This is kind of a poll to see if anyone can confirm what II heard yesterday.

I sold a pair of washer/dryer pedestals online.  The buyer apparently has a few rental properties on Oahu and Kauai.  She's been looking for these pedestals for 6 months, because every major big box retailer told her they were out of stock, they are on order, and there's no way to tell when -- if ever -- her order might arrive.

She said this has been the case for 2 years for all home appliances she's tried to purchase.  I was surprised the pedestals were included in this situation, since there are no motors, wires, circuit boards, etc.

She also said she's advised her family and friends to really research any brand of appliance they buy, in particular authorized repair companies.  She's been unable to find a qualified Samsung repairman on Kauai to work on her kitchen and laundry machines there, so the warranty is completely useless. 

If I were facing a repairman shortage, i would personally have whoever is willing to fix it do the work, then send the bill to the manufacturer.  I imagine there's a rule that says anyone unable to fulfill their promise of warranty coverage must pay for the repairs outside of their normal network.  That, or buy the appliance back.  The biggest issue there is the manufacturer can say they never diagnosed the machine, so they can't automatically cover it if someone they don't know did the repairs.  Either that, or they tell you they can't schedule a repair visit for a month or two, hoping you'll fix it yourself if the problem is simple.

If this is all true, I'm wondering if others have seen it firsthand.  For all I know, her experiences could be her bad luck or bad timing.

yes it is true. co worker was looking for pedestals. Surprised he'd pay that much for a box

Our neighbor in our condo's fridge broke. They needed something a specific size and everywhere they went was out of stock and had to be ordered. 2 months was the soonest.  We stored some of their frozen items for them. This was earlier this year. We all have Samsung fridges. She ordered another Samsung , but diff model.

My Samsung Microwave broke and Home Depot had the next generation model in stock. Same holes line up, so no drilling required (it's above the stove). Again, we all have the same microwaves. And this is stating to happen to a bunch of us in the bldg.

Our LG AC had a coolant leak. To repair was $100. THis is common in our bldg as we are all hitting that 4-5 year mark of having all the same AC's installed. To get a brand new unit would be about $1K. I didn't ask if there were any in stock. We all used the same repair company. Took 3 days to fix.  1 of my AC's panels power buttons sometimes don't work. It was getting so bad that I ordered another circuit panel from AMazon. Took less than a week to arrive. Once it did arrive, the button started working fine. At least I got a spare.

Does this mean we should stick to American appliances?

Not many appliances are made in the US.  If you want a great US made washer, get a Speed Queen.

been going on since the pandemic started
many people were buying refrigerators and freezers to store food
and spent stimulus money on appliances
manufacturing and shipping delays due to covid made things worse...

HD is absolutely the worst place to buy a major appliance.   They have nothing in stock and their estimated delivery time is usually about half to 2/3s  of the actual time.  On the BI, Lowes has a good supply of appliances in stock. In the past 18 months I bought 3 refrigerators, a washer and a dryer from Lowes.  All were in stock and available for pick up in 3 hours.  I bought a washer from HD in the same time frame. Not in stock, estimated 6 week delivery, actual delivery 3 months.

A few years ago I bought a $2600 Samsung fridge from HD.  While under the 1 year warranty,  one of the interior drawers got stuck somehow and couldn't open. Called Samsung and 3 times they gave me dates when a repairman would come and never showed. Finally told me they did not have any repairmen on the BI. I  instructed to cut the cord close to the appliance,  remove the serial number label and take a picture of the damaged interior door.  Send pictures of all 3 via email and they would refund my full purchase price.  Immediately after I took the pictures, I spliced the cord back and plugged it back in.  I then forced the drawer open, not caring if it broke.  It did not break and I fixed the track myself. All it was was that a track screw was not properly tightened at the factory and came loose.  I did receive a  check from Samsung in about 10 days.  That fridge only lasted about 5 years, but it was "free" so can't complain.

An appliance repair friend who used to live on the BI told me to only buy Whirlpool, GE or Frigidaire because you can get those repaired.

i found that if I can diagnose the problem to about a 75% certainty, I can order the part and swap it myself -- for most appliances.

Unless you pay for the extended warranty, the manufacturer's warranty period is so short, it's almost useless.

I just fixed a Maytag Neptune dryer that's probably 20 years old.  Bought the pair a year or two after we moved into this house in Dec 2001. 

After about 16 years, the dryer stopped working for about the 3rd time that year.  I'd replaced the digital circuit board and the 2 thermal fuses before that.

When my daughter told me the dryer died again, it was just as Black Friday sales were beginning.  Found an LG front loader set at Best Buy on sale.  The dryer was on island and took 2 days to deliver.  The washer was being shipped already and took about 2 weeks. 

Since then, I've been putting off cleaning up and fixing the Maytags to sell.  Found a thermal fuse on Amazon for $9.  All the "parts" businesses wanted $35-$65 for the same part.

Dryer is working fine now.

I removed the rust from around the washer's detergent dispenser and inside/front panel.  Then I painted it with Rustoleum Appliance Epoxy -- great stuff! 

After about 20 years, the Maytags still work fine -- if you can find the parts which might need replacing periodically. 

I'll be putting that pair online for sale soon.  If this situation is making finding machines difficult, I guess I can try bumping the prices up a little higher than I was thinking.   

(knock on wood)

My ROPER washer is still working. I bought it used for $80 many years ago.
Just had to change the micro switch for the lid.
FRIGIDAIRE icemaker died. Replaced it for $50. Just 2 screws. Common problem.
Dryer just needs a new belt once every 5 or 10 years.

