We purchased a full set of kitchen appliances from the Appliance Center for our new home almost three years ago. The advice and guidance we received was excellent, and the depth of knowledge Mike Ovenden brought to the decision making was very impressive. Since then we have had a problem with only one appliance, made by Electrolux, which self-destructed on its first clean. Electrolux was completely uncooperative. It turns out the problem is a familiar one (check online) and so common that there are *no replacement parts* available for the problem, period. Mike had no more success than we did. But Mike and The Appliance Center DID work hard to make things right for us, which involved replacing the oven with one made by another manufacturer, at a hugely discounted price. We are glad to be rid of Electrolux and so very pleased to be working with the Appliance Center and Mike Ovenden. read more

UPDATE TO ORIGINAL REVIEW: I posted the below two months ago -- and would like to update it based on a response by the long-time owner of the Appliance Center, Mr. Stewart, who appears to be trying to hand over the business to others. A few weeks ago, Mr. Stewart left a very nice message on my voicemail apologizing for what we went through after only now having learned about it (perhaps from this review). He immediately offered to pick up the old hood and refund the money we spent on it. I have since had another very nice conversation with him, and he has picked up the hood. It is clear that this is not how he wants his business to run. We are building a custom home and were instructed by our contractor to work with The Appliance Center to get all appliances. So we did -- and deeply regret it. This is not true of most of the vendors we worked with - we had many very positive experiences. But The Appliance Center stands out as the worst. The most illustrative of our negative experience was around a kitchen island hood -- we made very clear from the beginning that we needed a hood that would accommodate my height (6'2") and were assured the hood they recommended would be no problem. When installed, sharp edges were exactly at eye level -- and we were told it could not be moved higher. I asked whether they would take it back and swap it out for one that works and was told they would not -- we were now stuck paying thousands of dollars for a hood we could not use. No apology, no sense of accountability and no effort to make it right. They then proposed 4 other hoods I could buy from them. At this point I was appropriately skeptical - and so I learned how to read the spec sheets. It turns out that each of the 4 hoods they now proposed would have created exactly the same problem. When I pointed this out, they agreed and admitted they had misread the spec sheets (just as they had with the first hood) and, for the first time, used the word "apologize". But had I just ordered one of their replacements, I am sure they would have made me pay for that one too. I was then literally left to fend for myself and find a hood that would work - they seemed uninterested in helping further, all this after close to $50,000 of payments for everything we had ordered from them for a fairly large house. I would recommend staying clear of people who conduct business this way. (Before posting this review, I shared it with Michael, the Appliance Center person we worked with, and asked if what I describe was accurate. He had no corrections to make - and nothing to add.) read more

Excellent follow up to service in response to my phone call. I recommend this appliance dealer for its wide array of products. The sales professional with whom we dealt had infinite patience. We really appreciated his willingness to research different brands at multiple price points. Dealing with Mike mad our purchase experience a pleasure. read more

I wish I could rate them a zero. First you have to make an appointment just to look at appliances. Then when you try to make an appointment no one will answer the phone. Tried for hours to get in touch with them. Finally just drove to the store. Had to beg them to sell me a dishwasher. I wanted to buy a MIele dishwasher which are not cheap. I picked one out that had a yellow tag saying Inventory Clearance. I bought it. Come to find out that Inventory clearance means demo/floor model. No one mentioned that and they should have used better wording. It was only discounted $100 and was still a $1799 dishwasher! They said it was as is, and had a guy come out to clean up the dirt. We were desperate as we just moved in and the current dishwasher was moldy. We bought it. We were happy to pay the additional $100 to get a 'non demo" but they assured us it was fine. Then when it was to be delivered and installed, the installer said Appliance Center would not put it in a box because it was a demo. As it was raining, and the truck was an open truck, the service people wouldn't pick it up. They couldn't find a box for a $2000 dishwasher? Absolutely horrible service. The salespeople were completely inept and just ignore you. We are planning on redoing our other appliances and will be going to Distinctive Kitchens or Kitchen and Bath Galleries in Chapel HIll. Couldn't have had a worse experience at Appliance Center. read more

I've worked with the appliance center twice now and they are the best. They have top quality products. Their staff is amazing and and the delivery is quick! read more

I needed a new refrigerator and wanted to support a small business so I went to the Appliance Center on a Friday early afternoon. I walked around for 20 minutes with no acknowledgement by anyone in the store. Not even a "hello", "we'll be right with you", "do you have any questions?" nothing. I left and spent $2500 on a refrigerator at Best Buy. Don't complain that big box stores are taking away your business when you can't even treat customers like they matter. read more

