STUPID IMPROVEMENTS

[tenacious1]

Grrrrrr.

Our dishwasher isn't working. Suddenly the lights on the control panel are not lighting up. We checked the breaker, pulled it out from under the counter and all the connections look fine. We found an owner manual and it says call for help. It's less than 3 years old 2 years and 3 months old. $800. DH found the invoice.

This never happened to the old fashion dishwashers that had dials to control them.

[tenacious1]

My beautiful new gas stove has digital controls and won't work when the power is out. It's a GAS stove! It should not matter if the electricity is working! I was planning to be able to cook and eat the next time we have a snow storm.

(Ya'll add yours. I can't be the only one who is bugged by this stuff.)

[tenacious1]

I hate the "ultra" dishwashing soaps. They've taken a perfectly good product and watered it down. Who else remembers the commercial with Madge that showed a dime size dot of soap would wash a sink full of dishes? The "ultra" soaps need that much to wash one plate.

[tenacious1]

My husband's fancy new car has a built in GPS. It can not be programmed when the car is moving. Even though there is a passenger doing the programing and it is perfectly safe.

My next car will NOT have a built in GPS so I can keep using my old Garmin.

If his GPS ever breaks I'll bet it will be very pricey to fix.

[siamesedream]

I hate the "ultra" dishwashing soaps. They've taken a perfectly good product and watered it down. Who else remembers the commercial with Madge that showed a dime size dot of soap would wash a sink full of dishes? The "ultra" soaps need that much to wash one plate.

I DO.....I DO!!

Remember the commercial.

[tenacious1]

I found a bottle of the "old fashioned" Ivory at Walmart a month ago. I looking forward to the Ultra bottle running out so I can use it.

[siamesedream]

I found a bottle of the "old fashioned" Ivory at Walmart a month ago. I looking forward to the Ultra bottle running out so I can use it.

[


Reminds me of being a kid in the 70s.

[tenacious1]

The dishwasher repair guy came yesterday and our dishwasher needs a new "board". That's right, the computer parts broke. He said that none of the dishwashers last any more so he's busy all the time. The repair cost $300 -- $120 for the part plus $80 each for the repairman's trips to our house.

We'll probably buy bottom of line next time since they don't last any way. Grrrrrrr.

And the sump pump isn't working right either.

[Ice Cream]

The dishwasher repair guy came yesterday and our dishwasher needs a new "board". That's right, the computer parts broke. He said that none of the dishwashers last any more so he's busy all the time. The repair cost $300 -- $120 for the part plus $80 each for the repairman's trips to our house.

We'll probably buy bottom of line next time since they don't last any way. Grrrrrrr.

And the sump pump isn't working right either.

Mine is 8 years old.  Never needed a new board/

[tenacious1]

So I bumped into the dishwasher this morning and the lights went on. 

It's washing a load right now and if everything goes smoothly we'll try to can the "board" on order and the second service visit. I'm suddenly very unimpressed with the repairman. 

[RioG]

this entire thread resonates with me.

I hated our dumb bosch front load washer.  what a waste of money.  I'm enjoying hand washing the dishes now that we're moved because the dishes actually get clean rather than half assessment clean.  I love being able to choose the size of my laundry load rather having to fool the dumb machine when I want to use more water on a small load.

[tenacious1]

I'm kinda surprised. How can I be the only one sick of new things that break or just don't work like they should?

I got a new washer and dryer last year. My Maytag washer was over 20 years old and I only replaced it to finally get one that could handle bigger loads. So good so far. 

[Richard21142]

So I bumped into the dishwasher this morning and the lights went on. 

That sounds like our dishwasher.  Every 3 or 4 months it doesn't work, except for the button that drains the bottom of the washer.  After one or two days, it works.
We've only had it a couple of years.

[tenacious1]

That sounds like our dishwasher.  Every 3 or 4 months it doesn't work, except for the button that drains the bottom of the washer.  After one of two days, it works.
We've only had it a couple of years.

Mine's a Kitchen Aid. What brand is yours?

[ihop]

I have one!  Our fridge!  Purchased in December 2013.  The ice maker broke twice and finally had to be replaced. All under warranty thank goodness.  But the design of the ice maker is stupid - fragments of cubes get stuck and it stops working.  Every now and then, there won't be ice so I have to pull out the tray, stand on my tiptoes (it is in the top of the fridge) and wiggle the parts so it gets unstuck.

Also, we just paid $275 to have a valve of some sort replaced because of its poor design.  It drains the condensation from the freezer and had a very narrow opening - like a duck bill.  The repairman said they get clogged all the time and the condensation then spills out onto the floor of the freezer and then the floor of the kitchen.  He replaced it with a different shaped valve that is wider and shouldn't clog.

This is a huge French door whirlpool fridge with a bunch of bells and whistles.  Ridiculous.

[Richard21142]

Mine's a Kitchen Aid. What brand is yours?

Kenmore

[tenacious1]

I have one!  Our fridge!  Purchased in December 2013.  The ice maker broke twice and finally had to be replaced. All under warranty thank goodness.  But the design of the ice maker is stupid - fragments of cubes get stuck and it stops working.  Every now and then, there won't be ice so I have to pull out the tray, stand on my tiptoes (it is in the top of the fridge) and wiggle the parts so it gets unstuck.

Also, we just paid $275 to have a valve of some sort replaced because of its poor design.  It drains the condensation from the freezer and had a very narrow opening - like a duck bill.  The repairman said they get clogged all the time and the condensation then spills out onto the floor of the freezer and then the floor of the kitchen.  He replaced it with a different shaped valve that is wider and shouldn't clog.

This is a huge French door whirlpool fridge with a bunch of bells and whistles.  Ridiculous.

The icemaker on the fridge here at work is broken...again.

[tenacious1]

Kenmore

Well, that doesn't support my theory that it's a Kitchen Aid problem.

(Though my Kitchen Aid mixer works fine. Maybe it's because it doesn't have any computerized parts.)

[Richard21142]

(Though my Kitchen Aid mixer works fine. Maybe it's because it doesn't have any computerized parts.)

My Krups coffee maker with just an "on/off" switch is almost 30 years old, but the coffee maker we had with computer parts, lasted only two years; even though it wasn't used often.

[tenacious1]

The official word on the icemaker:

The icemaker has been officially declared as deceased.  A new one will be ordered and replaced on Thursday.

FWIW -- I don't think the icemaker was computerized.

[Richard21142]

I did a little research, and it looks like Kitchen Aid and Kenmore appliances are made by the same manufacturer, Whirlpool.
 
Admiral (Canada)
Chambers
Coovert (ac's)
Crosley (newer fridges, a/c, washers)
Danby ( 8 )
Estate
Inglis
Ikea
Kenmore ( see Sears )
KitchenAid ( 4 )
Kirkland
Maytag Epic®
Roper
Speed Queen (Canada only)
Sub Zero (undercounter ice makers)
Whirlpool

[korts]

I have a Kenmore fridge, but it's really an LG.

[tenacious1]

I did a little research, and it looks like Kitchen Aid and Kenmore appliances are made by the same manufacturer, Whirlpool.
 
Admiral (Canada)
Chambers
Coovert (ac's)
Crosley (newer fridges, a/c, washers)
Danby ( 8 )
Estate
Inglis
Ikea
Kenmore ( see Sears )
KitchenAid ( 4 )
Kirkland
Maytag Epic®
Roper
Speed Queen (Canada only)
Sub Zero (undercounter ice makers)
Whirlpool

Whirlpool makes all of these?

[ihop]

OMG.  I woke up this morning to water all over the kitchen floor and I am 99% sure it is the ice maker again.     The little tray under the ice and water dispenser was full and water had dripped down the front of the fridge onto the floor.  It had pooled on the tile and started to travel down the grout lines - the farthest was about 12 feet away!  We opened the fridge and there was water dripping from the ice maker into the dispenser.  I am going to watch it today to see what is going on but I am livid.  I will NEVER buy Whirlpool again.  Ever.

[tenacious1]

Crap. It sounds like you found it in time to prevent water damage to your floors. Right?

[ihop]

Yes.  Thank goodness.  And it didn't reach any wood or carpet.  I am pissed.

[Richard21142]

Whirlpool makes all of these?

Go to: http://www.appliance411.com/purchase/make.shtml

[tenacious1]

The clothes washer broke. This is bad karma from starting this thread, isn't it.

