Once considered unattractive necessities for the hardest working rooms in the house, modern appliances don’t just make everyday chores easier, but they look good too – and could even save you money.
Think appliances are just fridges, ovens, washers and dryers? Think again.
Matthew Gerardo, vice president of sales at Joshua Bates, talked us through the latest appliance trends, including a new and useful item he hopes to have in his showroom before the end of the year.
Efficiency
While appearance does matter, a high priority for all his customers is efficiency, specifically Energy Star ratings. This is because appliances with the blue Energy Star label use less electricity and water.
“As we know, those things in Bermuda can be quite pricey, especially if you have a small tank and you’re running out of water all the time,” Mr Gerardo said.
The most efficient washing machines, for example, won’t submerge your clothes in water. Instead, he said: “The machine is designed to create a motion where the clothes go up and down the drum so the things are getting wet, it’s just that they aren’t soaking wet at the same time.”
Will they still be as clean?
“Yes!”
Wi-fi enabled
While wi-fi enabled appliances have been around for some time, they had a rocky start in Bermuda. Privacy laws, which are different here to the US, meant the necessary apps could not be downloaded. Things have now changed and the Smart HQ app, for example, which works with all wi-fi enabled GE appliances, now works here and, explained Mr Gerardo, allows for greater flexibility.
“You’re running late, you want your oven to be preheated, you can turn it on from your phone when you are on your way home,” he said.
“Or you have a load that’s sitting in your washing machine ready to go, you can turn your washing machine on.”
The app can also give you timely alerts. For example, if the fridge water filter needs changing, it will give you enough time to buy a new one before it stops working.
Because of the past problem with downloading the apps, he warned that if you are choosing an appliance for the wifi features, check that the app works in Bermuda before buying.
Customisable
Appliances are large and visible, so when they look good, your home looks good too. Certain brands are taking this to the next level with the ability to customise not just the colour but the hardware too, and this is proving very popular.
Hestan, for example, offers ranges in 12 different colours. In addition to “stealth” and “froth”, which are black and white respectively, they also have “bora bora”, which is turquoise, or “tin roof”, which is a deep red.
Café, a GE brand, not only offers different colours, but customisable knobs and handles as well.
“People are going for these customisable finishes. They’re trying to make their kitchen pop a little bit more than it used to and it gets away from traditional black, white or that standardisation of how kitchens look,” Mr Gerardo explained.
What you didn’t know you needed
Mr Gerardo’s favourite of the newer appliances to hit the market here is the countertop ice maker. It doesn’t use a water line, so no plumbing is required. Instead, it has a side refillable tank. The GE Profile model Joshua Bates sells can hold 2.5 quarts of nugget ice at a time and can make it at a speed of one pound per hour. This is ideal for someone who enjoys cold drinks but whose fridge doesn’t have an ice maker.
“I got it the moment it came out. I absolutely love it,” he said.
“My fridge at home doesn’t have an icemaker. I rent so don’t have the luxury of telling a plumber to put in a waterline. I got so sick of filling up ice trays that I bought this ice-maker and I don’t regret it one bit. It’s as simple as plug it in, fill up the water tank and your unit will start making ice within about 10 minutes.”
Other kitchen appliances that are increasingly popular for their efficiency, style and cooking or brewing quality include:
- Air fryers – the GE Café options come in a variety of colours.
- Built-in coffee machines – Miele’s version is built into the cabinetry and “makes some very, very high quality coffee”.
- Steam ovens – steam cooking means speedier cooking, but there are installation requirements to consider.
- Induction cooktops, which use electromagnetic energy, making them quicker than gas, but the surface doesn’t stay hot so they are safer around children.
- Indoor electric smokers for meat, fish or anything else you would smoke in an outdoor smoker, but without it being “a messy, long, ordeal”.
More to come!
Not available yet, but GE, said Mr Gerardo, will soon be bringing out their version of the steam closet. This is a stand-up unit that dewrinkles or warms up your clothes. They also don’t require a water line.
“They have side fillable reservoir tanks,” he said. “For people who hate ironing or don’t necessarily want to wait for their dryer to stop and pull things out immediately to try to avoid the ironing, these things are very popular. I might get it for myself for next Christmas!”
While that might take up space in your laundry room, the latest versions of the all-in-one washer dryer are so much better that “people are starting to gear up towards those and starting to free up some space in their laundry room”.
What to avoid
Fridges with glass doors, unless you have a temperature controlled house, otherwise you will get puddles.
“Companies are coming out with an all glass door so you can see directly into it. Glass is not the best insulator, especially with our humidity, our higher heats,” Mr Gerardo warned.
“You constantly have a very cold glass next to a very warm climate and it causes condensation.”
