Like Murphy Said, 90% of Everything is Crud

[Old Moparz]

Don't you just love it when you buy something that turns out to be a piece of crap?

Less than 18 months ago, my wife & I decided that we needed a new refrigerator. The one we had was at least as old as the house, which was built in 1987, & here from the previous owner. It was a GE side by side that still worked, but it was gradually getting louder & gave off a lot of heat. So we shopped for a new one & found another GE with the freezer on the bottom, & the fridge on top with double doors. We have a narrow galley kitchen, but we didn't want another side by side.

This one was nice, & the old GE lasted a long time. The problem started after we had it less than 2 months. My wife noticed cold air coming out where the 2 upper doors met & said she could feel it on her legs. I looked at it & saw a small gap, & told her to only wear long pants & not shorts if she knew she was going to stand near the fridge.     That comment didn't work, so I had to get up to look at it & found that the magnets inside the rubber seal weren't grabbing. After messing with it with no results, I called GE since it was under warranty.

They ended up replacing both doors since they were out of alignment, & my wife didn't feel a draft on her ass anymore. This was fine until recently when I saw that the seals on the new doors were splitting & tearing. I know I can probably apply some sealant to it, but they were new & should still be under warranty. I called GE again & they said yes, the parts were covered for 5 years, but not labor. I explained that these were parts that they put on & not the originals. They said "Sorry, but you need to call the Customer Relations Dept. on this."

So I did, & much to my surprise, the Customer Relations Dept. said "The parts were covered for 5 years, but not labor."    They couldn't tell me how much labor would be, but they told me a service call was $79 & would be deducted from the total labor cost if I chose to have them fix it. So, the fridge that we spent $1900.00 on, (yes, it was a lot & the last time we ever do that) will be going through seals & doors on a regular basis & probably cost me 2 to 3 times as much if it lasts as long as the last one. Looks like it's gasket sealer time in the kitchen.

Oh, & over this past weekend, I had to change a hose adaptor that connects my dishwasher drain to the disposal inlet because it leaked. When I did, the plastic inlet on the disposal snapped off. So a $6 adaptor cost me another $120 for a new disposal & 3 trips to Home Depot & Sears. I just love it, & glad I wasn't working on my cars.   

[PocketThunder]

My advice to you is to start drinking heavily...    Wait, i already used that one today.

I wonder where the threshold is when you finally get good quality appliances.  $3000 fridge?  $10,000 sub-zero fridge? http://www.subzero.com/BuiltInRefrigeration/601RRefrigerator

When we bought our house the fridge door shelves were falling off so i cut two strips of 3/4 plywood and screwed them in with drywall screws for a temporary fix.  2 1/2 years later we decide to sell the house and thought we better get a different fridge for the sale.  $150 on craigslist and we were back in business with a different fridge that had nice door shelves..         

Well, Bob, did you save the old fridge for the new beer fridge in the garage?    (see my first sentence)

[Old Moparz]

I've seen those Sub Zeros....... 

The deal was, Lowes offered to remove the old fridge free of charge. Since we already had a decent one in the basement, plus a chest freezer, & didn't know anyone that needed one, we let them take it. (I have to draw the pack rat line somewhere...lol) I also have a small square one that holds about 1 case of beer that I am making room in the garage for.   

I forgot to mention that on Sunday I bought new fluorecent bulbs for the 2 fixtures I installed in the kitchen around the same time we got the fridge. When I went to put the diffuser back on one of them, it shattered in my hand. The plastic got dry & brittle from the heat in less than 2 years. But guess what? A new diffuser is $40.......the 2 circular bulbs were $15..........but the original fixture that came with 2 bulbs & a diffuser was only $34 new........LOL

I give up.   

[Mike DC]

 
You can't get new mechanical products that work anymore. 

It doesn't matter how much money you're willing to spend, they just don't exist.