[Beer Gut]

The batteries in the remote for the electric drapes quit.

The sun started shining in my eyes while I was switching between Jerry Springer and Dr. Phil.

Kathy simply refused to go close them. 

She said “wait till one of the help shows up.”

Christ.

I had to get up and go close the drapes by hand like some kind of god-damn cave man.




I haven’t felt that primal since I was forced to urinate into an ordinary creek in the woods when I was a Boy Scout.

[tenacious1]

 

DH fixed the washer. Maybe Kathy will change your batteries for you.

[ihop]

We had a new ice maker installed on Friday.  Thank goodness Whirlpool decided to cover it and we didn't have to pay for it.  Two ice makers in one and a half years.

And now the new ice maker isn't working.   

Is there a lemon law for appliances?

[tenacious1]

   That's just wrong.

[Bylo Selheigh]

We are on our third delivery of our new $1000 dishwasher.
Both of the units we rejected had the same flaw - door was significantly out of alignment and scraped the inside of the dishwasher in the upper right corner. 

The sprinkler system is not operating as of this am - blown fuse. That usually means a failed zone valve (which often fail to a short condition which blows the fuse on the whole controller) making the entire system inoperable.   

[ihop]

OMG.

Now they are going to replace the computer in the door of the fridge and the one in the back. 

One good thing - Whirlpool is going to reimburse us for the money we spent on the replacement of the valve in the freezer (last month's service call).  The prepaid Visa is supposedly in the mail.

[tenacious1]

OMG.

Now they are going to replace the computer in the door of the fridge and the one in the back. 

One good thing - Whirlpool is going to reimburse us for the money we spent on the replacement of the valve in the freezer (last month's service call).  The prepaid Visa is supposedly in the mail.

There's another "improvement". Why do they send Visa Cards rather than a check that you can put in your account at the bank and spend at your convenience rather than carrying their special card and remembering to use it.

I have a $100 gift card for a local store that is now out of business. I know Visa's not going out of business but you still have to remember to use it.

[ihop]

I don't know about the Visa card.  I usually use them to pay for groceries - super easy to do.

[Bylo Selheigh]

There's another "improvement". Why do they send Visa Cards rather than a check that you can put in your account at the bank and spend at your convenience rather than carrying their special card and remembering to use it.

Because a significant percentage of fixed dollar cards, even Visa ones that can be used anywhere go unused. Of those that are used, most are not 100% utilized. Checks sooner or later generally get deposited. So it's a money-saver for the company funding the cards. 

When I get a Visa cash card for something, I put in the same credit card slot in my wallet as my grocery store card so I notice it at checkout. Our grocery store clerks can easily handle "Put $50 on this $50 card, with the remainder on this 2nd credit card". That way I make sure the $50 or whatever card is 100% used up in one transaction.   

[tenacious1]

Because a significant percentage of fixed dollar cards, even Visa ones that can be used anywhere go unused. Of those that are used, most are not 100% utilized. Checks sooner or later generally get deposited. So it's a money-saver for the company funding the cards. 

But wouldn't Visa get the money from an unused card rather than the company that funded it?

[omega lambda]

The GPS in our 4Runner is the same kind, tenacious.  Drives me insane!  You can use the voice command while driving and I would say that it works about 75% of the time.  The lovely lady inside our GPS says, "Say, street number, street name, city and state".  So we say, "123 Main Street, Los Angeles, California" and she says, "Michigan...<searching searching>...that street name cannot be found.  Would you like to start guidance?" And she has selected some random street in a random city in Michigan to direct us to.  We say, "No" and she says, "Pardon?" and we say, "No" and she says, "Would you like meto  start guidance?" and we say, "No" and she says, "Starting guidance.  You will reach your destination is 3 days."

 

Right now, my big complaint is the sound bar we got for our TV.  We've followed the instructions, called the service people for the TV brand, the sound bar brand and the store from which we bought both.  No one can figure out why it isn't plug-n-play with an HDMI cable.

