishes. The company designs, assembles and ships their products from Reading, Pennsylvania.

How is Big Chill rated?

Breakdown

0.0/5
Quality
0.0/5
Price
0.0/5
Warranty
0.0/5
Features & Types

Overall Rating: 4.3 / 5 (Excellent)

The Original Fridge by Big Chill combines the iconic look of a 50s-style vintage refrigerator with the amenities of contemporary appliances. This specific unit offers a classic pivoting handle and stamped metal body, just like they used to make them. Its interior is a spacious 20.9 cu ft. that includes frostless temperature management and a durable design that resists chips and dents. Overall, the Original Fridge will add retro style to any kitchen decor.

Big Chill Functionality

Functionality - 4.2 / 5

Big Chill's Original Fridge comes with several features such as a two half-width clear crispers, gallon door storage, temperature management system, and three easy-clean spill-proof glass shelves. This unit also has optional Ice Maker and an available left-hand hinge.

Energy

  • Energy Star

Big Chill Appearance

Appearance - 4.8 / 5

The Original Fridge is all about appearance. This unit blends a vintage vibe with modern performance and includes a stamped metal body, chrome trim, and a pivoting handle. Also, customers can select this Energy Star efficient fridge in one of nine standard colors curated for era-inspired authenticity or create their own look with over 200 custom color options.

Dimensions

Width
33 1/8 inches
Height to Top of Case
68 1/2 inches
Cubic Feet Capacity
20.5

Look

Colors
Black
White

Big Chill Reputation

Reputation - 4.5 / 5

Part of Big Chill's Retro collection, the Original Fridge is the company's most popular design. The company's style appeals to the 1950s era and is designed, assembled, and shipped from Boulder, Colorado. Big Chill offers a 1-year warranty on parts and labor. Overall, The Original Fridge may be just what you need to transform your kitchen into a 50s diner. Bear in mind that high-style comes with a high-cost. Contact Big Chill or visit their website to learn about their available financing options.

Brand Reliability

Big Chill was founded by Orion Creamer and his uncle Thom Vernon in 2001 and made a splash with its brightly colored, retro-styled fridges with modern amenities. Since then the Boulder, Colorado company has expanded its product offering to include refrigerators, fridges, dishwashers, microwaves, stoves, hoods and wall ovens, available in more than 200 colors, as well as custom colors. In addition to retro, mid-century-styled appliances, Big Chill also manufactures contemporary-styled Pro appliances that blend modern design, bold colors and serious performance.

Reviews

BBB Rating
A
Date Collected
2018-06-18

Warranty or Guarantee

Our Big Chill fridges, stoves, hoods, wall ovens and microwaves have a one year warranty on parts and labor. Our Dishwasher warranty is one year on parts and labor, limited lifetime warranty on the stainless steel tub and inner door.

Company Profile

Full Name
Big Chill Original Fridge Refrigerators
Company Website
Headquarters
PO Box 892, Boulder, CO, 80306

Our Partner

Best Aesthetic: Big Chill Original Fridge

  • Era-inspired design
  • 20.6 cubic foot capacity
  • Choose from 200 + unique colors
  • Financing options
  • Energy Star ® qualified 

Latest Big Chill Reviews

arsenaultj999

10/5/2023
Big Chill refrigerators are not Energy Star - I asked, recently, So you are wrong about that statement. They appear to be about average these days with respect to energy usage.


Lynne D

8/16/2023
I would never recommend Big Chill appliances. I ordered the "Classic" range, hood/fan, dishwasher and fridge. They sent the wrong size range. Months later, the glass in the oven door fell inside the door, it took months for someone to come and fix it. The dishwasher came with a rough finish, that can't be wiped clean. The freezer door gasket is not sealing properly, so there is ice building up. I was told the warrantee is expired. I bought all these appliances 5 years ago. What a waste of huge money.


adamsfhudson

7/11/2023
I ordered a Big Chill refrigerator for a recent remodel. Waited months for its arrival and paid professionals to install. Almost immediately, it began to leak inside, creating a skim of ice in the freezer and pooling water in the lower portion. I contacted Big Chill who sent a service tech who simply said it was a poor design, taken from a cheaper Whirlpool who had since quit using this design as a result. Big Chill has refused to help any more, claiming that we must "follow the process" of their service prior to refund or replacement. This has now been going on for 6 months. This is the sorriest Customer Service experience I've received, possibly ever, especially on a premium-priced... Read More


Sandra W

4/25/2023
I agree. HORRIBLE customer service. Polite but always I will call you back then they never do. I have purchased 4 appliances from them. The fourth was obviously damaged while it was being packaged at Big Chill. The broken part was embedded in the wrapping. It's been over a year and still not fixed. . . still getting the I will call you back. They did send a part - the wrong part - and sent someone out to fix - who did not fix. Unfortunate because I really like the products.


