November 7, 2012

Random Fall musings

Did I tell you another appliance broke? 2 weeks without a washer…not a pretty sight. It would have been more easily handled during the warm summer months. I searched and found the queen of throw back machines, Speed Queen actually. I was so done with the fancy computer mother board, front loading, pedestal sitting machines. I’ve owned 3. 1 was Consumer Reports’ Best Buy and the other was a CR recommended high end one. The latest one, was on clearance, and a well rated one. I knew better, but with all the rebates, it was a really good deal, or so we thought. We seriously can’t afford to buy another machine, let alone one that won’t last. When the mother board goes out, they want hundreds of dollars to replace. Our latest, needed a new belt, AGAIN. Grrrrrrr. Last time it was $50 just for the belt, and another nice chunk for the hourly rate of a repair guy. This is one appliance that for a family of 6 is not a want; it is a need.

I did my usual and checked reviews, CR, and local stores. It occurred to me, why do all machines nowadays need replacing so often? Well, most likely because machines that need replacing more often are good for business. It makes us consumers, constant consumers. Think about it. If our appliances and machines lasted our lifetimes (much like they used to , like they did for our grandparents), then the business would no longer have us as consumers. So at some point, quality was taken out of the equation for good business models. And we are now a society of people who think like consumers and the things we buy as disposable.

I’ve had it with the latest and greatest, shiny and new. I don’t really care what my washing machine looks like, or whether it plays me a pretty song when it finishes. I just want a washing machine that is simple and cleans our clothes. That’s when I saw this beauty:

Oh, man!! This thing is build like a tank. Doesn’t it remind you of a laundromat? Well, maybe that’s because it a commercial machine. And get this, if anything goes wrong in the next three years, they’ll fix and replace parts for free. With our track record of needing repairs every 2 years, that sounded better than the skimpy 1 year warranty other machines give you.

It works extremely well. After using a front loader for 12 years, I am wondering why I didn’t notice how not clean my clothes were getting. It also only takes 35 minutes or so to do a large load. Instead of the over an hour per load front loader. It’s also a lot quieter and doesn’t have balance issues. ETA: different load size capability! Forgot washers could do that. Perfect for when I have new fabric that I want to wash all by itself. My teenage daughter does her own laundry and now can customize the water level to the load she is doing. But the best thing is this:

It’s been a long time since we had a giant box in the house! The best toy ever!! My daughter has been practically living in it for days. She’s been calling for food delivery (she got a hold of someone’s cell phone and my husband’s been pretending to be different restaurants), and inviting visitors. Not sure why someone decided her home address should be “666,” but her home was made in the USA (it says so right on the exterior).

Recently, she came home for a visit and made us this: