They're Just Trying To Sell Me Soap! Aren't They?
The owner's care manual that comes with most front load washing machines (if not all of them) explicitly state to "Only Use High Efficiency (HE) Detergent". Now, we tend to be cynical when any entity tries to give us advice. If we're awake, some company is trying to sell us something. We become numb to it and just shrug it off. But there are some warnings that manufacturers give us that we really should listen to. This is one of them.
A call recently came in for a "dead" front load washer. It wouldn't do anything. But having the kind soul that many machines have today, it was displaying an error code for easy diagnosis. It turned out to be the failure of a sensor that is mounted "in" the motor on the back of the drum. And the most likely culprit for the premature failure was the use of "Non-HE" detergent!
The distressed customer was called back to let her know what failed, the cost of the repair, the availability of the parts and how much shipping would cost if she wanted to rush the order. She did. Her first question was "What could have caused it?" When told, there was a moment of silence and then a faint "But I like the organic detergents". She got lucky really. (For now anyway). Failure to use the correct detergents AND the correct amount of detergents in front load washing machines can lead to premature drum bearing failure. And that repair is much more "financially painful". The point is this. When we make big purchases, we really should read the manual AND heed the advice it gives us. It's usually for our own good. If you follow the soap manufacture's advice (in most cases) you will be using way too much detergent. (They want to sell more of it. Go figure.) The average family will use about a bottle a month.
But if you follow the washer manufacturer's advice you'll go through roughly a bottle and a half a year. The CORRECT amount of HE (High Efficiency) detergent to be used is as follows:
HE : (2) Tablespoons Per Wash Load
HE 2X : (1) Tablespoon
HE 3X : (1) Teaspoon
USE THESE AMOUNTS RELIGIOUSLY –NO EXCEPTIONS– IN ALL FRONT LOAD WASHERS WITH 3.0 cu ft DRUMS AND LARGER.
Did you hear that?
We all get used to our surroundings. My parents at one time lived near rail road tracks. When I asked them how they could sleep with a train going by so close, they said that at first it drove them nuts! Every time a train went by it woke them up! But within a few weeks, they didn't notice it at all. Even when awake they didn't notice them anymore. But as home owners, we have to be careful what we get used to. That little unfamiliar noise, if left unchecked, can become routine, "unheard" background noise in our very fast paced lives. And in time, what was originally an easy fix can become a major overhaul. Or can even turn something that we love, use everyday and paid a lot of money for into junk.That little "fwoosh-fwoosh-fwoosh" from the dryer.
That noise you never noticed before was probably just the sliders that the drum "slides" on wearing out. But you put it off and now it's a "SQUEAK-ER-SQUEAK-ER-BRRRRR-SQUEAK-ER-SQUEAK-ER-BRRRRR" and you need to have the sliders and the front and rear bearings replaced. I recently checked a GE dryer that had been let go so long that the drum had ground a hole right through the outer shell of the dryer. (How much noise must that have been making -maybe they'd lived near a rail road tracks not long ago). Or that little "tic-tic-tic" coming from your once silent refrigerator. That could be a harmless picture your child drew for you and it fell under the refrigerator and is now slowly but surely jamming up the condenser fan. The point is, address the unfamiliar things before they become familiar. It could be nothing at all, or it could save you a lot of grief and hard earned money in the long run.
Why repair?
We live in a busy world. And we have all been trained by this fast paced world to keep buying new updated stuff. If something breaks, throw it away and get a new one. But lets face it. We don't live in the most stable of world's anymore. Its time we all used a little common sense. We all need to hold on to what we have and watch what we spend. That's exactly why appliance repair, instead of replacement, makes so much sense. Quality appliances are expensive. And they all have parts that either produce or endure a lot of friction. And just like anything else, friction leads to break down and failure. And when you consider that most appliance repairs come in at well under $200, it only makes makes good fiscal sense to repair instead of replace.
Drain-O?!?! Liquid Plumber?!?!
