Sub-Zero Refrigerator
Encyclopedia
Refrigeration
Refrigeration is a process in which work is done to move heat from one location to another. This work is traditionally done by mechanical work, but can also be done by magnetism, laser or other means...
and wine preservation products built in the USA
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The company also manufactures kitchen appliances
Major appliance
A major appliance, or domestic appliance, is usually defined as a large machine which accomplishes some routine housekeeping task, which includes purposes such as cooking, or food preservation, whether in a household, institutional, commercial or industrial setting...
under the Wolf brand name.
History
The Sub-Zero Freezer Company was founded in 1945, by Westye F. Bakke in MadisonMadison, Wisconsin
Madison is the capital of the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Dane County. It is also home to the University of Wisconsin–Madison....
, Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
. Westye Bakke is survived by his daughter Elaine. In 2000, they acquired the domestic appliance line of the Wolf Range Corporation, a California-based manufacturer of professional-style ranges, cooktops and grills for both home and commercial use.
Wolf Appliance Inc., Sub-Zero's kitchen soulmate and corporate companion, expanded the few products acquired from Wolf Range Corporation. It now sells a full array of domestic cooking appliances from kitchen stove
Kitchen stove
A kitchen stove, cooking stove, cookstove, or cooker is a kitchen appliance designed for the purpose of cooking food. Kitchen stoves rely on the application of direct heat for the cooking process and may also contain an oven, used for baking.In the industrialized world, as stoves replaced open...
s, cooktops, wall ovens, warming drawers and ventilation equipment. The company's products compete with those made by Viking
Viking Range
Viking Range Corporation is a privately held company that manufactures ultra high-end professional kitchen appliances for home use. Viking originated the "professional" segment of kitchen appliances with its introduction of the first professional-grade range for home use in 1987...
, Dacor, Thermador
Thermador
]Thermador is part of BSH Home Appliances Corporation, a fully owned subsidiary of BSH Bosch und Siemens Hausgeräte GmbH, the third largest appliance manufacturer in the world...
, GE Monogram
General Electric
General Electric Company , or GE, is an American multinational conglomerate corporation incorporated in Schenectady, New York and headquartered in Fairfield, Connecticut, United States...
, KitchenAid
KitchenAid
KitchenAid is a home appliance brand owned by Whirlpool Corporation. The company was started in 1919 by The Hobart Corporation to give restaurants a countertop alternative to their industrial sized mixers. The first model weighed 69 lbs. Each unit is still assembled by hand in Greenville, Ohio...
, Jenn-Air
Jenn-Air
-History:The original Jenn-Air Products Company was founded by Louis J. Jenn in Indianapolis, Indiana in 1947, later becoming simply Jenn-Air. In the early years, the company was focused on manufacturing and marketing of industrial fans for use in a variety of commercial and industrial applications...
and Miele
Miele
Miele is a manufacturer of high-end domestic appliances, commercial equipment and fitted kitchens, based in Gütersloh, Germany. Miele has always been a family-owned and -run company, founded in 1899 by Carl Miele and Reinhard Zinkann.-History:...
.
Innovations
According to the official company history, Bakke invented the first free-standing freezer in 1943. They also claim to have been the first to manufacture built-in refrigerators, beginning in the 1950s, and consequently many people still associate the look with Sub-Zero. Sub-Zero claims to be the only company to employ dual-refrigeration technology, which ostensibly "keep[s] fresh food fresher and preserve[s] frozen food longer".Appliance models
Sub-Zero manufactures two series of built-in refrigeration as well as wine storage and undercounter units. Each refrigerator model usually comes in two variations, namely a stainless steelStainless steel
In metallurgy, stainless steel, also known as inox steel or inox from French "inoxydable", is defined as a steel alloy with a minimum of 10.5 or 11% chromium content by mass....
exterior or a customizable exterior in an overlay version. The latter option allows the buyer to install kitchen cabinet panels on the door(s) to match with the rest of the kitchen. Its refrigerators are designed with a 24 inches (61 cm) depth and can be installed flush with kitchen cabinets of the same standard depth to provide an integrated look. This kind of built-in
Built-in
Built-in, builtin, or built in may more specifically refer to:* Built-in account* Built-in behavior* Built-in furniture* Built-in inflation* Built-in obsolescence* Built-in self-test* Built-in stabiliser* Built-in type* Shell builtin...
refrigerator is usually wider than normal to compensate for the shallower depth in order to maintain acceptable storage volume.
The Sub-Zero 424 Wine Cooler has held virtually the same design since the early 90's. It is the only under-counter wine cooler in its class to be able to keep wine as low as 38 °F (3.3 °C). It has two temperature zones and can be hooked up to a house alarm.
A Sub-Zero refrigerator is heavier than most refrigerators offered by GE, Fridgaire, or LG. An average refrigerator weighs 250–300 lb (113.4–136.1 ), but a Sub-Zero can weigh as much as 800 pounds (362.9 kg) and can require four delivery men to move the refrigerator unit into a kitchen, while most refrigerators usually only require two delivery men. Also, a typical Sub-Zero unit is bigger than the basic home refrigerator. Some Sub-Zero full-size models are 84 inches (2.1 m) tall and 48 inches (121.9 cm) wide.
The company currently has production facilities in Madison, Wisconsin
Madison, Wisconsin
Madison is the capital of the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Dane County. It is also home to the University of Wisconsin–Madison....
; Phoenix, Arizona
Phoenix, Arizona
Phoenix is the capital, and largest city, of the U.S. state of Arizona, as well as the sixth most populated city in the United States. Phoenix is home to 1,445,632 people according to the official 2010 U.S. Census Bureau data...
; Richmond, Kentucky
Richmond, Kentucky
There were 10,795 households out of which 24.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 35.2% were married couples living together, 12.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 48.6% were non-families. Of all households, 34.7% were made up of individuals and 8.8% had...
; and Fitchburg, Wisconsin
Fitchburg, Wisconsin
Fitchburg is a city in Dane County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 25,260 at the 2010 census. Fitchburg is a suburb of Madison and is part of the Madison Metropolitan Statistical Area.-History:...
.
Along with many other major prestige appliance brands, Sub-Zero follows a practice of restricting dissemination of the prices of their refrigerators. Their dealers are strictly vetted and must closely follow advertizing and pricing procedures supplied by the manufacturer in order maintain the ability to distribute their products.
In Popular Culture
A Sub-Zero refrigerator is featured in All's Fair in Oven WarAll's Fair in Oven War
"All's Fair in Oven War" is the second episode of The Simpsons sixteenth season, and originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on November 14, 2004. In the episode, Marge gets her kitchen remodeled and the dishes she make inside it get rave reviews...
, the second episode of The Simpsons
The Simpsons
The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...
seventeenth season. In the episode, Homer refers to it as a "slightly colder fridge".