The Story
Last week, my Maytag Neptune dryer started making that hideous, high-pitched squealing sound. I shouldn't have been surprised. We have owned it for TWENTY-ONE years! It's been a great dryer and is an extremely well-built machine. I have torn it apart before to fix this same "type" of sound, but this time replacing the support rollers in the back didn't fix the problem. In fact, it starting making an even worse grinding sound after the repair. I thought this might be the end of the line for this stalwart of our home appliances, but I felt like I couldn't let it go. I talked to my local appliance store where I get most of my parts and discussed the issue. (If you don't know a local shop service guy, I STRONGLY recommend that you get to know one and NOT one of the big box stores!) My service guy said that the bearings in the motor were shot and that the only fix is to replace the motor. UGH! Not the news I wanted to hear, so I went home dejected thinking it was time to shell out some major $ to purchase a new dryer.
As you know, we here at Teachers Stacking 10s are all about finding ways to save money, so I turned to the other source of knowledge when I'm looking for ways to save, the Internet. After some research, I found a video showing how to replace the motor in my exact type of dryer and I realized that it was actually SUPER SIMPLE to do. My local shop didn't have this part in stock, so I checked a website, Appliance Parts Pros, where I have ordered parts in the past, and it had the exact replacement motor! I was ecstatic. The only problem was that it cost $320. This created a dilemma for me. $320 isn't a small amount of money, BUT the alternative was to go out and purchase a new dryer. The cheapest models I could find were $600, and I'd be replacing a solidly built machine with something much lower quality. To match the same build and quality, would be $1,200 or MORE! After mulling it for a few hours (I didn't have time to think on it much more. With two teenage girls in the house, the dryer is in HIGH DEMAND), I went ahead and ordered the replacement motor.
The new motor arrived after just 2 days and took me about 15 minutes to get installed and put back together. I was nervous, because it was the first motor that I've replaced. I went down and turned the breaker on and it didn't immediately "trip". Test one passed! I went back to the dryer to give it a "dry" run of running with nothing inside. I reached out to hit the start button and closed my eyes. Click! The dryer kicked on and was quieter than it had been in years! Test two passed. I put in a load of clothes to dry and still quiet as a mouse. $300+ saved!!
Many of you might be saying to yourself, "But Professor, I'm not handy at all!" And you might be right. Most people would have heard that squealing sound from the dryer and just decided right then and there that they were going to go out the next day and purchase a new dryer. And there are certain repairs that are beyond even the most "handy" of homeowners, BUT the point I want to make is do some research online before you go out and spend big money on appliances that are going to break down in 6-8 years anyways. The tools required to replace this motor? A Phillips and a flathead screwdriver, two nut drivers, a 7/8" socket and a 7/8" wrench. That's it!
While you were in college, or even now if you're renting, most appliances are the responsibility of the landlord. When you become the homeowner, these appliances are now YOUR responsibility. They are usually the biggest headache to homeowners because repairs can often require specific skills, tools, or knowledge. But that isn't always the case. A service call is usually a minimum charge of $100 and that's before ANY work is even done. Over the last 10 years, I've replaced the ignitor in my oven 3 times, fixed my dryer now 2 times, replaced the valves on 2 toilets, and jetted out my sewer lines 4-5 times (that's a whole different story). Add up the savings on all of these repairs, and it's in the thousands of dollars!! Even the T.A. has saved money fixing his hot water heater. Does this mean we can do ANY repair? Of course not, certain appliances like a refrigerator have compressors that require special equipment that cost well beyond what it would save a typical homeowner.
So before you call for that service tech to come to your house, take a deep breath, do a little research, and see if you can't save yourself a little money. As always, KEEP STACKIN!
The Problem:
Appliances are often the biggest headache for new and long-time homeowners who have never had to repair any of these types of machines.
The Solution:
Before you jump the gun and call in an expensive service tech, or, worse yet, go out and buy a new machine, do a little research. In today's age of YouTube, you can find videos on just about anything. See if it is a problem that you can fix yourself and save some money that you can KEEP STACKIN!