Ah...Drain-O. The cure all, fast and easy fix. Or is it? A fellow appliance repairman tells this story:
I recently got a call from someone. Their dishwasher wouldn't drain. That's a pretty straight forward diagnosis. The drain pump isn't functioning. When I got there they told me that they put Drain-O in it and it was still clogged. Next time someone tells me that I'm going to double my price. Hopefully they won't want to spend the money to repair the machine. Maybe I should triple it just to make sure. Here's why. Any time you change the pump you have to drain it first so water doesn't pour out all over the kitchen floor. I have a little pump that attaches to a drill for that. I had to replace it when I finished because the chemicals ruined it. You never really get the machine completely drained. So it dripped on me the whole time. My forearms and hands were burned pretty good from the chemicals. My hands were raw and quite sensitive for 2 weeks. Makes it pretty tough to do what I do. Plus I had to breath the stuff the whole time. It was a miserable job.
But that's not why I don't like the stuff. Here's why. Water follows gravity, right? Well plumbing isn't always a perfect downhill slope. There are bound to be high spots somewhere. Take the air trap for instance. That's that "S" shaped pipe under the sink. That is there to trap water so the fumes from the sewer don't seep into your house. I can't tell you how many of those I've seen that are rotted out. That is caused by very corrosive chemicals being trapped and just sitting there for years. I live in a house that's over 40 years old. Last April we had a very stinky leak coming into our basement from around the main drain. I called Roto-Rooter first. (What was I thinking?)
I can't stand the service you recieve from the giants. It lived up to my expectations, plus they couldn't diagnos it correctly. I knew it was a leak, not a clog. But they wouldn't listen to me. They sent clog technicians twice when I asked for a plummer. Then I remembered my local guy. He knew what the problem was over the phone. He told me my main was leaking. That a 5'x5'x5' hole needed to be dug. He said if he dug the whole the job would cost $700. If I dug, it would be $200. Well that's a no brainer! Good thing too, because I obviously have no brain. Next time he can dig the whole! It's worth it! My middle son and I dug it. My boy said he had fun and went about his merry way when we were finished. Well it wasn't that easy for me! I ain't no spring chicken no more! I was sore for 2 weeks! Guess what caused the leak. Yep! That's right! There was a slight uphill slope for a few feet coming out of the house. Sometime in the distant past someone used some chemicals to clear a drain. It probably worked too. But then it sat in that low spot for years. It ate a foot long hole right through 1/2" thick iron!
So here is the point: If you have a clog and you can't seem to get it cleared, call a solid plumber, not the liquid one. You'll be happier in the long run. And probably spend less money in the long run too. Oh yeah, call someone local too. You'll always be happier doing that.
The owner's care manual that comes with most front load washing machines (if not all of them) explicitly state to "Only Use High Efficiency (HE) Detergent". Now, we tend to be cynical when any entity tries to give us advice. If we're awake, some company is trying to sell us something. We become numb to it and just shrug it off. But there are some warnings that manufacturers give us that we really should listen to. This is one of them.
A call recently came in for a "dead" front load washer. It wouldn't do anything. But having the kind soul that many machines have today, it was displaying an error code for easy diagnosis. It turned out to be the failure of a sensor that is mounted "in" the motor on the back of the drum. And the most likely culprit for the premature failure was the use of "Non-HE" detergent!
The distressed customer was called back to let her know what failed, the cost of the repair, the availability of the parts and how much shipping would cost if she wanted to rush the order. She did. Her first question was "What could have caused it?" When told, there was a moment of silence and then a faint "But I like the organic detergents". She got lucky really. (For now anyway). Failure to use the correct detergents AND the correct amount of detergents in front load washing machines can lead to premature drum bearing failure. And that repair is much more "financially painful". The point is this. When we make big purchases, we really should read the manual AND heed the advice it gives us. It's usually for our own good. If you follow the soap manufacture's advice (in most cases) you will be using way too much detergent. (They want to sell more of it. Go figure.) The average family will use about a bottle a month.
But if you follow the washer manufacturer's advice you'll go through roughly a bottle and a half a year. The CORRECT amount of HE (High Efficiency) detergent to be used is as follows:
HE : (2) Tablespoons Per Wash Load
HE 2X : (1) Tablespoon
HE 3X : (1) Teaspoon
USE THESE AMOUNTS RELIGIOUSLY –NO EXCEPTIONS– IN ALL FRONT LOAD WASHERS WITH 3.0 cu ft DRUMS AND LARGER.
Did you hear that?
We all get used to our surroundings. My parents at one time lived near rail road tracks. When I asked them how they could sleep with a train going by so close, they said that at first it drove them nuts! Every time a train went by it woke them up! But within a few weeks, they didn't notice it at all. Even when awake they didn't notice them anymore. But as home owners, we have to be careful what we get used to. That little unfamiliar noise, if left unchecked, can become routine, "unheard" background noise in our very fast paced lives. And in time, what was originally an easy fix can become a major overhaul. Or can even turn something that we love, use everyday and paid a lot of money for into junk.That little "fwoosh-fwoosh-fwoosh" from the dryer.
