Washing machine repairman.....

[electra225]

Add that to the list of stuff I've fixed in the last six months. I came home this evening, dead tired, when the wife informed me that the washer broke and they wanted $125 to come out, plus $200 an hour to fix it, plus parts, of course. Phooey on that, says I. This washer is a Kenmore/Whirlpool and has never skipped a beat since it was new in 2012. The problem was that the lid lock light was flashing, and the machine would not work. Mr. Google advised me that this was a "shut down" mode, something happened, possibly a power surge, the shut the computer in the washer down. The washer won't work if the lid lock doesn't work. The switch did not seem to be broken. So I did what every novice appliance repairman who is grasping for straws would do. I unplugged it for a minute, then plugged it back in. Viola! Fixed! The refrigerator did that a couple of years ago. Unplugging it fixed it. I wonder if I should just unplug each appliance once a year or so, and reset its brain......

[TC Chris]

Thank goodness for Google. And then we can ask why a washing machine really needs to be computerized. I've got a good old Kenmore and not once have I ever thought, "Gee, I wish my washing machine were more sophisticated." I was grinning at some of the advertising hype in the ads included in that console video. Slider controls were touted as adding a new level of convenience, as though twisting a knob were some kind of arduous labor. In many things, simplicity is a virtue. Like washing machines.

Chris Campbell

[William]

Again, it's the bean counters. To build an old-fashioned washing machine control costs more money than a computer chip, that and the current generation is all about hi-tech.

Bill

[Conelrad]

I know several people that I wish that reboot scheme would work on them.

Just can't find a power cord to pull...

[Ken Doyle]

My 1972 Maytag washing machine cost $450 when it was new, and that's about $3300 in today's money. Sure it's durable, it's still going, but I don't think there's a market for a $3300 top-loading water pig today.

[Motorola minion]

Bought a 2003 Maytag, that had the plastic tub. Less than 2 years later, the agitator bearing seal under that tub began to leak, then bearing made noise like aircraft as it was failing. Good thing it was in the basement, where a leak is tolerable.

Got it repaired just under warranty after the store noted this was a common issue for the bearing to fail after leaking for several months. 6 years later, the entire failure repeated, so I tore it apart. Then after seeing parts costs and repair procedure, I scrapped it! My parents had a Maytag from 1977-1996 and all it needed was a timer once and pushbuttons were hard plastic and broke a few over the years.

Consumer Reports lost my confidence after neglecting to evaluate a top loading Speed Queen, blaming its water usage!!!!! News for CU: If you live on the east coast, few places even care about water use, so guess which one I bought 11 years ago

[William]

Speed Queen was washer and dryer of choice 3 years ago when I had to replace my old set. They are built like a tank and if you do not believe me go to their website and check out how much they weigh compared to all the other brands that are top loading. They also make a front loader. Their home models and built like their commercial models, built to last. And they are an American company and they have been in business for 110 years in Ripon Wisconsin.

Bill

[19&41]

In the early nineties when I was working for a scale repair/calibration company, I was sent to an address in Benton Harbor. I got there and I swear the place looked like a derelict old wooden barn with a cinder block first floor foundation. The upper wooden structure was racked and falling apart. The first floor was filled with old, nasty cubby hole shelves with rotting cardboard boxes, containing all varieties of electromechanical controls for washing machines. I could tell them as they were falling out of the collapsing containers. There was a neat table in there with shipping supplies and an electronic scale to calibrate. After seeing that "distribution center" I knew electromechanical washer controls were not much longer for this world.