New Washing Machine.

[worth1]

I didn't do a lot of shopping because if I did I would still be shopping and no clean clothes.
My hoodie hasn't been washed in a coons age.
I washed clothes by hand for a very very long time because I was hurting so bad I couldn't really move stuff around to make room.

[Sue_CT]

Speed Queen was actually the number 1 most reliable brand on Consumer Reports. LG was no. 2.

[zeuspaul]

Many (20?) years ago I called Maytag customer service to complain about a Maytag washer (my front loader?). I mentioned how good Maytag's reputation was for making quality washing machines and this one failed in 5? years. I was surprised to hear the response. You can't expect the new ones to last as long as the old ones! Because? The new ones have a lot of electronics.

[worth1]

Too many electronics.

[slugworth]

they want you to buy a new machine often.
my dishwasher is from 1974 and has a solenoid on the drain.
try getting one like that now.

[karstopography]

We got rid of our Maytag Bravos washer. It was four or five years old. Had something significant repaired once, something with the spin cycle was underbuilt in my opinion, but the parts and labor cost a good amount. Then something else went bad. Not going to sink anymore money into repairs for what I felt was a badly designed and built machine.

Got an LG, so far so good. Seems a bit more ruggedly built and better designed. I felt like every corner that could have been cut was cut with the Maytag. The steel exterior sheet metal frame rusted almost immediately. Anything but the lightest load with the maytag overwhelmed the balance of the spin cycle and only got marginally better with the replacement part. We should have kept the Fisher Paykel, but that got sold along as part of the deal with our old house. I replaced a water pump in the fisher paykel for $65 dollar, other than that it was great for many years.

[worth1]

I remember my mom using an old wringer type washer on the back porch.
That was around the time Kennedy was elected.
1960 or so.
You won't find one picture showing a man washing clothes back then.
I remember the old advertisements about washing powder and so on where it was practically a wife's reputation as to how she washed clothes and made coffee cooked or anything else around the place.

[karstopography]

I remember my mom using an old wringer type washer on the back porch.
That was around the time Kennedy was elected.
1960 or so.
You won't find one picture showing a man washing clothes back then.
I remember the old advertisements about washing powder and so on where it was practically a wife's reputation as to how she washed clothes and made coffee cooked or anything else around the place.

I have always thought that any man or any woman ought to be able to do whatever it takes to take care of themselves and general household business, like washing clothes, cleaning or cooking, and also be able to make some sort of living.

All the women in my family could and did work outside the home. My mom quit school teaching starting when I was in first grade, but only because I escaped and walked home from the horrendous after school dungeon/after school care my folks put me in. Mom did some side work, bookkeeping, clerical or something, but not where it kept her from being home when my school day was done. Her mom owned and operated a restaurant. I never knew her when she didn’t work until she was much, much older. Dad’s mom worked later, but maybe not when he and his three siblings were little.

My dad was cooking and cleaning and do all that and more starting around 13. He worked on a private yacht as deckhand and cook and head cleaner and everything else since he was thirteen, when he wasn’t in school and up until he was seventeen or so.

His dad could do it all, too. Fix and build anything. Knew how to do housework when needed. I always thought it was strange and bizarre when I went to friend’s houses and there were these rigid sex roles. I remember being over at a friend’s house playing cards or something and my friend’s wife had to stop in the middle of the game to fix her dad’s dinner, no questions asked and with no delay. Go fix your own dinner if you want it now, your are a grown man for goodness sake!

[worth1]

There was am older woman in Lake Jackson that asked us how to use the gas pump.
Her husband had passed away and she had never pumped gas in her life.
It was the old school pump back before there were so many thieves.
My wife never trusted me to do my own laundry for some stupid reason.
But I did anyway.
I couldn't care less what I'm washing with what most of the time.