That noise you never noticed before was probably just the sliders that the drum "slides" on wearing out. But you put it off and now it's a "SQUEAK-ER-SQUEAK-ER-BRRRRR-SQUEAK-ER-SQUEAK-ER-BRRRRR" and you need to have the sliders and the front and rear bearings replaced. I recently checked a GE dryer that had been let go so long that the drum had ground a hole right through the outer shell of the dryer. (How much noise must that have been making -maybe they'd lived near a rail road tracks not long ago). Or that little "tic-tic-tic" coming from your once silent refrigerator. That could be a harmless picture your child drew for you and it fell under the refrigerator and is now slowly but surely jamming up the condenser fan. The point is, address the unfamiliar things before they become familiar. It could be nothing at all, or it could save you a lot of grief and hard earned money in the long run.
Why repair?
We live in a busy world. And we have all been trained by this fast paced world to keep buying new updated stuff. If something breaks, throw it away and get a new one. But lets face it. We don't live in the most stable of world's anymore. Its time we all used a little common sense. We all need to hold on to what we have and watch what we spend. That's exactly why appliance repair, instead of replacement, makes so much sense. Quality appliances are expensive. And they all have parts that either produce or endure a lot of friction. And just like anything else, friction leads to break down and failure. And when you consider that most appliance repairs come in at well under $200, it only makes makes good fiscal sense to repair instead of replace.
Drain-O?!?! Liquid Plumber?!?!
Ah...Drain-O. The cure all, fast and easy fix. Or is it? A fellow appliance repairman tells this story:
I recently got a call from someone. Their dishwasher wouldn't drain. That's a pretty straight forward diagnosis. The drain pump isn't functioning. When I got there they told me that they put Drain-O in it and it was still clogged. Next time someone tells me that I'm going to double my price. Hopefully they won't want to spend the money to repair the machine. Maybe I should triple it just to make sure. Here's why. Any time you change the pump you have to drain it first so water doesn't pour out all over the kitchen floor. I have a little pump that attaches to a drill for that. I had to replace it when I finished because the chemicals ruined it. You never really get the machine completely drained. So it dripped on me the whole time. My forearms and hands were burned pretty good from the chemicals. My hands were raw and quite sensitive for 2 weeks. Makes it pretty tough to do what I do. Plus I had to breath the stuff the whole time. It was a miserable job.
But that's not why I don't like the stuff. Here's why. Water follows gravity, right? Well plumbing isn't always a perfect downhill slope. There are bound to be high spots somewhere. Take the air trap for instance. That's that "S" shaped pipe under the sink. That is there to trap water so the fumes from the sewer don't seep into your house. I can't tell you how many of those I've seen that are rotted out. That is caused by very corrosive chemicals being trapped and just sitting there for years. I live in a house that's over 40 years old. Last April we had a very stinky leak coming into our basement from around the main drain. I called Roto-Rooter first. (What was I thinking?)
I can't stand the service you recieve from the giants. It lived up to my expectations, plus they couldn't diagnos it correctly. I knew it was a leak, not a clog. But they wouldn't listen to me. They sent clog technicians twice when I asked for a plummer. Then I remembered my local guy. He knew what the problem was over the phone. He told me my main was leaking. That a 5'x5'x5' hole needed to be dug. He said if he dug the whole the job would cost $700. If I dug, it would be $200. Well that's a no brainer! Good thing too, because I obviously have no brain. Next time he can dig the whole! It's worth it! My middle son and I dug it. My boy said he had fun and went about his merry way when we were finished. Well it wasn't that easy for me! I ain't no spring chicken no more! I was sore for 2 weeks! Guess what caused the leak. Yep! That's right! There was a slight uphill slope for a few feet coming out of the house. Sometime in the distant past someone used some chemicals to clear a drain. It probably worked too. But then it sat in that low spot for years. It ate a foot long hole right through 1/2" thick iron!
So here is the point: If you have a clog and you can't seem to get it cleared, call a solid plumber, not the liquid one. You'll be happier in the long run. And probably spend less money in the long run too. Oh yeah, call someone local too. You'll always be happier doing that.
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