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Most repairs are easy, so it is worth taking a look online to see what is involved before hauling an appliance to the dump.
My dryer refused to run and I thought maybe I'd inadvertently set the child safety lock, again. I'd done it before. So I went online to see how to take the lock off. It wasn't the child safety lock, but at the same time, a bunch of information came up about a thermal fuse that would stop the dryer from running.
Yes. $6 for the fuse if ordered online and $11 from a local store. A couple of screws to remove the front panel and the fuse plugged in and the dryer now works fine. It would have been a 10 minute job for a total amateur, except that the family mechanic pulled the machine out to clean the inside and to check that the vent wasn't blocked, and then rerouted the dryer hose. So, it took about an hour, not counting the time to drive to the store and get the part.
$11 is a heck of a lot more economical than buying a new large upright dryer.
I've paid 2 hour minimum plus mileage to have a repairman come out and take 3 minutes to clean the opening between the freezer and the refrigerator half of the appliance. A frozen pea had blocked the vent. So I check that now before calling for professional help.
I've also, in the past, paid a service call only to find out the heat wasn't working because the filter was dirty.
Google is fairly efficient. It is worth it to take a minute or so to find out if the problem is something cheap and really easy to fix. I won't try anything complicated but often it is something really minor. Like pressing the reset button on the garbage disposal. I hate to pay the professional over $100 to come out and do something like that.
I fix my appliances myself unless they're still under warranty.
I had to replace the fill valve for my washing machine a couple of months ago. The part was $85 purchased locally and took about 15 minutes to put in. The way I knew it was bad is that it dumped water all over the floor, which was harder to take care of than the actual repair.
The infinite switch in a stove is another easy repair.
Well, just because they get taken to the dump doesn't mean they stay there. We've gotten appliances from the dump before and fixed them. The washer & dryer we left at the last house was from the dump. The set before them were also from the dump. There's some small plastic part on a washing machine between the motor and the tub that will go out. If you can't find a good one on a different washer (the part is pretty similar from one machine to the next), it's under $10 to buy one new.
We get printers and microwaves that have nothing wrong with them other than folks took them to the dump and set them beside the dumpster since they knew they were still good.
Frequently, it will just be a fuse or something small. If it's not an easy fix after all, we can always take them back to the dump.
With a little utube instruction I have fixed washers, dryer, and refrigerator over the years.
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