New appliances – local or imports?

[shelaghd]

This a great forum – thanks Scott!

We need appliances for our (soon to be finished) house. Someone local reps GE but I am worried about my fridge breaking down sometime after the 1 yr warranty and the spare part taking 3-4 weeks to arrive from the US and costing an arm and a leg because we needed it air freighted! Is this a realistic concern? What appliances would other homeowners recommend from their experience? I know Atlas is made locally – but which others are made/assembled in CR so that repairs and replacement parts would be easily available (and not so expensive)? I cannot get the kitchen cabinets done until I decide – can anybody help!

[dkt2u]

LG is probably one of the best quality brands and available everywhere throughout Costa Rica. They typically have a longer warranty and parts and or repairs are typically not a problem.

[DavidCMurray]

I agree about LG, but I would also recommend you consider Maytag which are available from LaArtistica in Pavas. They’re about a kilometer from the American Embassy as you head toward San Jose.

We’ve furnished two houses with mostly Maytag appliances. In both cases, we had minor problems getting them correctly installed and adjusted and in every instance LaArtistica’s service has been superb. They have been quick to respond, brought the right parts, and did more than we asked. In one instance, our dryer wasn’t working properly. The LaArtistica technician determined that the problem lay in the wiring of the outlet, not the dryer, and for c5,000 he rectified the problem.

In a previous life, I sold appliances and I would strongly recommend Maytag for dishwashers and Maytag and Whirlpool for clothes washers. Here, we’ve bought a Frigidaire front-loader washing machine (much cheaper at PriceSmart, if you can find it in stock) and have been very happy with it.

Parts appear to be available for appliances which are sold here which is why I would recommend that Americans moving to Costa Rica leave their appliances in the U.S. and buy new ones here. I share the concern for parts availability.

[jneiman]

You shouldn’t have problems with GE in Costa Rica. I have all GE appliances and service/parts has never been a problem in the San Jose area.

These were purchased here (via Golfito) and there is a GE Appliance store in Escazu.

[shelaghd]

Thanks for the responses – they are reassuring. However, we are in the zona sur (south of Uvita), and although we can shop at Golfito how do we get things serviced (if needed). Will the store there arrange that for us or are we on our own? It is better to buy from a ‘regular’ store?

[barker]

What was your experience buying in Golfito? We are in the proecess of moving to San Jose, currently living in Dominical. Was it worth the effort?

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