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Went through this last year. Appliances came with the house. One by one they started breaking. I looked up all the serial numbers online to find out the age. Pretty much everything was 5-14 yrs old. First the stove broke. It wasn't worth fixing after finding out what the service call cost. So we replaced it. Then the dishwasher broke. I could replace with a similar model but it was high end at 900. It needed a new motor and cost me 265.00. Well worth getting fixed. Then the dryer kept breaking. My husband could fix that and we had to keep replacing the sensor. 35 each time. It was a huge PITA, taking the drum out and getting it lined up again. The washer was 14 yrs old and the dryer was 10. We decided to replace and get a set that actually matched. WOO HOO. I hate using credit so we try to save and pay cash to buy new and fix the older stuff (if its worth it) to give us more time before the next big purchase.
Yah, no CC hard cold cash only for me too... appliance or not.
Although I will say...
I like old(er) appliances much better (having used both old and new) and found many older appliances lasts much longer than newer models (they keep having this recall, that recall and then breaking even before the 10 years; hence warranty highly recommended).... like maytag DW catching on fire during the dry cycle, Top loading washer problems , Kenmore fridge being "inferior" even since from first bought (my MIL constantly complains about hers top loaders & fridge) had it service twice from where it came from....
I love *still love* that old "fugly" avocado green GE electric stove I inherited when I had my first house.... even if that thing looks ugly, it works like a tank and probably is still going strong today... function over beauty... old build quality vs new expendable technology... money in the long run.
The design of these appliances has not changed that much in the past ten years.
A dishwasher that isn't cleaning well could have as simple a problem as a worn impeller not pressurizing the flow through the spray arms, or crud built up in the spray orifices. There is no magic to how these things work, and I get a belly laugh that people are so gullible that they really think nozzles and pumps have been technologically "improved" in the past ten years. Gimmie a break. FURTHER... the "energy savings" setting on many of the new washers is nothing but grease paint on a two dollar ****. It is ONE setting, that most people find won't clean a single spoon, so they use it once then switch to the different settings which happily consume the same amount of water and power that every dishwasher since the 1950s has used. Get real, folks. Learn to separate fact from marketing fiction.
A clothes washer can have a leak in the tank, a leak around the transmission, a leak in a hose, and so on. All are fixable, although a leak going through the transmission would be cause for concern.
There ARE some parts where replacing the unit can make more sense than repairing the part, but if I sold used appliances, I'd be loving y'all for supplying me with free equipment. You have been so seriously suckered into the "replace instead of repair" mode that it is the first thing that comes to your minds.
The design of these appliances has not changed that much in the past ten years.
....
OK... if that is the case..
Then why aren't the new washers, DW, appliances in general NOT lasting as long as the old ones???
Do you think it may be the "MIC" (made in china) parts that is not holding up that well??? Eg. like that washer, nut or bolt made from inferior steel quality that strips easier or that spring that cracks and deteriorated???
It all depends on the appliance and design. I bought a used exercycle for DW a little while back. Rather than have what was essentially a standard bicycle brake cable terminate at a metal connection to the actuating motor, a bit of plastic formed part was used. It had broken, and I rigged a wooden part to replace it and have more strength. The same downgrading of materials is found everywhere. The on-off switch on our Electrolux vacuum also uses a plastic part that has a limited stress range and lifetime. Making the same part from metal would require machining and double its cost.
Then there are the electronics - it is a KNOWN fact that solder that doesn't contain lead can create dendrites and cause circuits to fail over a few year period, yet, the eco-nuts demanded all lead be removed from solder, against the wishes of engineers. Don't even get me started on the state of California regulations, which often form the leading edge of insanity.
New makers of products OFTEN have a learning curve, where the product designers figure out the best materials and ways of doing things. In the past, when products started breaking, the engineers held sway over bean-counters wanting cheap materials, because the return and repair rate was eating into profits and new sales. When Datsun ripped off the design of the Mustang to make the B-210, it used inferior materials- specifically cheap steel that rotted away. While you might see an old Mustang or numbers of old Volkswagens, good luck on finding a Datsun B-210 that isn't a hunk of rust. Datsun learned, changed the name to distance itself from mistakes, and moved on.
So to directly answer your question, the problems are poor design, improper materials being used, and cost accounting that has no check and balance, since warranty fullfillment is farmed out to some third party company. All of the problems are solvable, but only with regulation and review. In the past, companies did this on their own, the marketplace today no longer promotes such ethical behavior.
It all depends on the appliance and design. I bought a used exercycle for DW a little while back. Rather than have what was essentially a standard bicycle brake cable terminate at a metal connection to the actuating motor, a bit of plastic formed part was used. It had broken, and I rigged a wooden part to replace it and have more strength. The same downgrading of materials is found everywhere. The on-off switch on our Electrolux vacuum also uses a plastic part that has a limited stress range and lifetime. Making the same part from metal would require machining and double its cost.
Then there are the electronics - it is a KNOWN fact that solder that doesn't contain lead can create dendrites and cause circuits to fail over a few year period, yet, the eco-nuts demanded all lead be removed from solder, against the wishes of engineers. Don't even get me started on the state of California regulations, which often form the leading edge of insanity.
New makers of products OFTEN have a learning curve, where the product designers figure out the best materials and ways of doing things. In the past, when products started breaking, the engineers held sway over bean-counters wanting cheap materials, because the return and repair rate was eating into profits and new sales. When Datsun ripped off the design of the Mustang to make the B-210, it used inferior materials- specifically cheap steel that rotted away. While you might see an old Mustang or numbers of old Volkswagens, good luck on finding a Datsun B-210 that isn't a hunk of rust. Datsun learned, changed the name to distance itself from mistakes, and moved on.
So to directly answer your question, the problems are poor design, improper materials being used, and cost accounting that has no check and balance, since warranty fullfillment is farmed out to some third party company. All of the problems are solvable, but only with regulation and review. In the past, companies did this on their own, the marketplace today no longer promotes such ethical behavior.
You are right!
Great points... thanks for opening my eyes.
Washing machine: hasn't overflowed, hasn't made the grindy, rubbing sound again, so we'll wait and see. Can a washing machine have a bad day?
Dishwasher: Husband worked from home last week, took every part off that was inside the dishwasher and soaked them all in vinegar to get the crud off. Voila, much improved washing.
So the washing machine did its intermittent flooding thing again and I did get a guy in to look at it. Turns out we need a new motor and several other parts that total over $400 including labor and with a 40% discount on parts. So we'll be getting a new machine soon.
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I hate using credit so we try to save and pay cash to buy new and fix the older stuff (if its worth it) to give us more time before the next big purchase.
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