New appliances are not as good as old ones (Planned Obsolescence) and hard to come by.

This started years ago, way before c19.

# 1 Reason ?
Chips or should I say the lack of.
I mean you really want/need to turn on your washer / dryer via phone app or have your fridge order milk for you cuz it see's your running low.
I've been fixing appliances a long time now.
Water heaters (on demand and not) dryer belts, drums, lid switches, ice makers, compressors, stove, fridge & freezer gaskets.
Forgot to mention that I do have an extra new washer and repaired (Drum replacement) dryer in storage.
Dryer was replaced because at first they sent me a washer door  (3 week delivery) then the drum would take another 3-4 weeks.

  In over 30 years, we have taken our vehicles to the shop only for alignment when necessary, all other repairs/maintenance we do ourselves.
 Rockette insists on doing her own oil/filter changes ! 
My bondo work not the best but keeps the rain out. 

New appliances are not as good as old ones (Planned Obsolescence) and hard to come by.

This started years ago, way before c19.

# 1 Reason ?
Chips or should I say the lack of.
I mean you really want/need to turn on your washer / dryer via phone app or have your fridge order milk for you cuz it see's your running low.
I've been fixing appliances a long time now.
Water heaters (on demand and not) dryer belts, drums, lid switches, ice makers, compressors, stove, fridge & freezer gaskets.

  In over 30 years, we have taken our vehicles to the shop only for alignment when necessary, all other repairs/maintenance we do ourselves.
 Rockette insists on doing her own oil/filter changes ! 
My bondo work not the best but keeps the rain out. 

For me, I'm not that good of a DIY kind of guy.  Which is why the microwave, I made sure I can use the existing holes as I didn't want to drill, nor own a drill. I know how to drill into drywall theory, but no XP doing it. Like a surgeon who studies how to do a surgery,but has yet to peform it.  I'm an indoor dog. See my other post about climbing a ladder for the first time a few years ago.

I did laundry at 1am and actually looked at the washer and dryer.
The ROPER is actually a Whirlpool
The dryer is also a Whirlpool
My guess is that they are both going on 20 years now.

I think a lot of good easily fixable appliances are being dumped because people have the mindset that just because it doesn't have an LED display and touchscreen it's not worth keeping.

getting your appliances fixed under warranty is also a complete nightmare. you get random subcontractors who are just doing the parts cannon approach. they will show up with nothing, figure out which part they want to try and replace, then order it and come back at a later date. over and over again until they fix it or until they deem it unfixable, then you get a pro-rated refund.

I did laundry at 1am and actually looked at the washer and dryer.

Pyscho. 

Pyscho. 

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It was planned like that.
Let me explain. There is a gun club meeting tonight.
One of the guys wanted me to bring boiled peanuts.
Boiled peanuts are soaked for 12-14 hours before cooking.
I started the soak at 11am. Therefore, the cooking started around midnight.
Midnight is the off-peak electricity time.
It takes close to 2 hours to finish.
During those 2 hours, I can do stuff....like laundry.

Also, when you get old you gotta go pee more often at night.

For me, I'm not that good of a DIY kind of guy. 

Only two things a guy needs to be good at in this time and space is making money and love.  Get enough money and you can pay others to do it for you.  But if SHTF comes about, then  MacGyver skills will be more valuable than money.

===================
It was planned like that.
Let me explain. There is a gun club meeting tonight.
One of the guys wanted me to bring boiled peanuts.
Boiled peanuts are soaked for 12-14 hours before cooking.
I started the soak at 11am. Therefore, the cooking started around midnight.
Midnight is the off-peak electricity time.
It takes close to 2 hours to finish.
During those 2 hours, I can do stuff....like laundry.

Also, when you get old you gotta go pee more often at night.

What do u estimate the cost difference to be?  When I don't use my AC, I save only $20 a month. Which is why I run that bad boy when ever I'm home.  But my cost to leave my Xbox plugged in when not using is also $20 a month. So I unplug the unit when ever not in use.

What do u estimate the cost difference to be?  When I don't use my AC, I save only $20 a month. Which is why I run that bad boy when ever I'm home.  But my cost to leave my Xbox plugged in when not using is also $20 a month. So I unplug the unit when ever not in use.

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No difference, I got PV. Here is the honest truth...

I got up at 11pm because I passed out from drinking beer and eating pizza rolls and I had to go pee

What do u estimate the cost difference to be?  When I don't use my AC, I save only $20 a month. Which is why I run that bad boy when ever I'm home.  But my cost to leave my Xbox plugged in when not using is also $20 a month. So I unplug the unit when ever not in use.

Take a look at your HECO bill.  There are more categories of charges beyond just customer usage.  Some factor in your usage, and others are fixed.



So, a relatively small increase in usage during a time when fuel costs are low won't increase your bill by a massive amount.  however, when oil prices are extremely high, any change in usage increases your bill by a lot.

During the Obama years, when the price of gas was pushing $6/gal, My electric bill was over $600/month.  No AC -- but we did run a swimming pool pump and cleaner almost the entire day.  We only shut it off for bedtime to quiet the motor noise.

When I drained the pool, the bill dropped to $~400.  It's now $250/mon without the pool motor running but with an occassional portable AC on hot nights.

When HECO eventually implements TOU a lot of people are going see huge changes in their electric bill

https://www.bizjournals.com/pacific/news/2023/07/27/hawaiian-electric-launches-shift-and-save-program.html