GE is heating up the world of refrigerators with a hot water dispenser available on its new line of Café™ French door models. The first of its kind, the 29-cubic-foot GE Café French door refrigerator can heat 10 ounces of water in minutes – ideal for steeping delicate, white tea or preparing warm, filtered water for baby formula.†
A custom setting allows you to select a temperature from 90 to 185 degrees Fahrenheit, or select one of four pre-programmed settings: 90 degrees for warm, 150 degrees for cocoa, 170 degrees for tea, and 185 degrees for soup. These settings account for consumers’ most common hot water uses, ensuring fast and precise temperatures on your filtered water – unlike using a microwave or stove to heat water.
“It’s a total guessing game,” said Rob Lewis, lead design engineer for GE Appliances. “With the GE Café’s hot water dispenser, there’s confidence in getting an accurate temperature every time. The custom setting is especially interesting for tea aficionados who can make the most of their tea experiences. Simply adjust the temperature to enhance the natural flavor of tea.”
Engineering an Oxymoron
Adding hot water to the refrigerator was a design challenge that GE’s ice and water engineering team tackled head on. The team figured out how to keep the interior temperatures at the ideal settings while restricting the energy consumption to achieve ENERGY STAR® status.
From there, GE’s engineers created a W-shaped heating element that uses a tube to feed the coldest water from the bottom while pushing the hottest water out from the top. Once the nature of the design began firming up, the team delved into consistency and reliability. They employed two thermometers to confirm accurate temperatures and verified the unit could not dispense boiling water. To use the hot water dispenser, a consumer must push in the dedicated knob and turn it counterclockwise.
The high-tech design of the hot water dispenser is patent pending. “The hot water dispenser will be a feature that once consumers have it, they’ll never want to live without it,” said John Boyd, marketing manager for refrigeration for GE Appliances.
Cleaner Water, Better Food Storage
In addition to hot water, the Café French door refrigerator offers a variety of additional features designed to optimize the enjoyment of food and beverages:
Pharmaceutical Filter: All of the new GE French door refrigerators feature the most advanced water filtration system in the industry. The system has been tested and certified by an independent third party to remove 98 percent of five trace pharmaceuticals, such as ibuprofen (a painkiller) and progesterone (a hormone).* In addition, the filter is located in the door for easy replacement, while also freeing up valuable space in the refrigerator.
Temperature-Controlled Drawer: A full-width, adjustable temperature-controlled drawer helps to store specific meat, beverage, produce, cheese and citrus foods at optimal storage temperatures, from 32 to 40 degrees Fahrenheit. Colored LED lights in the drawer -red, green, blue, aqua and purple – are visual cues of the temperature chosen.
Odor Filter: A new odor filter is designed to allow the consumer – at the touch of a button – to reduce unwanted odors within the fresh food section.
TwinChill™ Evaporators: The French door refrigerators also feature TwinChill™ evaporators, which separate airflow and climates in the fresh food and freezer sections to help maintain temperature and humidity levels to keep foods fresh. The separation of the air limits the amount of humidity in the freezer, reducing freezer burn while keeping freezer odors from mixing with refrigerator odors.
Convenient Storage Features: For optimal storage, the refrigerators feature a drop-down egg tray, door storage for gallon-sized products and adjustable shelves. The freezer features three freezer baskets and a space-saving icemaker in the door that frees up room in the refrigerator.
GE Appliances
GE Appliances is at the forefront of building innovative, energy-efficient appliances that improve people’s lives. GE Appliances’ products include refrigerators, freezers, cooking products, dishwashers, washers, dryers, air conditioners, water filtration systems and water heaters. General Electric (NYSE: GE) works on things that matter to build a world that works better. For more information on GE Appliances, visit www.ge.com/appliances.
†Users should follow manufacturers’ recommended instructions for baby formula. GE always encourages you to test the temperature of the bottle of formula before giving it to a baby.
*The pharmaceuticals and other substances removed or reduced by this filter are not necessarily in any given water supply.
‡ Retailers set their own prices.
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