[bower]

I remember the old wringer washers. For sure my grandmother had one, I think we might've had one too.
I have this little scrubbing board - forgot what they called them - for hand washing, with the heavy rippled glass where you scrub against. It's broken now, sadly. Those were great for anything really dirty like garden clothes.
My mother also worked outside the home. At home I was expected to learn all household tasks including sewing and knitting, don't remember the boys doing that, but Dad certainly cooked sometimes and cleaned up as well when he was home, and we all did home maintenance together such as painting the house.
I may start to take pride of laundry seriously, if I get a snazzy new machine.
Electrolux is another brand that seems to be highly rated. I remember Speed Queen only from the laundromat, they don't seem to be commonly available here. LG, GE, Whirlpool there seem to be lots of models.

[greenthumbomaha]

I have been busy with big ticket items the past week.

If you haven't replaced your HVAC for 30 years, be in for a disappointment. I needed a new furnace 2 years ago and last summer the AC stopped cooling during the relentless heatwaves in August. The metal in the new model is terribly thin in comparison. Even I can tell it's light when I tap it. It still stops with a jolt, no improvement there. And I'm not impressed with the cooling. When my furnace was replaced the salesman didn't mention a 2 story house this size should have a two stage b;ower, I was focused on researching brands instead. Thus the blower on the new ac is still under powered to the upper story, and I have to run a tabletop fan at night. Money wise over 10k ...no tax credit for efficicncy and a higher summer cooling bill than the old unit.

Fast forward to now. My son lives in a 10 year old modern style split level starter tract house. According to the HVAC tech who just completed a look over with the 8.88 Home Depot Black Friday "tune up" deal, so many metal parts are wearing down he could send a salesperson out for a replacement estimate. They show you live photos so no switcheroo. Lifetime is now 10-15 years on name brand HVAC but the IRS still considers 27 year lifetime on residential rentals. Quite a difference of opinion.

Thankfully, I got a warranty repair just this week. My 5 year old car went in for an oil change, and came out a week later (issued a brand new loaner car which was like being on vacation lol), I have a a new transmission replaced under recall (also extended warranty) which advisor said was valued at 14K but paperwork showed 10K. They noticed it was slipping, what can I say.

I also bought a lamp at Lowes for ten dollars, not 10K so I was excited about that purchase.

Now I can get back to packing seeds ...

- Lisa

[Paulf]

I spoke too soon…as soon as I praised Whirlpool our dishwasher went kaput. I just found out how few repair people there are. Tuesday one will arrive…stay tuned.

[bower]

You know your appliances have too much electronics, when they start acting up because you talked about em on the internet...

[worth1]

I miss the washers with the spring timers on them.

[pondgardener]

@bower We had a wringer type washing machine until the early 70's and no dryer. Wash was done only when clothes could be hung outside on a line. And I agree with @worth1 about the spring timers. The electronics on modern appliances are an expensive item to replace or try to troubleshoot.

[worth1]

I remember going out and getting the frozen clothes off the line.

[worth1]

I miss the washers with the spring timers on them.

I think they might have ran off a little motor too not for sure.

[bower]

I remember going out and getting the frozen clothes off the line.

No joke that's where I'm at. Clothes on the line today, sunshine and breezy but -1C. freeze dryer.

@pondgardener I haven't had a dryer since I moved here 30+ years ago. Just got used to washing when the drying was good. But for some reason I find that harder now than I used to. Maybe the weather is worse?

There's a dryer I was tempted to get - a spin dryer. Panda makes them now, sells on Amazon for around $300. These machines spin so much moisture out of your clothes that they are practically dry already, so they say. That way I could stick with 'fresh off the line' laundry smell with a lot less disappointment, in less perfect drying conditions.
OTOH if I get a new washer, I was hoping that would have a really good spin cycle - which my old machine does not. Clothes are too wet to dry easily.

[worth1]

It takes two days to dry out a soaking wet pair of jeans on the line here in the summer.
It all depends on the humidity.

[worth1]

We also had an old cast iron wood stove we hung clothes up next to so they would dry.
Stove also kept the house warm except for my bedroom.
I had a wee gas heater that wasn't turned down to low.