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Why Appliance Prices Are Rising – And How Henry’s Electric Is Working to Keep Yours Down

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Why Appliance Prices Are Rising – And How Henry’s Electric Is Working to Keep Yours Down If you’ve been shopping for a new appliance, you may have noticed that prices are ticking up. That’s not just inflation—it’s the result of new tariffs on imported goods that are impacting costs across the appliance industry. But at Henry’s Electric , we’re doing everything we can to help our Berkshire County neighbors stay ahead of the curve. Here’s what’s behind the rising prices—and how we’re working to protect you from them. New Tariffs Are Driving Up Costs In early 2025, a new round of **tariffs—including a 145% increase on certain Chinese imports—**was introduced. Many appliance brands and parts manufacturers rely on overseas production, and these added costs are making their way down the supply chain. As a result, prices on major appliances are increasing, and certain models are becoming harder to get. What This Means for Berkshires Shoppers In a rural market like ours, supply delays and pric...
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Grills, Grills, Grills!

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  Grills, Grills, Grills! There are many different types of grills out there, and here's what you need to know. Not listed but honorable mention, are flat top grills. On the rise in popularity and opens up the possibilities of grilling like a burger joint or making pancakes and eggs like your local diner. Built-in Grills Built-in grills are typically fitted into a structure, usually some type of stone or granite surround. The cut-outs for these are not universal, so switching them out becomes difficult, but they do last much longer if taken care of than your regular grills. They are also more expensive, up to 10X more expensive than a Weber or Napoleon. Built-in grills are most popular in luxury outdoor kitchens. You can customize your surround with sinks, drawers, cabinets, refrigerators and icemaker, making a patio kitchen the epitome of outdoor living. If you're building an outdoor kitchen, make sure you consult your builder on location requirements and venting options if un...
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Air Fry! What's the hype?

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Why are we so obsessed with Air Fry? The sole purpose of using and air fryer is to achieve the taste of fried food with a fraction of the oil. But most users have come to find many other positive outcomes of using air fryers for various other things, such as reheating leftovers and even baking.   The problem with air fryers is that they are small. The average air fryer can only hold 2-3 servings at a time, which can make cooking larger quantities of food very difficult. Thus leading to the rise in ovens with air fry capabilities. "But air fry is just using convection in an oven!" Well yes and no. The convection element is important to using air fry - but it is not the same. For those unfamiliar with convection cooking, a fan distributes air evenly throughout the oven allowing items on the top rack and the bottom rack to cook evenly. So you can use multiple racks for cooking. There are several types of convection: True European Convection and Fan Convection. True...
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To self clean or not to self clean?

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That is the question! There is much controversy over self cleaning oven. They are immensely popular with consumers, but in the appliance world...not so much. Self cleaning oven uses high temperatures to burn off grease and debris leftover from normal use of your oven. It effectively eliminates the use of chemical cleaners and is the preferred way of cleaning given the convenience of set it and forget it. However they do pose some dangers. A self cleaning cycle get get to temperatures upwards of 800 and 900 degrees Fahrenheit and the oven door locks closed as a safety measure. The problem is if your oven is too dirty these particles will create a lot of smoke and a heavy odor. The high temperatures also present the potential to set fire. There are plenty of house-fire horror stories out there from homeowners using the self cleaning cycle and certainly those are few and far between when looking at the big picture, but still a looming danger. But the main reason to not self-clean your ove...
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Stacked Laundry vs. Combination Units - Pros and Cons

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The life expectancy of appliances has dropped significantly since the turn of the century. A good washer and dryer has an estimated life of seven to ten years - and you're lucky if you get more out of them. One of our most common questions when discussing stacked laundry is, "Why would I get a combination unit? If it breaks I have to replace the whole thing!" There are many reasons why all-in-one combination units like the LG Wash tower and the new Electrolux are increasing in popularity. 1. Accessibility . When the dryer gets stack on the washer, the dryer controls sit at about 76-78" from the floor. This makes it very difficult for elderly customers and shorter consumers. The Wash towers put the controls for both directly in between the washer and the dryer. 2. Size . Stacked units have gotten much larger than units from 15-20 years ago. the all-in-one units eliminate 4-6" of height, and in some case 2-3" in depth. Thus making it easier to retrofit into a...
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Induction Cooking - How to make the switch from gas to induction.

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There has been a lot of talk in the appliance world surrounding the health risks that have been associated with gas ranges and cooktops. It seems the majority of our replacement business has been helping customers switch from gas powered appliances to induction.  Induction cooking is a direct heat transfer through an electromagnetic field. (People with pacemakers should not operate and induction cooker). The direct heat is the reason it it preferred over electric radiant heat, which is indirect heat. Induction is much quicker-even quicker than gas. While we don't foresee that gas is going to be completely banned in the near future, we are seeing trends with new construction that gas stoves are being swapped for more efficient induction stoves. Here is what we recommend you do before making the switch from gas to induction. 1. Do your research.  Induction ranges are expensive, before undertaking a project of this size make sure you can find something within your budget. Frigid...
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