I used to swear off used parts for washer repairs. Thought it was just asking for a callback in a few months. But then I was fixing a 10 year old Samsung washer for a lady in Oak Park and the original control board was over $200 new. She was about to throw the whole machine out. I found a guy on Facebook who parts out appliances and he had a board for $40. I figured what the heck, I'll try it. Popped it in and that washer has been running fine for 8 months now. That one interaction made me realize I was being stubborn about something that actually works. Has anyone else had good luck with used parts on older machines?
I been using a basic voltage tester for years on fridge repairs and figured a multimeter was just extra steps. Then I was chasing a no-cool call on a Whirlpool side-by-side in Denver that kept tripping the breaker after an hour of runtime. Took me 45 minutes to find the tiny short in the defrost heater harness because my tester couldn't show resistance variance - anyone else switched tools after something like this?
He was dead serious, claiming he can guess a capacitor by the hum. I just nodded, but in 12 years of running my own route I've never seen anyone skip the meter and get it right on the first try. Any of you actually work without one?
Customer called saying their dryer wasn't drying. I checked the vent, the heating element, the thermal fuse. Took me about 45 minutes to figure out the lint screen was just clogged with leftover fabric softener residue. The customer had washed a load of towels right before I got there. Now I always check the lint screen before pulling the whole machine apart. Anyone else get burned by something this simple?
I was out at a lady's house in Beaverton fixing her Whirlpool washer that was making this awful grinding noise during the spin cycle. After digging into it I found the tub bearing was shot but the drum itself looked fine. So I had to decide right there whether to just swap the bearing kit for like $20 or talk her into a whole new drum assembly that ran closer to $200. I went with the cheap route cause the customer was already stressed about the service fee and honestly I figured the bearing job would hold up for a few years at least. Got it all back together and the machine ran smooth as butter, no more noise. But now I'm second guessing myself because if that bearing goes again in six months she's gonna blame me. Has anyone else been in a spot like this where you pick the budget fix and hope it sticks?
Turns out the moisture sensor bar was just caked with fabric softener residue. A quick wipe with rubbing alcohol fixed it instantly. Anyone else waste time on something that simple before checking the obvious?
I was working on a 5 year old Whirlpool and the compressor was hot to the touch but the condenser coil felt cold... turns out the start relay was intermittent. Has anyone else seen a bad relay act like a seized compressor?
I was tired of those cheap Frigidaire ice makers cracking after a year, so I tried a Whirlpool WR49X101 head on the same line setup. It was a pain to modify the bracket with a drill, but the ice output is way more consistent and less jamming. Has anyone else tried mixing brands on ice makers or do you stick with OEM parts?
I learned this the hard way last Tuesday after a call to a house in Elmwood. The customer said their oven stopped working mid-cycle. I figured it was a blown thermal fuse but nope. When I pulled the back panel I saw the control board had a burn mark right next to a relay. Turns out the self-clean cycle generates over 800 degrees and if your oven has any poor solder joints or a weak relay that heat spike can just melt things. I found a repair forum post from an old Whirlpool tech who said he saw this on like 60% of self-clean failures. Now I always warn customers to skip that function unless they absolutely need it. Any of you guys see this pattern with certain brands more than others?
Been fixing washers for 12 years and always told customers to avoid the off-brand drain pumps. Last month I had a Samsung that needed a pump and the OEM was gonna take 3 weeks. Stuck a $35 universal in there just to see, and that thing has been running 40 loads without a peep. Guess the aftermarket stuff has come a long way. Anyone else had good luck with generics lately?
I always went with the cheap off-brand belts for dryers, figured why pay double. But a guy I ran into at the supply house in Columbus talked me into trying a genuine Frigidaire belt on a job, and it took half the time to install because the fit was actually perfect. Has anyone else had a bad experience with aftermarket parts that made you switch?