 

Although the issues are resolved now, we bought new Samsung washer and dryer several years ago.  They were rated highly on Consumer Reports and Samsung had won the JD Power award as well.  It seemed like a good deal.  Yeah.  Well, firstly, I noticed that clothes took forever to dry.  They did dry, just with 2x times on the cycles.  Secondly, when I used the Heavy Duty cycle on the washer, it stopped somewhere in the cycle and held my clothes hostage.  I figured out how to get my clothes back and as long as I avoided that cycle it was fine.  So I called the store, they sent the repairman, but it turns out that they have to see the problem occur before they will do anything about it.  So the guy hangs around for about 20 minutes, and says he has to go and to call him (gave me a card) if it happens again.  So of course, it happens again right after he leaves.  I learned that the problem occurs in the last few minutes of spinning.  On the heavy duty cycle.  One hour and 32 minutes into the cycle.  Great.  So I call, he doesn't return my call so I call the repair department they finally send someone out, I tell him what happens and he's not sure what to do.  He can't hang out for 1:32 to wait for it to happen.  He decides the best thing to do is call again, get another service appointment, and run the cycle just before he gets there.  I gave him my best pained look and said, "Do you think I'm making this up?  Because, you know, faking a broken washer and waiting around for service to get here is a real joy."  So, bless him, he calls in to the service center and describes my problem exactly as though he was seeing it himself, and was able to order the new mother board for the washer.  And he fixed the dryer while he was there.  So three service appointments later, I have a working washer and dryer, but right out of the box, they were both broken.   

[tenacious1]

That's exactly what I'm talking about!

Also, what's the deal with an hour and 32 minutes before you get to spin cycle? How long does it take to wash a load of clothes? How could this possibly be energy efficient? My fancy new clothes washer and dishwasher both take forever -- though my dishwasher has a special cycle that only takes an hour. The normal cycle is about two hours and heavy duty is about three hours. I do not understand.

BTW -- I love that you persuaded him to actually trust what you were saying and fix your washer.

[ihop]

The GPS in our 4Runner is the same kind, tenacious.  Drives me insane!  You can use the voice command while driving and I would say that it works about 75% of the time.  The lovely lady inside our GPS says, "Say, street number, street name, city and state".  So we say, "123 Main Street, Los Angeles, California" and she says, "Michigan...<searching searching>...that street name cannot be found.  Would you like to start guidance?" And she has selected some random street in a random city in Michigan to direct us to.  We say, "No" and she says, "Pardon?" and we say, "No" and she says, "Would you like meto  start guidance?" and we say, "No" and she says, "Starting guidance.  You will reach your destination is 3 days."

 

:

Mercy!  This would drive me nuts!  Someone warned us about the Subaru GPS before we bought our Outback - there were similar complaints.  So glad we chose not to buy that package.

And the two computers for our fridge are on order and should be here by the 24th...

[tenacious1]

And the two computers for our fridge are on order and should be here by the 24th...

Because, you know, two computers are better than one. 

Sending thoughts your way to help you survive FL in July with no icemaker.

[ihop]

I am buying a lot of ice!  DH drinks iced coffee when it is hot and DD has been at tennis camp last week and this week.  We go through a lot of ice!

[tenacious1]

http://news.yahoo.com/chinese-officials-cut-corners-rectangular-running-track-060117814.html

[Magic Microbe]

When we bought our fridge the one that came had a broken door alarm....it would randomly start going off at 2 am. We called lowes back and told them to come give us a new one. They said we had to return it ourselves and a new one would be in the store in a month. Antag said if we had to return it ourselves it would not be returned in good condition (that thing is way too heavy for us). Magically they found a new one and delivered it.

[tenacious1]

Why does a fridge have a door alarm? To cut down on midnight snacks?

[Magic Microbe]

Why does a fridge have a door alarm? To cut down on midnight snacks?

It alarms if the door is left open for more than 5 minutes.

Every time I put groceries away and the door alarms I have flashbacks to it alarming all friggn night long.

[tenacious1]

Okay, that makes sense. Antag did a great job of convincing them to take it back.

I'll bet they could sell that midnight snack alarm idea though.

[ihop]

Our fridge has two new computers and...wait for it...a new ice maker!  That is ice maker number 4 I think!

But we have ice now.  I still haven't seen the Visa card that Whirlpool is supposedly sending. 

[tenacious1]

Our fridge has two new computers and...wait for it...a new ice maker!  That is ice maker number 4 I think!

But we have ice now.  I still haven't seen the Visa card that Whirlpool is supposedly sending. 

Waahooo!! Just in time for August!

[ihop]