Yes, these are for real! Admittedly, when we first toured our house – we thought the range was cool but couldn’t imagine actually using it. Renovation ideas danced in our heads. But it slowly became one of the first things guests asked about when they visited and we realized how genius these fold-down ranges actually are. They heat up super quickly and are sleek, space-saving & mess-hiding (in a pinch). I’m not promising that we will never renovate, but since they are in working condition we plan to keep them around for a while!
A bit of history – these ranges were featured and won a design award in the World Fair between 1955-57. Originally called Fold Down Electric Surface Units, each unit came with one 6″ burner and one 8″ burner. They were marketed for island and galley kitchens due to their space-saving design and were sold for $192 per unit until the early 1960’s. These fold-down burners were quite the novelty item. They were sold in closeout liquidation sales in 1963, so despite their unique design they obviously did not stand the test of time. The fold-down range’s counterpart, the built-in wall oven (often marketed and sold as a package deal) has stood the test of time and is very popular in today’s kitchens.
I am no expert, but ours is in quite good condition for being over 55 years old and being used almost daily. Most of the chrome and stainless steel surfaces still shine like new! The black collects dust so it gets wiped down frequently. The knobs are intact, original and in working condition. The stainless steel has obviously been scrubbed more than once. The wording is intact, though the gold and black paint is starting to wear off (you can see this in the third & fourth photo). On the inside there is some burnt on plastic that I have not tried to remove yet. Now that we have decided a kitchen renovation is several years away, I will be giving this unit a good detailing. I usually just use a wet dish cloth to do a quick clean every day but I should probably start using some stainless steel cleaner and a soft cloth to give it the TLC it deserves!
Did you grow up with a fold-down electric range? Do you still have one in your home? I would love to see pictures and hear about your little piece of history! Send me a tweet @lifeofbaier, tag me on Instagram or use #lifeofbtimewarp
Have a blessed day!
We have a 1950’s Frigidaire fold down cook top and we are interested in selling it as we are moving and will have limited space. We also have a Nautilus hood type fan that goes with it. It all works very well.
I would be very interested in purchasing your fold down cooktop. It is a two sided double burner set in good working order I hope? I need to replace one on my parents house in NC.
Kim Furman
831-818-8215
I would be very interested in purchasing a fold down cooktop. I need to replace one on my parents house in NC.
Kim Furman
831-818-8215
I hope that you can find what you are looking for! There are a few people on here that were selling their units, if you want to get in contact with one in particular let me know and I can put you in touch with them.
Hi Becka
I would very much like to contact someone, anyone, with this cooktop. It would make my Christmas to find a set in working order.
Feel free to email me at (XXXXXXX) or you can even call me at XXX-XXX-XXXX
Thank you for your response!!!
Kim
ETA: I have Kim’s contact info if anyone has a lead on a working cooktop for sale, you can email me and I will get you in touch! I blacked out her info because the internet has not been kind to me with spam lately 🙂
I have approved your comment in hopes of connecting you with someone who has a working unit!! 🙂
Do you still have the fold down cook top? If so how much do you wish to sell it for?
Hey Edgar! Our fold-down cook top is still in working condition and we use it daily! Not for sale at this time but if we ever decide to remodel our kitchen then I’ll definitely be referring back to those that are interested here on the blog!
Hi I am looking for the 6&8 burners do you know where I can find them each one lowers by itself
Definitely take a look at Ebay or Craigslist! There are also several people on this post selling theirs. Best of luck finding what you need!
I am also interested in purchasing a fold down unit. I have an rbw 84. 2 burner unit left and 2 burner unit right. Would like another. Cherilyn 6195080649
I am interested in purchasing another frigidaire rbw84 foldback unit. I have pictures. 2 sets of 2 burners. Each set of 2 folds down as a set.
Hello! We use ours daily, not for sale at this time but they are handy little units aren’t they!?
Do you still have the fold down Fridge down stove for sale? Looking for the one with large and small burners. Thanks
Mine is currently not for sale, if you check the comments it looks like Steve has a set for sale! Best of luck finding what you need, it is a neat setup isn’t it?
Hello! My 60’s fold down units are not working very well and I have been looking for replacement units. Are yours stil for sale?
Linda
Hello Linda! Our units are not for sale, but I can definitely see why you are looking for replacements – we love ours! Best of luck finding one! I’m just curious if you’ve ever tried having someone come work on it? I just ask because I anticipate that ours won’t work forever and I wonder if they are possible to repair?
I have set for sale oven also all working condition
Steve – were you able to sell yours? There are some people here in the comments curious about value. If so, where did you end up selling them?
I have two of these fold down units that were in my house. They were still working when we bought it last year. I have no clue as to how much these are worth? Do you know? Love the post.
That’s so fun! We are still using ours so I haven’t had a chance to check the market to see how much they are selling for. We have a local Mid-Century Modern Buy/Sell/Trade group on Facebook, that’s where I plan to start asking when the time comes! There are also several people in our neighborhood who have kept their homes original, I might start asking around to see if anyone needs replacement units or parts.
The house I grew up in had these fold-down stoves and my mother was disappointed she couldn’t find the same ones when they sold the house in the 90’s and moved to a new house. They were simple to clean and they freed up a huge amount of counter space for food prep.
We also had an oven (with separate broiler) that was very unique: The oven had a pair of doors that opened outward. Imagine a “saloon door” arrangement if you’re having a hard time picturing the oven. You never had to reach over the oven door as you do with a conventional oven that has a door hinged on the bottom. I can’t recall what brand the oven was, but I’m guessing it was also Frigidaire because my mother swore by that brand. (Our dishwasher was a Frigidaire that was the quietest dishwasher I’ve ever seen.)
I don’t know why some manufacturer doesn’t consider making these fold-down stovetops again, especially if there was some way to make one that uses gas rather than electricity.
I love this! Thank you so much for sharing about the oven and stovetop in your childhood home. I completely agree, they are so simple and such a neat design. Nothing better than clearing off the counter and hiding them away. Your oven sounds very unique, I have never seen anything like that – I’m going to research it!
I saw one on E-bay for $400. It looked pretty used however. If anyone has one for sale I am definitely interested in purchasing it to replace one that’s no longer working.
Kim Furman
831-818-8215
I am in the market for a Frigidaire Fold Back Surface Units to replace one of the ones that we have that no longer works. Would be willing to buy 1 or 2 of the units. We have a 1955 house with the original burners, but after 65 years they are showing their age.
R. W. Rozen
XXX-XXX-XXXX
ETA I have the contact info for this post, if anyone has a lead on a unit please let me know and I’ll get you in touch!
Hello! I am approving your post but I blacked out your contact into, the internet has not been kind to me lately with spam calls, etc. I have your number on file and will get you in touch if anyone reaches out to me. Thank you and best of luck in your search! Our unit is on the fritz and no one in our area will work on repairing it due to lack of parts so I understand your need for a new one!!
We have these in our kitchen and we would like to replace them, but I do not how to remove these without damaging. Can someone share a manual or instruction to safely remove them? Thanks
sunvul@gmail.com
I hope you can find a manual! If you do – it would be awesome if you can post a link here, it would be valuable to many including myself! My only suggestion is to try to find someone in your area who is familiar with working on retro appliances (easier said than done, I know!)