c/appliance-repairers

Chose OEM part over aftermarket for a Bosch dishwasher, glad I did

Had a client in Oak Park with a leaking sump on a 3 year old Bosch. Aftermarket was 38 bucks, OEM was 91. I went with OEM because the tolerance fit matters on those German units. Took 45 minutes to swap, zero leaks so far on the test cycle. Anyone else stick to factory parts on Bosch or am I just being paranoid about the cheap stuff?

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milar46•4d ago

Just realized I was overtightening compressor bolts for 5 years

A Lennox unit in Phoenix finally cracked its mounting plate last week, and the factory rep said the torque spec was half what I'd been using. Has anyone else had a similar wake-up call with a basic step they thought they had down?

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white.alex•5d ago

Rotary compressor oil weight, I was a 3M man until a Hastings job

I spent years using 3M oil in every rotary pump I touched. Never saw an issue. Then I go to this Hastings apartment complex, 4 year old fridge, compressor locked up. Swapped it, but it had a black, tarlike sludge. The factory spec said 32 weight, not the 68 I was using. I figured heavier meant better protection. Turns out it just meant more drag in winter and bad cold start. Now I check the spec plate on every job. Has anyone else had a locked rotor that was just wrong oil viscosity from the start?

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gavins43•5d ago

That LG error code I ignored for 6 months finally bit me on a $480 job

I kept seeing E2 on this LG washer I was servicing, thought it was just a drain hiccup and moved on. Last Tuesday in Phoenix, the same code popped on a customer's machine right as I was packing up, and it turned out to be a bad hall sensor all along. Cost me a return trip and a chunk of my profit on that call. Anyone else been burned by skipping the manual on an error code they thought they knew?

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clark.iris•5d ago

That ultrasonic cleaner I laughed at just saved a $600 board

I've been doing appliance repair for 12 years and always figured ultrasonic cleaners were for jewelers, not fridge boards. Last Tuesday a customer brought in a range that kept throwing an E1 code, and I found corrosion all over the control board pins. I had a cheap 3-liter ultrasonic sitting in my garage from a garage sale, so I figured why not try it with some simple degreaser. Twenty minutes later the board looked brand new, and the E1 code hasn't come back in a week. I've replaced that board twice before at $180 a pop for the same issue, so I should've tried this years ago. Anyone else using ultrasonic cleaning on control boards, or am I just lucky with this one?

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the_william•7d ago

A customer's comment about my dishwasher drain hose made me rethink everything

So I was out on a call last Thursday in Akron, fixing a Whirlpool that kept throwing an F1 code. After I got it running, the homeowner watched me fish the drain hose through the cabinet and said, "You know, my last guy always left a little loop at the top so it didn't siphon back." I'd been doing installs and repairs for 6 years and never once did that. I always just shoved the hose straight into the disposal. Sure enough, I looked at the service manual later and there's a section about air gap requirements and a high loop to prevent backflow. I checked the last 3 jobs I did that week and all of them had the hose hanging low. No wonder two of those customers called back about standing water smells. Now I always zip tie a loop at the top of the drain line before I finish up. Has anyone else had a random homeowner tip that turned out to be the actual factory spec? Or am I the only one who missed that page in the book?

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briancampbell•13d ago

Thermostat gaskets are a waste of time on older fridges

Been doing this 9 years in Cleveland and I still see guys replacing those rubber gaskets every call. I pulled one off a 2004 Kenmore last week, the seal was crusty but the fridge held temp fine. The real fix is cleaning the condenser coils and checking the door hinge alignment. Anyone else skip the gasket swap and go straight for the actual issue?

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blake_smith•16d ago

Dishwasher smell that wouldnt go away finally fixed after 3 months

Had a customer in Tacoma with a dishwasher that smelled like rotten eggs no matter what we did. Cleaned the filter, ran vinegar cycles, checked the drain line, all the usual stuff. Finally pulled the unit out and found the spray arm was packed with old food chunks blocking half the holes. Swapped in a new spray arm for $45 and the smell was gone instantly. Has anyone else had a hidden blockage like that after the standard cleaning routine failed?

