Your recent repair? - 2021 to ?

[Happyras]

For those that are unaware, all microwave ovens have this safety design to stop from running when opening the oven. Best to use the stop button first, as when this switch is enabled power is applied through it if running and shorts the fuse. Each time it arcs, overtime it will weld the contacts closed.

 

[chicamuxen]

I saw that one of my neighbors was asking for recommendations for a bike shop to change her flat bicycle tire. I offered to fix it for her.

It turns out that she lives right across the street, we hadn’t met yet. Her bike is the same make/model as one of mine so I had a spare tube on hand. While I had the bike in the stand I gave it a quick tune up (she hadn’t had it serviced in over ten years).

It was a win all around. She has a functioning bike, I had some fun practicing my burgeoning mechanic skills, and hopefully we’ve begun a nice neighborly relationship.

That sure sounds like a win win to me!

 

[gutterman]

Great thread. I too, am not willing to go through the pain of dealing with an appliance repair person. Schedule, inspect, reschedule, wait for parts, install. It just a hassle I rather avoid by either fixing or buying new.

This month I had back to back failures. Our GE Monogram DW was not cleaning and draining, ordered a new inverter driven drain pump. The impeller lost all but two vanes, had to buy the whole pump. Just over 4 years old and this is my 4th repair on the DW. Last time the cheap diverter plastic housing broke and would not hold the wash ducts. A stainless screw seems to hold just fine.

Then my built in 4 Yr old Thermador Microwave (which I hate) died. Without a schematic I had to do some learning, but I found the very common "safety" interlock NC switch on the left latch had frozen welded contacts. Typical issue that is "designed" to short out the power and blow the fuse. I replaced with a old spare switch until I got the exact fit. Took a few tries with blowing fuses, as the timing of the door opening/switch sequence is super tight. Worn latch parts can make the sequence off. I finally found out I could have bought the Bosch OEM switch assemblies with new latch plates for cheap. Must be a real common problem for Bosch and Thermador.

I did this repair because I dreaded spending an excessive price for a lower quality dishwasher than I already had. About a year and a half ago the what I will call the evaporator fan went out on my 13 year old GE refrigerator. It was a fan that blew on the compressor. I had already completed two other minor repairs on this refrigerator, the fan was no longer offered by GE, and my wife was tired of using a neighbor's refrigerator while I tried to figure it out. I wanted to try to find and replace the motor in the fan thinking GE probably just buys them from someone else. She wanted to buy a new refrigerator and move on. So I gave in and said OK. We now realize we loved that 13 year old GE refrigerator. The new one is loud and cheaply made. I really wish I had the delivery guys put the old one downstairs in my garage, because I would have fixed it and moved it back upstairs! Sadly they hauled it away.

 

[Yipper]

15 year old Asko dishwasher started making strange noises while running. I started paying closer attention to WHEN the weird noises were happening and they seemed to only be during the wash cycle, not the drain cycle.

The noises sounded like bearings in a pump going so I figured it was the recirculation pump and not the drain pump... fingers crossed!

Unfortunately this model is fairly old and a new pump didn't seem to be available anywhere online - the usual appliance parts sites that is. So off to eBay and there you go - NOS pump brand new in the box for a decent price compared to what the new ones WOULD have been if they were still available.

Few days later the pump arrives and it's time to take the dishwasher apart. I've fixed several appliances over the years because I'm handy but never a dishwasher. To my surprise they are probably one of the simplest appliances after taking this one apart and seeing how few parts there are. Wasn't too tough to take out the old pump and put in the new pump but the hose clamp needed to be replaced as well due to the originals being single use "crimp on" types. I replaced with a screw on from the local hardware store (and grabbed some thread lock too as I figured the vibrations could loosen the screw type hose clamp).

Put it all back together and everything seemed fine on a test run except for the water coming out onto the kitchen floor... Doh! Must have done something wrong! Took it all back out and found that I just hadn't pushed the hose onto the pump far enough so that was easy to rectify.

Two runs into the new pump and no water leaks... and a great feeling of accomplishment.

 

[JoeWras]

Good job. Dishwashers are repairable. The new hose clamp is a common thing required on repairs of all brands.

 

[Time2]

Two runs into the new pump and no water leaks... and a great feeling of accomplishment.

Do you mean like this?

 

[freedomatlast]

About a year and a half ago the what I will call the evaporator fan went out on my 13 year old GE refrigerator. It was a fan that blew on the compressor.

The evaporator fan is in the freezer compartment next to the evaporator, not anywhere near the compressor. You may have meant the condenser fan which is located near the compressor.

 

[Cayman]

The control panel lights went out on our 6 year old GE dishwasher and by all appearances was dead. After a bit of work determined the upper control board was defective. Ordered a new one from GE for about $90. Removed the door, split the door open, installed the new board, and reassembled. Works just fine now. Wasn't all that hard and most of my time was spent researching on the internet how to diagnose which part was bad.

Nice job!!!

 

[Yipper]

Do you mean like this?

