Lec T5039S.1 Fridge Freezer - Silver

Good compact fridge freezer. I find that the 'medium' setting in the fridge is perhaps a little too cold so turned it down, but great functionality aside from that. Looks really smart in a small kitchen.

The product so far is good and fitted in well. Was able to re-hang to right hand opening and all works well.

Firstly, thanks to AO for a good price and prompt delivery at a difficult time. This is not the LEC you may remember from the 1960s and 70s (or even the early noughties). They are now part of the Glen Dimplex group which you can read about in the Irish Times and the FT. I can see nothing obvious to indicate the country of manufacture but the User Guide is poorly printed and marked by odd errors and inconsistencies, so we can maybe guess, can't we? Nor is this quite the same T5039 that I bought (still going strong) from the Co-op in 2011; there are minor changes to the design (various components standardised across the LEC range) and a slight decline in overall build quality. However, it hit my price point and it seems to do the job. I had to re-hang the door from left-opening (anti-clockwise) to right-opening (clockwise). This was when I first noticed the inferior quality. The screws securing the hinges were poorly machined and it was not possible to insert a PH2 screwdriver cleanly. I had to use an 8 mm spanner and an 8 mm nut driver. It was necessary to lay the unit down on its back (protected by the polystyrene packing pieces) to access the bottom hinge screws. The removeable nylon bush on the centre hinge prong goes downwards into the hole on the freezer door; this means you must remember to swap it over when relocating the centre hinge, which is rotated through 180 degrees as you move it from right to left. I forgot and wondered why I could not replace the upper door! I decided to follow the instructions (a first for me!) and left the unit overnight to settle and then gave both compartments and drawers &c. a good wash with a sodium bicarbonate solution to remove solvent odour. Now to plug in for the first time. Be careful here. On mine, the UK mains plug had been pushed into the rear of the unit for transit and was now snagged on various bits of copper tubing near the compressor. It took a minute to tease it out safely without damaging anything. I set the thermostat to MAX. The sides of the unit will get quite warm as the freezer is cooled down for the first time. I then set the thermostat to MED (available settings misdescribed as OFF 1-6 in the User Guide!) which seems to keep the upper compartment cool without the auto-defrost kicking in too often (the freezer is manual defrost); hysteresis is just another word to me. Examining the thermostat (Chinese) it seems to be a simple gas pressure mechanical type (no PIC). LEDs now provide illumination, rather than the old SES incandescent bulb. It's been in use for a week now and seems fine. You get what you pay for but it doesn't look too bad in our kitchen (I bought the silver finish). Time will tell. And on that note, the good news is that minor spares are readily available; new thermostat and door seals are reasonably priced, plastic drawers &c. less so. So, all in all, not a bad buy.

If you need a compact fridge freezer with at least 2 freezer trays this is a good buy as a compromise between under counter and full height .

Great compact fridge freeze and good value for money, what more could you ask for.

Good small fridge freezer fitted excellently in a small space. This is used as an overflow fridge freezer and easy access to frequently used items.