Dodged another expense

iVillage Member
Registered: 09-10-2008
Dodged another expense
3
Thu, 10-23-2008 - 4:10pm

Our 10 yr old fridge started warming up - didn't have ice cubes for company last eve, so knew something was wrong. We moved the frozen stuff to basement upright freezer, put the rest in a cooler. I dreaded shopping for a new model more than paying the price! DH and I are creatures of habit and like everything about this model. The top freezer even has a pullout rack that is perfect for small snacks DH likes. Called the guy who fixed an old fridge almost 20 yrs ago, he was here before noon, charged $65 for a freon charge and new valve. Now I know to touch the coils on the back if I think it's leaking again - the coils will be hot. Whew, now I can continue looking for new washer - I noticed that it's not spinning clothes as dry. Well, it was a used Maytag and we've gotten 15 yrs out of it. Now I want a front load model so we can save on water. The water rate here doubled starting July. Us poor seniors are paying for the new treatment plant that is needed because all the rich folks built McMansions on the edge of the city - GRRRR.

Only good part is this gave us a chance to do a good cleaning behind the fridge. DH is attaching an extension cord so we can plug the fridge into the generator if we have a power outage. DH is a nut about being able to generate power - reminds me of Tim on Home Improvement show. The first hint of a light flicker and he's ready to do battle with the generator. We wind up with the only house on the block that has lights on. He runs power extensions throughout the house so he can watch TV in comfort. At least the most recent generator purchased will run for 10 hours on a tank, so DH can get some rest. In the past, I had to keep waking him up every 2 hours, as he can't hear the alarm clock, so neither of us got much sleep. Of course, I say the generator is cheap insurance - we've had very few outages since we bought one - LOL.

Jacquie

Avatar for dustbunny48
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Thu, 10-23-2008 - 10:15pm

I've got some bad news for all of you...


One of my bosses was the CFO of the appliance division of our major brand mega-corp, and he said

Avatar for daggs170
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-25-2003
Sun, 10-26-2008 - 8:57am

I have to say that I agree with Barbara on this one.

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iVillage Member
Registered: 09-10-2008
Sun, 10-26-2008 - 4:38pm

Well, I took DH out for breakfast today (good old Steak & Shake), then we went to "window shop" at washers. The local dealer we wanted to check out is closed on Sunday, so we went to the big box stores. DH had been protesting a front loader, as he's a creature of habit. But - he saw the design of one brand, how much water we'd save and said that was it. I insisted we look around more and I check out reviews on the Internet, etc. Got home mid afternoon, found good reviews, than needed to have some lunch and relax. Didn't take long before he was itching to go back out and place the order. As my back was aching, I told him I'd pass, so he's now off placing the order. He's like a kid in a candy store once he gets started. As long as it had the cycles I wanted and was a front loader, I was happy. Price was much less than we'd expected, delivery and pickup of old washer is free, plus they use a local company for repairs. Brand is Amana, which along with Maytag, Whirlpool and several others is now under parent company GE. This is only our 2nd new washer in 50 years! The current Maytag was 10 yrs old when we bought it in early 90s, so we figure it's our last washer - LOL. Dryer is used Maytag and still going strong.

Continue to listen to Dr Ted and not overdo, you are our beacon of wellness!

Jacquie