Had a guy last month in Sacramento go off on me because I used a generic belt on his Samsung dryer. He said it squeaked like crazy and he could hear it from his bedroom at night. I was pissed at first cause that belt was $8 from the supply house and the OEM one is like $25. But he showed me the noise and sure enough it was slipping every 20 seconds. I swapped it for a genuine Samsung part and it ran silent. Now I tell customers upfront when I use aftermarket parts and give them the option. Has anyone else had a cheap replacement part come back to bite them hard?
I was out in Toledo last summer working on a 15 year old Kenmore freezer that just would not stay cold. After checking the condenser coils and finding them spotless, I finally noticed the compressor was cycling off every 45 seconds because the garage was hitting 105 degrees. How do you guys handle putting freezers in uninsulated spaces without telling the customer to just move it inside?
Swear it was working fine last month, but then I went to vacuum out a fridge coil on a 2016 Whirlpool and nothing happened, pulled the hose off and there was this sock sized clump of dust that must have been building up for years, has anyone else had that random clog pop up out of nowhere?
I was working on an older Samsung fridge in Phoenix and the compressor was cycling weird. Turns out the condenser coils were caked with dust from being outside on a patio. Has anyone else seen units get wrecked faster in dusty climates like that?
I used to spend 10 minutes probing capacitors and windings on every no-cool call. Last spring I picked up a cheap Flir model and now I can spot a failing compressor in 30 seconds by the heat signature. Has anyone else had luck catching hard starts before they fully die?
I was at a job in Arlington last Tuesday, had a top-loader that locked up solid halfway through a load. Turned out the previous guy had cross-threaded the drum pulley bolt and it backed out into the housing. Had to pull the whole machine apart in a cramped laundry room, took me 3 hours to clear the mess. Anyone else run into shoddy DIY repairs that turn a 20 minute job into half a day?
I used to carry this old analog meter I got from a pawn shop in Denver, thought it was fine because hey voltage is voltage right. Then I dropped it off a washer and the needle snapped clean off, so I grabbed a cheap digital one from the parts house. Now I'm wondering if I should've just ordered the Fluke since this thing reads a little jumpy on dryer thermostats, anyone else make that switch and regret it?
Last Wednesday I had back to back calls all with bad icemakers. First was a GE at 8am that just made a clicking noise, frozen auger motor. Then a Samsung at 11 where the fill tube was totally iced up, owner said it had been making weird sounds for a week. Third one was a Frigidaire at 2pm, water valve stuck open and flooded the fridge pan. $280 in parts total across all three jobs and I barely had time for lunch. Has anyone else ever had a day where the same exact part fails on different brands like that?
I got called out to replace an oven igniter last Thursday, should have been a 30 minute job tops. The old one was rusted solid into the bracket and I spent 45 minutes just getting it loose. Then I dropped the new one down the back of the range and had to pull the whole unit out to fish it out. Took me 3 hours for something I usually do in 30 minutes. Anyone else have a simple job spiral out of control like that?
I was working on a whirlpool duet washer at a rental property in Denver last month. The homeowner watched me swap the pump and goes 'you know that hose goes on the other side right?' I looked at my manual and realized I had been flipping the pump 180 degrees every single time. Has anyone else had that moment where a customer caught something obvious you missed?
I dropped $400 on a FLIR thermal camera after chasing a mysterious fridge leak for three days. Found the bad seal in 10 minutes by spotting the cold air trail, saved me from replacing the whole unit. But my buddy says I could've just used soapy water and patience like he's done for 20 years. Was the thermal camera a smart tool buy or just an excuse to play with a new gadget? What would you have done?
Had a 2017 French door model where the main board was shot. Genuine GE part was gonna run $210 and take 10 days to ship. I grabbed a $65 universal board from a supply house in Cleveland instead. Took me about 90 minutes to wire it up and it's been humming along fine for 5 days now. Anyone else take the gamble on universals for newer fridges?
Last weekend my Whirlpool fridge started running non-stop and not cooling. I was about to call a part supplier when I pulled the kickplate off and saw the condenser coils caked with 4 years of dog hair and dust. I vacuumed them out with a brush attachment and it dropped the run time by at least 15 minutes per cycle. Has anyone else had a unit that just needed a good cleaning before you started swapping parts?