Nolte: Large Appliances Are Dying Sooner (By Design)

Breitbart ^ | 02/21/2024 | JOHN NOLTE

[dvan]

I have a dryer from Sears that is almost 60 years old. I had the heater element replaced about 15 years ago. the technician said as long as you can buy the heater element it will last forever. You can’t say that about washers though,. Time to go back to the old time manual washers. Surprisingly, they are still available, at a high price.

[RckyRaCoCo]

My (1997) Whirlpool washer(with a few minor fixes)/dryer/fridge/dishwasher still going strong. The dishwasher had a recall, offered a rebate for new, so I changed it out. Fridge was in the garage for years after replacing with another style, then a crappy GE, before I sent it to DTE for recycle(rebate).

Just seems a lot of appliance stuff are basically disposable/garbage post 2000...and much more $$$(like so many other things).

[old-ager]

> refrigerator

Our 1978 GE side by side is running fine. Two repairs over that time, I think.

> microwaves

I finally learned to leave the door open a little bit when not running. Otherwise they rust inside.

I tried leaving the door open while it ran and it messed up my brain(*379bafo23gg44taseert

[TexasGator]

“Those features are always the first thing to go out and they decrease the usable life of the appliance.”

All my mid-level appliance issues have been basic to the functions.

A/C evap leak
A/C compressor fan motor
Gas stove igniter
Gas water heater tank leak

[IYAS9YAS]

My folks bought a late 1950s Amana (I think) upright freezer when they got married in 1966. It was still running in 2011 when they had to move into a smaller house and got rid of it. It ran for at least 42 years with no issues.

[Go_Raiders]

I got a free washer/dryer stack from Costco two years ago. They shipped us the wrong color, and issued a $200 credit when I called to complain and they told me they were out of stock on the color my wife wanted.

Then six months later I got an email saying they were refunding the whole thing. I don’t have any complaints about any of my appliances, so I guess this is yet another example of my White Privilege...

[IYAS9YAS]

It ran for at least 42 years with no issues.

Math is easier with caffeine. 52 years. Not 42.

[Theophilus]

Not Kmart.

[Karl Spooner]

No such thing as a cheap water heater anymore either.

[Jamestown1630]

This YouTuber of ‘Bens Appliances and Junk’ discusses the best appliances to buy. He thinks the in-door icemaker is one of the features most prone to failure, and the more features a fridge has the more likely it is to break:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rKJgYVhZ6-w

[Karl Spooner]

I know a guy that has a 1957 pink refrigerator in his basement and it still runs. No fans or auto-defrost of course, but it looks practically brand new. Very quiet, too.

[Yo-Yo]

Have a 20 year old Maytag washer/dryer combo. Have put several belts on the dryer over the years, and had to replace the mechanical timer.

Had to buy the mechanical timer from eBay because none of the online appliance parts places carried it any longer.

$85 for the timer, but cheaper than a new washer/dryer set.

[GOPJ]

I bought the Speed Queen 500 out of a store in New Jersey - not a store around my area of Florida carried that model.

Best washer I’ve ever had. Uses plenty of water and if you forgot to put in a sock you just open the lid and add it. I can do a large load of clothes in less than thirty minutes and there’s enough rinse water I’m not dealing with detergent residue.

What liberal ‘elties’ don’t get is that EVERYTHING HAS AN ENERGY SIGNATURE. So if you’re replacing appliances every 8 years rather than every 23 years you’re wasting WATER and ENERGY.

[Wuli]

I do not understand government claims the new washing machines are more energy efficient.

My old Maytag washing machine used to do a large load in just over 30 minutes. My new LG washing machine can’t do any size load in under 50 minutes and most are 60+ minutes.

[Parley Baer]

We bought our Maytag top load washer in 1996. It finally died last week after 28 year’s, and we replaced it with a Speed Queen top load washer. My wife loves the Speed Queen.

[KC Burke]

The newer refrigerators last 5 to 8 years and then they cannot be repaired for less than 80% of the cost of a new one and the parts take 3 weeks to get.

I have ended up with two houses in the last 12 years that had a top LG and both died one month after the 7 year compressor warranty.

I consider them all disposable now after talking extensively with repair people.

I had a cheap Roper I bought in ‘78 that was still going fine when I sold it with a house in 2013.

[The Truth Will Make You Free]

You may be able to fix it yourself for a fraction of the cost. I fixed my refrigerator for $100 in parts from Appliance Parts Pro, I think.

[DesertRhino]

Meanwhile, my Kenmore series 70 washer and dryer are running fine. No chip in either one.

[Buchal]

Interesting to see so far on this thread no one is making the link to government efficiency regulations. We now have government appliances, so of course they are more expensive and trouble-prone.

[Valpal1]

Yep, their compressors are garbage.

We bought the fancy party fridge with all the doors and drawers. The compressor crapped out right after the warranty, 2 years.

A new compressor was $1600 plus labor and a 6 month wait time because of supply chain issues.

Out old 1995 fridge was still running in the garage with a rust spot and missing/broken shelves from raising 4 kids.

Sanded and painted the front and got replacement shelves and drawers, about $300 altogether

I expect it will outlast me.