I think I have been tough enough!

[Zoe Girl]

lat may the washer and dryer both pooped out. The washer was not draining so like an idiot I put waaay too wet clothes in the dryer instead of hanging them up. So i had a drain issue in the basement and when the plumber finally came to fix it he looked at the washer and said it needed a motor. That was $150 plus the same again for the work and visit. Well darn it, so I bought a hand washer and all through the summer we did hand wash, used the clothes line, and have been going to the laundromat.

Okay i went to see about hauling off the old washer/dryer and buying a used cheapie, the appliance store talked to me and it is not the motor. It is either a clogged pump or needing a new pump, That means the repair is about what it would cost for the deliveries, hauling old appliances out of the basement of an old house (giant frontloaders are not easy). Argh! I am having them come on Thursday and getting this done. I can'tbelieve I spent this many months with the wrong information. If the washer turns but does not drain then it is the pump and not a motor. :|(

I am not sure about the dryer repair but i can certainly hang laundry after doing it by hand for so long.

[Mrs-M]

Finding a reputable serviceman is key to a balanced and sane livelihood. And a pocketbook, too! I've been saying a prayer each and every time I click the dial on my washing machine to start a cycle. Any day now it's going to breathe out one last and final tired moan, and I'll be in the exact same place you are. But no more repairs, because there's nothing left to repair! Every bolt, every screw, every mechanical "device/thing" inside is kaput! The tole 60,000 plus/minus diapers has on a washer!!! :laff:

[sweetana3]

When my husband was going to school and we both worked full time jobs, we went to the local laundromat once a week. It took 1.25 hours to do all our laundry and have it hung or folded ready to put away. We took the sunday paper and read it at the same time. It was a manned laundry and very clean. Nice to have 5 washers at once to get it done fast.

It is much more work to have a washer and dryer not to mention the total cost and maintenance.

[bae]

Where I live, the last local appliance guy with skill retired, and moved away about 6 years ago.

The appliance repair place over on the mainland:

- charges $75 just to show up
- charges $75/hour after the first hour
- sends out a trainee, and a not-very-good "repairman", who have to call back to the office for advice when they arrive, because they are capable of not much more than identifying the model you have, and swapping parts, if the guy at the office is available to walk them through diagnosing the problem
- never sends any supply of useful parts, so a second visit is almost always needed
- charges list price for parts
- takes 1-2 weeks to show up for the first visit, 1-2 weeks more for the second visit

So, the simplest problem will run you $150 + parts, and likely more.

We got tired of this. My wife and I are both clueful people, with some skill, and tools, and we can read.

The last several times an appliance broke, we fixed it ourselves:

- you can purchase the entire factory service manual online for $10 or so, with enough googling, which usually has incredibly detailed step-by-step diagnostic processes that a child of 12 could follow. Apparently that's what the guy back at the home office on the other end of the phone must use, the guys who showed up here didn't have a copy...

- you can purchase replacement parts online, factory-new, with warranty, for considerably under list, and have them *the next day* if you care to pay shipping, or 2-3 days later if not.

If money gets tight, I'm going into the appliance repair business.

[Zoebird]

bae, you gave me a great idea on trying to figure out my dryer. i think that i need to flip it the other direction. It says that it can hang upside down or right side up, but it's not tumbling (or sometimes it tumbles and sometimes it doesn't. so, i figure if i put it the right way, it will go. come winter, we'll need a dryer.

[sweetana3]

Bae, when we lived in Alaska my mom had a dryer go on the blink in the 1950s. She took the motor out and fixed it herself. When you have four kids in a 900 square foot house, no car access, you do what you have to. I am not as creative as she had to be back then.

She could really impress me with some of the things she had to do.

[RosieTR]

ZoeGirl, we may have a washer and/or dryer if you want them, because we're getting rid of the ones we left in the house here when we moved, and bringing the ones back from Phx. I sent a private message so we can talk if you're interested.