The Appliance Center in Durham demonstrates that local is better than the internet. We have a Jenn Air gas grill with the two catch trays all stained up and we are unable to clean them due to baked on stuff. (note to self- clean stove better after each meal, it's less expensive). We called Jenn Air who said the part was no longer manufactured. They referred us to a couple other "national" large stove type distributors. Same thing. They referred us to a few more folks. Still No luck. More googling and calling. Even CraigsList. No luck. So went to The Appliance Center in Durham, pretty sure we would be spending $1,800.00+ for a replacement stove that would work. We spoke with Coy and told him what we really wanted, rather than a new stove. He listened and said let me do some research. A few minutes later he came back with a catalog and the replacement tray part numbers and manufacturer that NO ONE on the internet among all those stores, could do. Coy was great as was the service we received. read more

Love the Miele products but do not hold the salesmen here In high regard, they are order takers only with little people skills. Owner and daughter are very people people. read more

I had a washer installed from Appliance Center. 3 days later a leak from the install went through my ceiling and created $1400 damage. I spoke to the owner and he was very argumentative and quite rude. He did not offer any reduction in the cost or install and had me jump through hoops with his insurance company that denied the claim. Very untrustworthy and poor response, I will never go there again - beware! read more

I just bought a new washer and dryer from the Appliance Center and also had them install the units. I ran a load of laundry that night and, when I opened the dryer for the first time, found dirty spots on the dryer drum. I wiped at the spots and they turned out to be black and greasy oil of some kind. My fingers came away black as did the cloth and the grease smudged inside the dryer. I am very grateful I noticed it before it caught fire when I turned the dryer on. I called the Appliance Center the next morning and their response was that I would have to coordinate with a separate repair service and schedule an appointment with them to have them come and diagnose the problem, verify that it couldn't be repaired, and then order a new one. When I order a new appliance, I expect it to function immediately, and, if it has a problem, to be replaced with what I paid for. I don't think that's unreasonable, and I don't think it's unreasonable to expect a replacement for a product whose use could set my house on fire. I'm now facing weeks of being without a dryer that I paid $900 for, and I am very unhappy with my experience with Appliance Center. UPDATE 9/17/15 After several more calls to the Appliance Center, I spoke to the salesman who sold me the dryer and he said they would replace it. It arrived and was installed today and is grease-free on the inside. I am satisfied with this conclusion. read more

Great selection here - and for repair they recommend Eddie's Appliance Repair. Eddie is a great, honest guy - highly recommend them! 919/764-9352 read more

Buying a washer/dryer was a good experience here--unlike the poor service I found at the Big Box Stores. Prices were competitive too. Service and selection top notch. read more

If you buy from them, you do so with no service in case of troubles. We bought a new Bosch dishwasher over 4 months ago from them. It was delivered and our plumber installed it. I did not work from day one. We called their repair line repeatedly and got no response. I called the salesman and was told in essence, do not bother us, call Bosch. I did so and Bosch suggested a local repair outfit where the fellow who came could not be trusted to repair a Lego set. He came twice and left it apart. Finally after threatening both the Appliance Center and Bosh with legal action through the Attorney General's office we got a skilled Bosch technician to come. All of this took over 4 months!The unit had likely been damaged in shipping. At no time in spite of pleas did the people at Appliance Center offer to just give us a new one. If you buy from them and have trouble, save your stress and have the appliance sent to the Durham land fill. read more

I purchased the most expensive model Speed Queen washer and dryer from Appliance Center on Shannon Rd. in Durham. It was delivered 10/15/19. Immediately I noticed the dryer was leaving black marks on my sheets. Appliance Center said to call Speed queen. Speed queen said call repair. Repair replaced the stainless steel drum with a painted drum and other parts today 12/10/19 after 8 weeks of black marks. Painted drums come on cheaper models and I paid for stainless. I ask the Appliance Center to refund some of my money but they are claiming that the replacement is higher end. Not!!! There has been No customer service from these folks. I ask them for a replacement dryer or give me my money back. They did not respond to me. I ask to speak to the owner and was told he wasn't there. I have purchased 6 appliances from the Appliance Center but never again. 2 of the appliances have been bad. Appliance Center does not put their customer first. I no longer can recommend The Appliance Center on Shannon Rd. read more