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  • Design & Usability

  • Performance & Features

  • Good... but Expensive

  • The Cold Hard Facts

  • Temperature Performance

  • Moisture Retention

  • Freezing

  • Storage Space & Energy Efficiency

  • Design & Usability
  • Performance & Features
  • Good... but Expensive
  • The Cold Hard Facts
  • Temperature Performance
  • Moisture Retention
  • Freezing
  • Storage Space & Energy Efficiency

Pros

  • Streamlined, single-door interface

  • Bright interior lighting

  • Energy efficient

Cons

  • Greens won't last long in the crisper drawer

  • Fridge temperatures run a bit hot

  • No through-door ice or water dispensers

This Kenmore isn't perfect, and it's expensive, but it'll be hard to find better if you need that extra storage and don't want a French door, top-freezer, or side-by-side.

Design & Usability

Low frills, high capacity

Bottom freezers are generally pretty basic in terms of design, and this Kenmore Elite is no exception. The broad stainless door is devoid of any eye-catching features, save for the small Kenmore logo in the upper right corner. Should your kitchen layout demand it, this model comes with a door reversal kit.

On the inside, you’re treated to clean white plastic and bright LED lighting. Even the freezer is well lit, which isn’t always the case for bottom freezers. A combination of half-width and full-width shelves allows you to customize your storage space, while the broad door offers plenty of gallon-deep buckets for juice or milk.

The pull-out freezer is quite basic, with upper and lower drawers for storage. This model comes with a built-in icemaker, as well as a large bucket for storing tons of cubes. If you don’t want ice, just flip the switch on the icemaker and use the bucket to help organize your food.

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Performance & Features

Turn down the thermostat, and watch out for the crispers

The 79043 earned great results in most of our tests. The freezer was nice and cold, energy consumption stayed exceptionally low, and fridge temperatures remained consistent over time.

That said, the Elite isn’t perfect. Fridge temperatures ran about two degrees too warm, averaging about 39°F throughout most of the compartment despite reading 37°F on the thermostat. Just turn it down a degree or so you should be fine.

Without question, crispers were the worst elements of this fridge’s performance and, unlike a slightly warm fridge, you can’t fix them. The Kenmore’s drawers lost moisture twice as fast as they should, meaning produce won’t last as long as it should. Salad lovers, keep an eye on your greens and make sure to eat them quickly.

Controls for the Kenmore Elite 79043 are basic, and are located along the upper frame.

Controls are basic, and are located along the upper frame.

In terms of features, this design is very basic. You’ve got an icemaker in the freezer, complete with large bucket for cube storage. Other than an Ultra Ice mode for faster cube production, the only perk is Kenmore Connect, which helps a service technician remotely diagnose what's wrong with your fridge if something breaks.

For in-depth performance information, please visit the Science Page.

Good... but Expensive

Lots of space, for a price

If you’re trying to accommodate enough food for a large family and don’t care about features like through-the-door dispensers, the Kenmore Elite 79043 could be the fridge for you. Its giant capacity can hold plenty of food—both fresh and frozen—while high-end design elements like LED lighting keep it from looking cheap.

Which is good, because it isn’t: Sale prices of just over $1,600 make this one of the most expensive bottom freezers we’ve reviewed. You could get a good French door for that kind of money.

If you don’t want to wait for Sears to launch a sale and don’t care about stainless, consider getting the Elite in a different color. For about $150 less, this model is also available in white, black, and—believe it or not—bisque for about $150 less.

The Cold Hard Facts

Most of the test results we recorded for the Kenmore Elite 79043 (MSRP $2,099.99) were very flattering... but not all. Rotten crispers and some necessary thermostat adjustments kept this sizable bottom freezer from earning top marks across the board.

Temperature Performance

It’s rare to see numeric thermostats in bottom freezers, but even so, this Kenmore will require some adjusting. With the fridge set to 37°F, we tracked average temperatures of 39.18°F at the top, 38.47°F in the middle, and 39.72°F at the bottom. The discrepancy isn’t great, but there’s an easy workaround: A narrow temperature deviation of just ±0.1°F over time means this is an exceptionally consistent fridge, so you can just turn the thermostat down a degree or two for optimal performance.

Controls for the Kenmore Elite 79043 are basic, and are located along the upper frame.

Controls are basic, and are located along the upper frame.

The freezer was less consistent, with an average temperature fluctuation of ±2.1°F, but it actually doesn’t matter. Temperatures were very chilly, with averages of -0.95°F and -1.04°F recorded at the top and bottom, respectively. That means the freezer stays cold enough to prevent the build up of freezer burn.

Moisture Retention

Crisper performance was easily the worst element of this fridge. Over the course of three days, drawers lost an average of 0.32 grams of moisture per hour—more than double the average. Keep an eye on moisture-dependent produce, as it’ll likely dry up faster than you expect.

The crispers were easily the least satisfying element of the Kenmore Elite 79043's performance.

The crispers were easily the least satisfying element of the fridge's performance.

Freezing

Freezing times were average. Room-temperature test materials cooled to 32°F in just one hour and 37 minutes. You might want to avoid stocking up on delicate cuts of filet mignon or swordfish steaks, but pretty much anything else should be fine.

Storage Space & Energy Efficiency

If nothing else, the 74025 has size working in its favor. A mix of full-width and half-width shelves provide the bulk of the storage space, with two large crispers and a full-width pantry drawer underneath. The wide door, with its gallon-deep bucket shelving, also offers plenty of viable storage options. In total, you get 11.7 usable cubic feet in the fridge compartment.

The freezer is quite basic, with an upper and lower drawer to choose from. We removed the ice bucket for the sake of taking measurements, as its use is entirely up to the consumer. With that in mind, you get up to 4.54 usable cubic feet at your disposal.

Despite its size and the presence of an icemaker, the Elite proved to be an exceptionally efficient product. Using a fixed rate of $0.09 per kWh, we estimate this bottom freezer will cost you about $31.37 per year to operate, an exceptionally low number for a fridge this size. Turn off the icemaker, and the price drops even further. This all translates to about 0.06 kWh to cool each usable cubic foot, making this Kenmore one of the most efficient models we’ve ever tested.

The Kenmore Elite 79043's sliding drawers offer plenty of perfectly chilled freezer storage.

Sliding drawers offer plenty of perfectly chilled freezer storage.

Meet the tester

Matthew Zahnzinger

Matthew Zahnzinger

Logistics Manager & Staff Writer

@ReviewedHome

Matthew is a native of Brockton, MA and a graduate of Northeastern, where he earned a degree in English and Theatre. He has also studied at the Gaiety School of Acting in Dublin and spends most of his free time pursuing a performance career in the greater Boston area.

See all of Matthew Zahnzinger's reviews

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