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john v

8/8/2022
we purchased a retro refrigerator 1/2020......about 5/2022 the ice maker was not producing ice as much as it had been ....but then after a few months it started to produce more ice ......but then the ice was melting in the ice bin and the fridge wasnt as cold as it used to be.....we called big chill for name of repair services,,,we called number given no response back.....we had a very reputable appliance service come today 8/8/2022 ...he stated there was a leak on the evaporator took a picture showing all the ice forming ....cost would be $1500 and up to repair....so our warranty was up 1/2022 and customer service at big chill said nothing they could do warranty up.....so a refrigerator... Read More


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Spencer O

7/7/2022
Personally, I absolutely despise this company. Wow, what a terrible company. Just spoke with an Inside Sales Representative and was told that we probably got misinformation from the Director of Operations. Apparently all of the specific details that the Director of Operations provided us was all a lie. I'm at a loss for words. Oh, and the refrigerator is delayed again. It's a possibility that we might received what we ordered back in January.


lewbraggpepper

6/22/2022
We purchased a beautiful, yellow Big Chill refrigerator in 2020. It arrived October 2020. This refrigerator was a discounted replacement for one we had paid full price (reference BBB complaint ID 148055610).The current refrigerator had a closed-system failure just like the original. We noted the problem on June 4, 2022 after returning from a month-long vacation. We had unplugged/opened the doors of the unit before leaving. Their website states: "....two year warranty on parts and labor." The 'Read Warranty' button is the only place that mentions a moving disclaimer, which is void if the unit is moved from the original delivery location. We moved on April 19, 2021 from the original address... Read More


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Spencer O

6/17/2022
Garbage company. Horrible customer service. Delays delays delays delays. Pay in advance for delays delays delays.


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Spencer O

6/17/2022
Terrible company. Not worth the wait. Don't waste your time, money, and energy on this company. I'm signing up for Consumer's Advocate to write this review and to save you all the trouble. This has been an awful experience, which makes it worth writing a half-star review.


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Charles W

5/23/2022
Worst purchase experience ever. I purchased one of their refrigerators over 7 months ago. It has yet to be delivered. You can't actually get someone on the phone you can only email with them. They have made many promises, but unable to keep any. I literally have no idea when or if I will ever receive what I ordered. The bottom line is this...the product might look great...but everything else isn't. Worse customer service experience ever.


adamsfhudson

5/1/2022
What a complete sham. The $3000 Big Chill refrigerator "looks" all retro and fun, yet it is a $600 now-discontinued Whirlpool ET1FTEXSQ refrigerator under its applied makeup. Plus it took us 5 months to actually get this ridiculous masquerade delivered, whereby Big Chill had overlooked that we'd paid for installation and conveniently forgot that part. This necessitated an additional hire that took 10 days to actually schedule. The stupid thing also has the screw-in feet handily located inside a crisping drawer (!) that you cannot access until the unit is installed. In the meantime, the feet studs will gouge your stairs, floors, and anything that comes in contact. Please be forewarned.... Read More


saidiedee

4/19/2022
Buyer Beware! Horrible customer service. They held my money hostage after their shipping company failed to deliver my refrigerator or contact me. We had a scheduled appointment, "white glove service" and they were a no show. I spent an entire day trying to get answers. Neither Big Chill nor shipping company they worked with would respond. Eventually got answers after contacting shipping company corporate office (phone number not provided, I had to sleuth to get it). I was told the refrigerator was damaged and had to be replaced. I had already waited 5 months! Multiple delays. I told Big Chill that I didn't want it replaced and could not wait another 5 months for a refrigerator. This... Read More


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Megan W

10/27/2021
BUYER BEWARE!!! I ordered the Big Chill gas range (manufactured by Blue Star Cooking), in November of 2016 & it was delivered in February of 2017. Before I'd had it a year, Big Chill issued a recall on the convection fan toggle switch. I was informed that service was backlogged with making these repairs & "not to use it" until they could get to my recall. Informed me that there was an electrical issue with the switch and it was causing fires. Shortly thereafter, I noticed that the oven light toggle switch was causing my GFI to trip, when the oven was plugged in & I would turn it on. I contacted them regarding this matter, asking if it could be repaired when they came to... Read More


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Dorothy J

7/6/2021
Ive had nothing but problems with the oven. Customer service is also a major problem. Save yourself trouble, find a different product, different company!


