Whirlpool Brand's New Side-By-Side Refrigerator Has Space for the Whole Family

Get into the Back-to-School Routine with a Little Help from the Experts

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Sep 21, 2010, 03:26 ET

BENTON HARBOR, Mich., Sept. 16 /PRNewswire/ -- From carpools to soccer practices, the back-to-school routine can be hectic. Whirlpool brand's newest side-by-side refrigerator saves consumers time and energy when it's needed most. In fact, new MicroEtch™ Spill Control shelves offer the most shelf space(1) and the largest crisper in the industry stores it all – from last night's casserole to tomorrow's school lunches.

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"We spent time with consumers to understand their needs, and capacity and energy efficiency stood out as the two greatest needs. We also wanted to provide smart solutions to remove household headaches – one of which can be messes in the refrigerator," said Carolyn Kelley, brand manager, Whirlpool brand. "As a result, we've not only developed the most energy efficient side-by-side refrigerator ever, but also one of the most intuitive and spacious side-by-sides on the market today."

Looking for that long-lost grocery item? According to Whirlpool Corporation research, in order to make room in the refrigerator, 27 percent of consumers will shove everything in and not worry about organization(2) - not ideal when making that forgotten school lunch. The newest Whirlpool side-by-side refrigerator provides 25 percent more usable shelf space(3) so consumers won't have to worry about making room for groceries. And all that space doesn't come with higher energy bills - the ENERGY STAR® qualified Resource Saver™ model uses less energy than a 60 watt light bulb(4), making it the most energy efficient side-by-side refrigerator ever. The refrigerator also features 6th Sense™ technology that uses built-in sensors to automatically adjust to return food to the desired temperature in half the time as previous Whirlpool® models without the 6th Sense™ system.

Don't cry over spilled milk. According to a 2009 Whirlpool survey conducted online on its behalf by Harris Interactive®(5), the majority of consumers generally clean their major appliances once or twice a year. Whirlpool brand can't prevent spills, but its new MicroEtch™ Spill Control shelves can help keep them clean by preventing spills from leaking, so there's no need to worry if that juice box spills before it makes it into the lunch box. The new shelves combat spills with microscopic etching around the perimeter to help prevent liquids from overflowing and leaking (as much as a full can of soda).

For more from the experts on refrigerator organization tips and other useful tools, visit the newly launched Institute of Kitchen Science website at www.instituteofkitchenscience.com, also on Facebook and Twitter.

The Whirlpool brand side-by-side refrigerator with MicroEtch™ shelf (#GSF26C4EX) has a MSRP starting at $1,399. The Resource Saver model (#GSS26C4XX) starts with a MSRP of $1,599. All are available now at retailers nationwide. For more information about the brand, visit www.whirlpool.com.

About Whirlpool Brand

Whirlpool Corporation is the world's leading manufacturer and marketer of major home appliances, with annual sales of approximately $17 billion in 2009, 67,000 employees and 67 manufacturing and technology research centers around the world. Whirlpool brand recognizes that consumers lead busy, active lives and continues to create solutions that help consumers optimize productivity and efficiency in the home. In addition to designing appliance solutions based on consumer insight, Whirlpool brand is dedicated to creating ENERGY STAR® qualified appliances like the Resource Saver™ side by side refrigerator which recently was rated #1 in its category by a leading consumer magazine. Whirlpool is one of Habitat for Humanity's largest corporate partners, donating a refrigerator and range to every new Habitat for Humanity home built in North America. For more information on Whirlpool brand, please visit www.whirlpool.com. Additional information about the company can be found at www.whirlpoolcorp.com.

(1) Based on single shelf area among leading brand side-by-side refrigerators

(2) Whirlpool Refrigerator Habits, Practices and Needs Study (2005)

(3) Compared to Whirlpool® side by side models without MicroEtch™ shelves

(4) Based on continuous operation of bulb for one year

(5) Survey was conducted online within the United States by Harris Interactive on behalf of Whirlpool Corporation from November 20-24, 2009 among 2,089 adults ages 18 and older. This online survey is not based on a probability sample and therefore no estimate of theoretical sampling error can be calculated. For complete survey methodology, including weighting variables, please contact [email protected].

SOURCE Whirlpool Corporation