bit-tech Shopping: Frigidaire FGB24T3ES 24" Double Gas Wall Oven: White

Rating: 2

Time with product: 18 Months

Strengths: inexpensive

Weaknesses: Doors fall off. no self clean. safety hazard!!!

Summary: We purchased this oven summer of 2007. Thinking it would be simple.. I took it home to do a self install. Took out old oven, put in the new one.. fit like a glove! Turned it on... no fire. nothing. Called service... they came out. found Manufacturing defect... a wire INSIDE the unit had never been hooked up (so therefore this one had never been tested). 6 months later... the door jammed... found that the hinges were bending the frame making it jam up. Called service. We were told "unserviceable.. need replacement oven". and "this has happened before so watch your replacement". Service nicely installed the new one. Upon opening the door, I could see that the metal around the hinge is very soft... wondered how long it would last. Answer... with NORMAL PERIODIC USE (PLEASE believe me, we were NOT trying to break it... MAYBE used 20 times), the door jammed in the closed position with food inside. the only way to get it out was to force the door and pull it off the unit. upon examination, found that the metal around the hinge screws had pulled out at least 1/4"... (see attached photos) NOTE: there is at least one other user who had the same issue with this oven. I believe that it is a design defect with the unit. We have now called for another service, and expect to receive similar answer that "cannot be repaired". We are not taking another one... we want our money back.

Rating: 2

Time with product: 1 Years

Strengths: ZERO

Weaknesses: THE LIVEN END

Summary: I've had one of these units for one year and a couple of days and so far both the left and right hand hinges on the oven have locked up and finally broken. If the master plan is to make on bundle on the repair service - its morking. I wouldn't give this problem to any one oincluding Osama.

Rating: 8

Time with product: 34 Years

Strengths: Updated version of an old favorite. Well lighted upper oven, very roomy lower broiler. Plenty of rack space.

Weaknesses: Manual cleaning, ugh, and "digital" temperature control.

Summary: This unit uses the same punch dies as the models referenced in the title made over the past thirty-five years. We had the O'Keefe & Merritt version in our kitchen since 1972. It stopped working last night. The cost of the igniter, safety valve, and clock were more than half the price of a new oven. For $ 559. we got a new gleaming white oven that fits perfectly in the hole left by the old oven. No sawing, remodeling, painting, staining, or waiting for the plumber. No other manufacturer makes a similar sized unit.The big broiler is the best. You can sear a steak quickly on the upper rack, then move it down to cook a bit more slowly. Making cheese bread is much easier than on GE ovens. You can put the surface of the bread far enough away that it doesn't go from raw to carbon in a blink of an eye. It is possible to set the broil function to HI or LO, something I have not seen before.I would rather see a rotary thermostat knob, but this oven has a digital display that you set by pushing an up/down arrow. Takes longer for me to set what I want. The engineers did make it possible to touch two buttons for 350?. I have copied the clock setting instructions and pasted them inside a nearby cupboard door, 'cause I am not having any blinking "12:00"'s in my kitchen.While manual cleaning is a chore, the racks come entirely out, leaving smooth walls without hard to clean nooks & crannies (what exactly is a cranny, anyhow?) I throw all the chrome racks in the dishwasher, and they come out nice.This unit fits in a small space, yet I can entertain a large group, as this has loads of space inside. Windows in both doors help by letting you see inside without disturbing the cooking process. The light now in the upper cavity only, has a rocker switch that is easier on the nails than the old push-push switch.The last thing I cannot live without, are the door handles. They are just right to hang a dish towel to dry. The door faces are all glass now, so just a spritz with Windex, and they are good as new.If the first one lasted 34 years (without a single repair), this one will be just fine for me.