Cindy S

7/1/2021
Our refrigerator quit working after 2 years of ownership. The oven doesn’t seem to work properly either. I have just started down the rabbit hole of getting it repaired, but the vast number of bad reviews I have read are not encouraging me that this going to be a good experience.


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Samantha F

4/21/2021
DO NOT ORDER FROM BIG CHILL UNLESS YOU DON'T MIND WAITING FOUR MONTHS TO RECEIVE YOUR PURCHASE. I order the classic refrigerator from Big Chill in April 2021 and they do not project that I will receive my refrigerator until almost August 2021 (July 26th to be exact), but it is not promised by he 26th of July either. They have a poor business model. Obviously they cannot accommodate existing orders because they have a production wait list. You would think that they are building a city rather than an appliance by their production time. I would never buy another appliance from them again, and I hear they have terrible customer service, repair service, and the freezer/icemaker has frost and... Read More


Sheila W

2/16/2021
We purchased a full size fridge and a gas range. The fridge has never cooler correctly... can't figure out why half the time everything is soft in the freezer. It has nothing to do with the way we pack it as we have tried to leave room for the air vents etc. The range: It oven broke in the first year and it had to have very expensive parts replaced... now a year after that, it is doing the same exact thing: Only heating to temperature about half the time I turn it on. They are very pretty - but poorly made. Since Big Chill only has a 1 yr warranty, we are out of luck. Replacing this year with appliance we can rely on.


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Christy

1/28/2021
If it were just the refrigerator I were reviewing I would give it 5 stars. But the customer service of this company, as of now, I give 1 star. I love the fridge, but there is a part that came broken on it - the fridge still works thankfully. I paid over $5000 for the fridge, and it is supposed to have a 2 year warranty. I bought the fridge directly from Big Chill. I have tried for over 3 months to get the part fixed on the fridge - I have sent many emails to James, the customer service contact, and I have called and emailed the sales department. James said another company, Blue Star, does the warranty repair. After 8 calls to Blue Star, they said they are not going to be able to find... Read More


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Jill

12/4/2020
We purchased the Original Fridge and it is absolute garbage. It is a $800 base model Whirlpool with a poorly made painted metal casing slapped around it. You can even see the white Whirlpool fridge sticking out of the bottom of the blue casing. I immediately contacted the company and told the I wanted to return it per their return policy stated on their website. After sending in photos of the fridge to start returns processing, no one in the company is answering my calls or emails. I have had to dispute the charge with my credit card company and file a formal complaint with the BBB. DO NOT BUY FROM THEM!!!!


Alisa G

8/7/2020
Beautiful outside, poor quality inside and for a 4000.00 refrigerator, they only have a 0ne year warranty, .


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Stephanie G

5/22/2020
Retro Studio fridge delivered in January 2018...fridge stopped cooling in March 2020. With options like ice maker and Beach Cruiser paint and delivery, it cost over $4000. Called/emailed numerous times with Candice, who was no help. Hired own refrigeration person, who said it is leaking freon....could cost thousands to find leak and repair. A four thousand three hundered dollar refrigerator should last longer than 2 years and 2 months! Look elsewhere.


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Marian

11/11/2019
I have had to replace the gasket as the freezer door doesn't seal properly. Love the looks, hate the cheap Westinghouse frefrigerator beneath the shell.


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Gloria

6/23/2019
This company does not stand behind its products. We have a Big Chill refrigerator at our lake home. It gets limited use, and was purchased in April, 2015. It stopped 'chilling.' We contacted the company for service assistance four days ago and have not received any response from them. So much for spending $3,200 on a 'cool, hip' refrigerator...


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Pamela K

6/6/2019
I have to agree with the previous comment. I had the same problem with the Big Chill refrigerator. Once you buy the product you are basically on your own for repair. The seal dies nit work efficiently. The hinge on door rubs and makes a scratching noise. Their answer to the problem is if you dont want it send it back. My cabinets and granite were custom for the refrigerator and stove. I cannot find other appliances to fit the openings. Therefore I am stuck with these appliances. The operations manager is a very nasty individual. Asked to speak to her superior only to be ignored. My advice is buyer beware!!!


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Bob

11/6/2018
The Big Chill looks great in my vintage style kitchen, but the door has never sealed properly, which makes the refrigerator inefficient. I also notice that the paint on the door is corroding even though my kitchen is climate controlled year round. For the premium price I paid, I expected an appliance that would stand the test of time. The Big Chill has not. Big Chills service department offered no resolution.