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barbara_taylor83•17d ago

Told a client their Samsung ice maker issue was the filter, turned out to be the auger motor all along

After 3 service calls on the same fridge in Tulsa, I finally listened to the homeowner's 'it grinds when I press the lever' comment and swapped the auger motor for $85 in parts, has anyone else had a similar self-inflicted miss on these newer models?

1 comments

dixon.amy•17d ago

Compared OEM vs generic dryer thermostats, the 50 cent part cost me a return visit

Had a dryer that kept cutting out mid-cycle last month. Customer wanted the cheap generic thermostat since it was 8 bucks versus the OEM at 22. Installed it, tested fine, left. Three days later they call back, same issue. The generic one had a wider tolerance range, so it was tripping early when the drum got hot. Swapped in the OEM part, zero problems since. I get saving money, but for thermal parts I'm sticking with factory spec now. Anyone else seen knockoff parts fail in weird ways like this?

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mason_lee•20d ago

An old lady in St. Paul taught me a dryer trick I still use

She watched me replace her heating element and said 'honey, the lint trap ain't the only place lint hides,' then showed me how she pulls the vent hose off and runs a leaf blower through it every spring, and honestly that's saved me 3 callbacks since.

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skylercooper•22d ago

Found out my own brand of thermal fuse was the problem all along

We had a dryer at the shop that kept blowing thermal fuses, like three in two weeks. Customer was getting mad, so I finally checked the vent run with a manometer and found static pressure way over spec. Turns out the fuse I'd been installing was a knockoff batch I snagged from a flea market stall in Phoenix, rated at 192 degrees but really popping at 180. I never expected a 12 degree difference to matter, but now I only buy from a supply house with lot numbers. Anyone else had a counterfeit part sneak past them and waste a full morning on a call?

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tara700•23d ago

Grounded a live line for a decade, one static shock fixed my habit

Always checked voltage with my meter before touching anything, but never bothered grounding the compressor line first. Last Tuesday in Tulsa, I got zapped through my pliers changing a start relay on a 20-year-old fridge. The kick was mild, but it made me realize I'd been lucky, not careful. Now I clip a jumper to the chassis before I even pull the panel. Any of you guys ground everything before you start, or am I the only sloppy one this trade keeps?

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wren826•25d ago

Vent: three ice makers died in one week, same neighborhood in Dayton

Last week I replaced three identical ice maker modules in houses about 2 miles apart in Dayton, all from the same builder around 2018. Every one had the same cracked water inlet valve, and the homeowners all said they heard a hissing sound before it failed. I checked the supply pressure at the second and third stops, it was hitting 90 psi, way over the 60 the spec calls for. Has anyone else seen a whole subdivision get hit by bad regulators off one main line?

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harperwright•25d ago

Blew a compressor last week on a 20 year old fridge in Tulsa

I got called out to a rental unit last Tuesday, the tenant said the freezer was sweating but nothing was actually frozen solid. Opened up the back panel and the run capacitor looked fine, but the compressor was hot to the touch and humming like crazy. Turns out the start relay was stuck closed, which cooked the windings over time. Replaced the relay and capacitor combo, but the compressor was already shot, so I had to quote them a new fridge instead of a repair. The landlord was pissed because he thought a $45 part would fix it, but I showed him the amp draw readings and he backed off. Has anyone else run into this where the relay fails silently and you can't catch it before the compressor dies?

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angelac63•25d ago

Warning: Dishwasher flood fake-out on a Maytag at a condo in Phoenix

Last week I got a call about a leaking dishwasher, turned out the drain hose was fine but the float switch was stuck from a broken glass shard. The flood sensor tripped and killed power to the whole unit, so the client thought it was a major repair. Anyone else seen those cheap plastic floats degrade after 2 years, or was this just a fluke?

