inconvenience and expense

[elegentry]

It's going to be a suprisingly expensive month. I wrote about the tellie dying in a puff of smoke and it's subsequent replacement. Now my grumpy 17yr old washing machine has given up the ghost. It hasn't been leaving things very clean. I have noticed that it's cycles are a bit confused, doing spray rinse when it is supposed to be spinning dry for instance.

Then last Sunday I washed the big piece of coating wool I had just bought for Erudito. The fabric was too flat and stiff, wanted to puff it up and soften it. Well I managed that. It shed VAST amounts of lint. I really mean VAST. Below is a pic of some of it. In addition the lint filter was overflowing, there is plenty spread about the bathroom, garden and of course the inside of the washing machine.  It has probably choked up the pump or something.


It took much persuasion to get that load to drain and spin.
Today I thought I would try to see if a small load of blacks would wash properly. No such luck. I'm glad I went for a small load. The machine won't drain. I tried long enough to get hot electrical smell - from the straining pump I suppose. So a few dark clothes have be rinsed and squeezed out by hand, are covered in fluffy black lint and are dripping on the line. I really shouldn't have put my two new shirts in with that load eh?

So. I don't think it is worth trying to fix this old beast given it's other problems. So I have left it to try to drain by gravity and I need to go washing machine shopping. mrsbrown  do you still have that choice subscription?

Later I also need to try to get the dryer fixed. While I am at it, perhaps the old column heater too (that has been taking up space in the store room for years).

Comments

[lurex-deepfried.livejournal.com]

mmm you are describing the experience I was having a couple of weeks back.

Poor washing machine.

I'd still be tempted to get someone to look at it, but that's me... hate spending money and I don't know what to do with the old one.

Best!!

[montjoye.livejournal.com]

Ta for sympathy. I haven't quite the problems you had, at least mine is a top loader. I shan't try to get it fixed. The machine was close to dead anyway. Even if I get it de-fluffed, it would probably die of other causes. Anyway, I'm sick of it not cleaning my clothes properly.

[mrsbrown.livejournal.com]

Yes, I still have a choice subscription - details sent separately.

Also, there is a $100 rebate for buying an appliance from the recommended list here - http://www.resourcesmart.vic.gov.au/for_households/rebates_4000.html

[villana.livejournal.com]

When it rains it pours!

*tea & sympathy*

[sjkasabi.livejournal.com]

*sympathy*

I'm sorry I've been such a net importer of sympathy lately - I promise any I can export is coming to you. It sounds like you've been having an awfully rough time of it.

And on the practicality front, I found it very difficult to find anyone who wanted to repair column heaters, apparently you're meant to treat them as disposable items these days (no wonder the world is ending etc). But then I found a great little shop in Heidelberg that fixed mine very cheaply, so if you can't find anywhere local, I'd be happy to share details, help with drop off and pick up etc.

[quatrefoil.livejournal.com]

I have successfully dealt with this problem in the past. The issue is almost certainly that your pump is blocked, and it is relatively easy to fix, particularly if your pump is on the outside of the washing machine, as it frequently is in older models. If so, it's a black ovalish thing about the size of two fists, with a hose going in and out of it. Disconnect it, being prepared for water all over your floor, poke through it with a bent coat hanger (or in some varieties you can take it apart if it comes in two halves) until you've got all the gunk out - five cent pieces are particularly prone to clogging washing machine pumps. Rinse water through it under pressure until it's clear. Put it back. This can work wonders on both the lint and not draining and the dirty clothes issues.