Hahaha. Exactly… DW was impressed but didn’t seem to want to keep talking about it as long as I did. [emoji4]

 

[skyking1]

^
We primed and painted my work ride door. I had killed it with a careless moment and the dump truck. Something had to give and the dump truck was not impressed with that puny metal.

I pulled and prepped the channel iron "have a nice day" bumper on the dump truck.
I shot a conversion coat on it, and then put 3 batches of bondo on it. I had no idea how deformed big channel is from the forming process.

I sanded and primed and used glazing putty on the pinholes, then fogged on some black single stage.

 

[Qs Laptop]

^
We primed and painted my work ride door. I had killed it with a careless moment and the dump truck. Something had to give and the dump truck was not impressed with that puny metal.


I pulled and prepped the channel iron "have a nice day" bumper on the dump truck.
I shot a conversion coat on it, and then put 3 batches of bondo on it. I had no idea how deformed big channel is from the forming process.

I sanded and primed and used glazing putty on the pinholes, then fogged on some black single stage.

I applaud your skill and knowledge.

I wish I had the skill to paint automotive stuff.

 

[Qs Laptop]

I had a small leak under my aging Maytag wash machine, circa 1994. I pulled the front panel off and discovered a small amount of water showing on the connection between the washer tub drain nipple and the washer tub drain hose. I removed the washer tub drain hose and discovered the washer tub drain nipple was corroded.

I blew into the open end of the washer tub drain hose and confirmed the washer drain pump was free flowing.

I removed the other end of the washer tub drain hose from the drain pump and completely cleaned out the hose by running fresh water through it and scraping the rusted on gunk out of the end that connects to the washer tub. I reattached the hose and when I placed the hose clamp on the washer tub drain nipple I repositioned the hose clamp as high up on the nipple as I could. There was just enough metal remaining so that I got a solid connection.

I tested the washer by running it through a rinse cycle. No leaks. Maybe I bought another 5-10 years out of the old workhorse!

 

[John Galt III]

Speaking of refrigerators, my GE Hotpoint from 1986 keeps humming away stalwartly, with me vacuuming off the coils every now and then. It makes a click sound whenever it turns off or on. Supposedly it is a 'relay' which has gotten loud. The click gets a little louder every year. It isn't annoying, and I have researched how to replace it, but can't remember how right now. Have made notes, so if I need to replace it, I will have the directions. Oh, I also have an even older fridge in the basement I can use if necessary.

 

[ERD50]

I had a small leak under my aging Maytag wash machine, circa 1994. ....

I tested the washer by running it through a rinse cycle. No leaks. Maybe I bought another 5-10 years out of the old workhorse!

Another 5-10 years could be a pretty reasonable guess. Check out this old thread from 2013, that 1986 Maytag washer was still working fine when we sold the house in 2021 (washer was 35 YO by then):
https://www.early-retirement.org/forums/f27/crazy-to-try-to-fix-a-27-yo-wash-machine-67469-2.html

Was tempted to take it with us just for 'bragging rights".

-ERD50

 

[skyking1]

good on you for fixing the washing machine, @Qs
These days new is not necessarily better. The old machines with analog timers don't crap out on you when a circuit board or 3! fails.

 

[Qs Laptop]

good on you for fixing the washing machine, @Qs
These days new is not necessarily better. The old machines with analog timers don't crap out on you when a circuit board or 3! fails.

I was somewhat surprised to see the sparse innards of this washing machine. Not much to see here. A large tub, a motor to spin the tub, counterweights on the rotating shaft and springs anchoring the tub to the frame. Some hoses, a drain pump, and a large belt turning a couple of pulley wheels. Mostly mechanical engineering.

Also, the somewhat large power transformer mounted on a spring platform was kind of fun to watch jiggle when the machine was running.

 

[Qs Laptop]

Another 5-10 years could be a pretty reasonable guess. Check out this old thread from 2013, that 1986 Maytag washer was still working fine when we sold the house in 2021 (washer was 35 YO by then):
https://www.early-retirement.org/forums/f27/crazy-to-try-to-fix-a-27-yo-wash-machine-67469-2.html

Was tempted to take it with us just for 'bragging rights".

-ERD50

That was a fun thread. I loved your line to the poster that wanted you to get a newer, water saving machine. "Hmmm, to save even a single $100 in water a year would mean using 2,000 gallons less a week! We could grow flowers in the desert with one of those modern machines! Just plug it in and more water comes out than goes in!" LOL!

We moved into our house in 1997 and were kind of pleased that it had a new washer/dryer set. I was especially pleased they were Maytags. The family we bought it from had two younger boys and after we moved in we had two boys as well. So our washer has seen plenty, plenty of use. Like yours back in 2013, this is the first time I've even looked at the washer with the intent of figuring out what was wrong with it. I've replaced the drive belt on the dryer twice in 26 years.

Like you, ours is in a closet behind bifold doors and I'd rather fix it than go through the hassle of getting a new one. I also believe that a new one would likely have a problem at some point within 5 or 6 years.

I'm just wondering why the tub drain nipple got corroded in the first place?