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barbarab56•28d ago

Found roach eggs inside a control board in Fresno, now I check everything

Went to a call where the fridge kept shorting out. Opened the main board and there was a whole roach nest glued to the relay, eggs and all. I now pull every board cover before quoting a repair, even for simple thermostat swaps. Has anyone else found bugs inside sealed electronics or am I just lucky?

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phoenix_campbell88•29d ago

Swapped smart thermostats for analog on a Lennox install, got roasted by the homeowner

Did a job last Tuesday in Boise where the guy insisted on a Nest, but his house wiring was a mess from a 1978 add-on. I told him the smart unit would just cycle on fault codes and recommended a basic $40 Honeywell. He pushed back hard, said I was stuck in the past, so I wired the Nest anyway. Third call back later that week, same error, and I swapped it out with the analog unit under his grudging approval. It's been 6 days, zero issues. Maybe I'm wrong, but I think smart features just complicate things when the ductwork and wiring are pre-1980. Anyone else refuse to install them in older houses, or am I the only one?

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taylor_fox•1mo ago

That GFCI outlet in a crawl space took me 4 trips over 2 days

Kept tripping intermittently and I chased it through the breaker panel before realizing a previous tech had wired the line and load reversed behind a junction box. Anyone else ever get burned by a simple polarity swap hiding in a dark corner?

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the_elizabeth•1mo ago

Overheard a customer call our repair a 'waste of good money'

Last Tuesday I was swapping a dryer heating element in Maplewood and the homeowner told her friend on the phone that we were just 'milking the insurance claim.' She didn't know I could hear her through the laundry room door. I finished the job, showed her the burnt-out coil in a ziplock bag, and she went quiet. The part was $38 and took 20 minutes, but she still paid the $185 service call without another word. Has anyone else had a customer assume you're ripping them off until you show them the actual failed part?

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troy_wilson8•1mo ago

Chat with an old timer about compressor oil changed my mind

Guy at the supply house said he's been using the same PAG oil for 15 years on every job. Told me all this fancy stuff is just marketing. Made me realize I've been overthinking it. Any of you stick with one oil for everything?

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janac59•1mo ago

That customer in Dallas tried to talk me into fixing a 15-year-old fridge for free

I had this old guy in Dallas last April who wanted me to fix his fridge from 2009 for free because he said it 'should last forever.' The compressor was shot, and I told him it would cost like $700 minimum to even try. He got all huffy and said I was just trying to sell him a new one. I ended up spending 20 minutes explaining how the R600a refrigerant switch made his model obsolete anyway. He finally left, but I still think about how some folks just don't get that parts wear out. Has anyone else run into a customer who thought appliances should work forever?

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brookerobinson•1mo ago

I used to laugh at people who put surge protectors on fridges until my neighbor in Phoenix lost a board

Back in July my neighbor's 2 year old Samsung fridge just died after a monsoon storm. I figured it was the main board and sure enough, fried. He told me he had a $30 surge protector on it and I laughed, said those are for computers not appliances. Then I actually looked up the failure rate on fridge boards in Phoenix during monsoon season and it's something like 15% higher. I still think most surge protectors are junk, but for a $500 board replacement, a $30 strip seems like cheap insurance now. Has anyone else seen a surge protector actually save a fridge in a storm prone area?

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kevin_schmidt97•1mo ago

Appreciation post: The customer who called me back to say thanks

Fixed a washer for an elderly lady in Oak Park last month. Pulley belt snapped, took me 20 minutes. She paid cash and I left. She called my shop 3 days later just to tell me the machine was running quiet and smooth. Nobody ever does that. Do you guys get those rare moments that make the crap days worth it?

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rowan_butler93•1mo ago

Spent 4 hours diagnosing a fridge that just needed a door switch...

Got a call about a Frigidaire that wasn't cooling at all. I checked the compressor, the condenser coils, even pulled the start relay. After 4 hours of scratching my head I finally noticed the door switch wasn't clicking right when the door closed. Replaced the switch for about $12 and the whole thing fired right up. Has anyone else wasted a whole afternoon on something that simple?

2 comments