Posted on 02/21/2024 8:21:39 AM PST by ChicagoConservative27
Between 2013 and 2023, Americans’ spending on home appliances jumped 53 percent. Adjusted for inflation, that’s an annual increase of $390 to $558. But the cost of appliances decreased by 12 percent during that same time.
How is that possible?
Well, as the Wall Street Journal explains, one “reason for the discrepancy between [higher] spending and [lower] prices is a higher rate of replacement[.]”
Over a mere two years, “Yelp users … requested 58% more quotes from thousands of appliance repair businesses last month than they did in January 2022.”
“We’re making things more complicated, they’re harder to fix and more expensive to fix,” one expert in appliance repair told the Journal. This means that when “a complicated machine fails, technicians say they have a much harder time figuring out what went wrong.” And when the problem is finally diagnosed, “consumers are often left with repairs that exceed half the cost of replacement, rendering the machine totaled. ”
(Excerpt) Read more at breitbart.com ...
This isn’t new. About 5 years ago a 16 year-old fridge died in one of my rentals. I called my appliance repair guy and said, “It stopped working, it’s 16 years old. I should just get a new one, right?” He said, “I work more on 3 year-old ones than 16 year-old ones, let me look at it. He fixed it for about $250. It was running 2 years later when I sold the place.
It’s not just Whirlpool, most all of these cheap rotten garbage appliances are coming from Korea and China...Like everything else, it cost double and you’ll be lucky to get a year out of these appliances without issues. Then they’ll tell ya parts can’t be had, or it takes weeks to get a simple part.
And don’t bother calling a repair person, as they won’t have a clue, won’t have the parts, or they’ll tell ya you just to get need a new refrigerator even though it’s only 2 years old. They told me that after spending $1700 on fridge 2 years ago. Charged me $150 just for coming to the home, and not fixing sh*t. After doing days of research, I found the suspected faulty part on-line and had to wait 2.5 weeks just to get the GD part.
Then 3 months later, another issue, another sensor bad. Same song and dance, more money etc....These appliances are effing junk. The nightmare stories are endless.
Good plan.
Bookmark.. will look for him on you tube
American appliances by Whirl pool/Maytag, and Kitchen Aid are jost no good. They are engineered for cheap manufacture and fail
My Koren appliance is superior
I am still using my 1986 Maytag Stove with no repairs as yet. Still using my 2006 Amana Bottom freezer fridge with no problems.
I don’t want ANY SMART appliances in my house and have not had to at this point. I “opted” out of the Smart electrical and gas meters many years ago. Was charged $75 to do so and had to pay additional $10.00 on each months billing for 3 years. I am surprised that you are still allowed to do so here in San Diego. Also took out my Wifi router last year. Really don’t need it. I am hard wired on everything and use cable.
I have two very old Vizio flat screen TV’s (2008) that still have the stereo speaker bar built in the TV. Don’t know what I am going to do when they crap out.
The old mechanical white enamel steel washer dryers last forever. You don’t see the fancy new washers and dryers in a laundromat.
Dang! I now just make my own ice and hand wash the dishes. And grill out a LOT.
Wow! I use my grill(s) a lot so I’ve gone through 5 or 6 in the last ten years, fwiw.
My Vizio like yours just wouldn’t turn on one day.
I bought a new Roku at walmart
We bought the extended warranty on a washing machine from Lowe’s.
They’ve honored it. Getting a claim going is the hard part.
My first microwave lasted 35 years. I retired it worried about possible microwaves leaking out or whatever. New ones maybe last 6 months. They either explode, catch fire or rust. We now leave the door open so the latest one doesn’t rust. They also are VERY LOUD and the beeper is extremely annoying.
“Sellers of extended warranties expect to make a profit at your loss”
Right TG, and the same as all insurance. Clarifying, the profits come from the people who lose the money paid in but don’t experience loss of any insured articles. For insurance companies a loss is an expected expense, like employees and equipment. Sophisticated historical analysis sets their rates.
NOTE:
This cheapness now extends to “smart” water heaters and most all water heaters. A certain MFGR is experiencing failures of near new installs on their “Smart” water heaters.
Learned this recently while researching a replacement for a 2006 water heater.
We had to buy a new Whirlpool washer during C19 and it wouldn’t automatically go to the next cycle. Of course, they couldn’t get parts and afterward they won’t fix it because it was out of warranty.
My first microwave lasted 35 years and I retired it worried it might be leaking microwaves or something. Since then, they don’t last 6 months no matter the brand.
Coffee makers don’t last, either. I buy 2 at a time for a back up. A few weeks ago, I saw prices have doubled so decided to try to fix it. I took it apart and put it sort of back together again and it works, fingers crossed.
The new Frigidaire fridge ice maker had to be replaced 3 times and still never worked. We don’t have ice because no one wants to mess with ice trays.
The Frigidaire deep freeze has had the door gasket replace twice but the door came warped. There’s towels on the floor. Also had to replace the computer thermostat myself but it was still an extra cost.
The Maytag dishwasher lasted about 18 months so I’ve handwashed dishes since and likely always will.
The Whirlpool stove burner parts keep breaking off so ordered all new recently but they don’t fit flush. The element in the oven has to regularly be replaced.
Can’t remember the brand (Samsung?) but the tv lasted about 18 months before the picture went dark.
Just got the car back from being in the shop for nearly a month waiting on a $$$$ gasket. Bring manufacturing back to the USA.
Yes, we buy the simplest no bells or whistles models but they break down quickly, too.
Thumbs up for Appliance Parts Pro.
The door broke on our five year old refrigerator. I couldn’t find a replacement during the supply chain problem. A buddy is a home remodeler who was taking one out of a project house and gave it to me. It’s ten years old and running perfectly.
Always save old shelves and whatever. Old ones fit the new Frigidaire fridge that needed an extra draw.
BTW, our latest Frigidaire fridge’s crisper drawers are only half the size. The back half is apparently part of the machinery, grrrrrrrrrr! I don’t like the stationary molding that holds the shelves up because it takes up inside space and items get caught on it. We had another brand (Maytag or whatever known brand) for forever until it died so went with the same advertised size for Frigidaire. Someone lied because this “same size” model sticker and manual (and my own eyes) is MUCH smaller than our old fridge.
Parts are constantly breaking off our Whirlpool stove so much so I had to replace all 4 elements and trays but they don’t fit flush together or to the stove top. The clock quit right off. The oven unit has to be replaced regularly. Can’t get the oven door handle screwed in securely. When the oven door is open, the gap is large so everything falls into the drawer.
All repairmen say that. Haven’t been able to use one bathroom because the drain doesn’t drain. Had 3 companies out and they never found the clog so wanted to drill through to outside foundation in to wherever the heck. I keep telling them the drain is nowhere near the outside wall and the ditch whatever it’s called where the pipes run are merely backfilled so no need to rip out the foundation. So, we haven’t had that bath for a decade or longer. The clog has to be close to the sink because you can’t wash your hands or teeth before it backs up into the tub on the opposite wall.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.