 

[ERD50]

That was a fun thread. I loved your line to the poster that wanted you to get a newer, water saving machine. "Hmmm, to save even a single $100 in water a year would mean using 2,000 gallons less a week! We could grow flowers in the desert with one of those modern machines! Just plug it in and more water comes out than goes in!" LOL! ...

Hah, I forgot about that line! I started that thread with some light-hearted fun in mind, asking if I was "crazy" to try to fix this. But then the naysayers got to me, and I ramped it up quite a bit. I actually made myself LOL re-reading it Good to see someone else shares my twisted sense of humor.

I mentioned this to DW, and kidded about how we should have kept it so I really could see how long it lasted - she said "I wish we had, it was a lot better than the new one we got!"

I'm just wondering why the tub drain nipple got corroded in the first place?

I guess just the combination of soapy water sitting there, and time. I just recalled, DD sold her townhouse recently, and as luck would have it, the washer started leaking just before a walk-through. I looked at it, the tub was pretty well rusted out, and it wasn't that old. I guess she gave them a credit for a new one, I said probably not worth fixing.

-ERD50

 

[doneat54]

Speaking of refrigerators, my GE Hotpoint from 1986 keeps humming away stalwartly, with me vacuuming off the coils every now and then. It makes a click sound whenever it turns off or on. Supposedly it is a 'relay' which has gotten loud. The click gets a little louder every year. It isn't annoying, and I have researched how to replace it, but can't remember how right now. Have made notes, so if I need to replace it, I will have the directions. Oh, I also have an even older fridge in the basement I can use if necessary.

My 1956 GE Beer Fridge in our 120 year old barn still does beer chilling duty fine. It gets a rest and gets emptied in Oct/Nov each fall and gets shut down until the next spring... enduring internal barn temps that have reached 2 degrees F.

 

[John Galt III]

My 1956 GE Beer Fridge in our 120 year old barn still does beer chilling duty fine. It gets a rest and gets emptied in Oct/Nov each fall and gets shut down until the next spring... enduring internal barn temps that have reached 2 degrees F.

Wow, that is an old fridge! I don't even know how old my basement fridge is. It's almond green, freezer on top. I was able to modify the thermostat to get the fridge up to 45 degrees, for lagering my home brew. Somebody told me I had to turn it on every so often to keep the refrigerant lines from doing something bad, so I used to run it a for a day once a year, but I then heard run that was not necessary, so I just leave it alone.

 

[skyking1]

I'm still plugging away on Fits and finishes at work on the vehicles.

 

[Blue Poles]

Our garage door opener has been failing to close, and no amount of adjustments seem to have helped. This week it failed completely, wouldn't open or close. The control board is no longer manufactured, but I found some online for around $150. I checked and found out that new openers are $200, so I bought one this afternoon and three hours later it's installed and working fine. It helped that it was the same brand, so the mounting equipment could be reused. Probably could have done it a bit quicker, but boy was it hot in the garage this afternoon. Now just have to program the home link in the Subaru to the new opener.

The new opener has WiFi and can be controlled by an app. I'll try connecting it tomorrow. I already have a Nest camera in the garage, but being able to open and close the door remotely will be nice if it works as advertised.

 

[Qs Laptop]

I replaced the cartridge in my Leland Delta kitchen faucet. This is the third time in 12 years I've had to replace it to mitigate dripping. It's a good thing Delta offers a lifetime warranty on faucet cartridges.

Also, I had to tighten the bolt under the sink that holds the faucet in place. I've had to do this at least 5 or 6 times in the past 12 years. I've even purchased the special tool from Delta to (supposedly) make it easier. It's not easy to do even with the tool.

This faucet is by far them most disappointing purchase I've made in the past 25 years.

We redid the master bathroom a couple years ago and I foolishly went with a Delta faucet. It doesn't drip but the darn bolt that holds it tight does come loose. It's a bit easier to access so I'm not to mad about it.

When we redid the main bath I went with a Moen faucet.

 

[ls99]

Received pulley for my lawn tractor. Replaced. Good for 6 months, six thousand miles or until I hit a rock in deep weeds.

 

[Qs Laptop]

Our garage door opener has been failing to close, and no amount of adjustments seem to have helped. This week it failed completely, wouldn't open or close. The control board is no longer manufactured, but I found some online for around $150. I checked and found out that new openers are $200, so I bought one this afternoon and three hours later it's installed and working fine. It helped that it was the same brand, so the mounting equipment could be reused. Probably could have done it a bit quicker, but boy was it hot in the garage this afternoon. Now just have to program the home link in the Subaru to the new opener.

The new opener has WiFi and can be controlled by an app. I'll try connecting it tomorrow. I already have a Nest camera in the garage, but being able to open and close the door remotely will be nice if it works as advertised.

Not sure how cold it gets where you live but in my experience (Minnesota) I always have garage door opener problems in the depths of winter!

I've been band-aiding my garage door opener for at least 10 years now. I applaud your decision to go new and I bet you will love the wifi accessibility.

If you are away from your house will you be able to check your Nest camera to see if the garage door is open, and if it is will you be able to close it remotely?