Broken Washing Machine

We have been extremely busy the last couple of days. Thursday I went to run a load of laundry and found that our beautiful expensive front-loading washer was not spinning. I didn't smell any burned rubber or see any smoke, the motor seemed to be running just fine and was draining water, etc. The only thing that seemed to be wrong was the drum wasn't spinning. Dwayne came home and took a look at the machine and found that the belt was off the track and had a melted spot where it was rubbing wrong. Now I am in the middle of potty training Evie so having a washing machine was a must. I can't imagine trying to wash clothes in the sink with as many towels and panties I was going through. So Friday, I spent the morning calling around to every appliance place I could trying to find the belt. It turns out that this belt is a little difficult to come by and to top it all off it was running $50-$60. We were so downhearted because we didn't have that kind of money. We didn't even have enough on a credit card to cover it. Well, Dwayne made a call to his parents and they were kind enough to give us some money. They were more than generous and I can't thank them enough. I was in tears. I hate being stuck in that kind of situation.

I finally found someone who had the belt we needed but they were located in Tacoma. Dwayne agreed to take the afternoon off and go up and get the belt. I was excited. That meant I could have my washer back! I have been so busy making sure Evie's clothes and the towels were washed that I had forgotten that Sam was needing clothes too. I had just put in a load of his laundry when the washer broke. He has had to go without underwear for 3 days now. Dwayne gave me a call when he was in Tacoma. Apparently he was lost. With all the construction going on in the area, the map directions he was using wasn't entirely accurate. After pulling up the map on the computer and guiding him to where he needed to be, he was able to grab the belt and some dinner and was on his way home.

Traffic was bad but he finally made it. After eating something he dived right into trying to get the belt put back on. After some frustrating attempts he told me the problem and I got online to do some research. We finally came to the conclusion that it wasn't just a belt but there was a bearing that had gone bad as well. The repairmen we talked to about advice on this problem told us that he thought our conclusions were correct and it would be a very expensive repair. Anywhere starting from $400-$600. Most technicians won't do it and tell you to just scrap the washer. Dwayne was so upset that was complaining to the ladies in line at the grocery store when I sent him for milk. It turns out the lady in line behind him had a washer they were trying to get rid of for only $25. What a Godsend.

This morning we woke up with a purpose of trying to get rid of our broken washer and get a replacement soon. Our laundry situation was getting desperate. I made some phone calls to a couple places that I knew took old washers. Neither place would really give us anything for it but were willing to take it off our hands. So we had a place to dump it. Dwayne tried calling the lady he ran into at the grocery store but she didn't answer. We decided to make a run to Tacoma to return the now useless belt and hoped that we would get a return call soon. We were expecting to lose about 20% of the cost of the belt as a restocking fee but after the guy heard our story he refunded the entire cost of the belt. He also told us that they are finding that front-loading washers are not the great deal everyone thought they were several years ago. They seem to be lasting about 5 years before the bearings are wearing out and the way they are built makes it so it is not an easy or cheap repair. Needless to say we will never be buying one again.

The lady called us back right as we were getting close to home. She would be home all day and we could come over any time to look at it. We popped right over and it looked good. It is a very basic machine but that is all I need right now to get the clothes clean. It was clean with no major defects or rust that we could see. We had their guarantee that it ran real well so we paid the $25 and took it home. We then loaded up the big monster that looked really pretty but didn't work worth a darn and Dwayne took it to the store that would recycle it for us. We now have an extremely mismatched laundry set but the washer works just fine. It is also really fast compared to what I am used to. The front-loader washer takes over an hour to do one load. That is what I have been used to for years. It will take some getting used to to do my laundry so quickly.

I am so grateful that God provided for us so quickly and we were able to get it resolved. I have been so stressed out the last few days. Especially as the laundry pile was getting larger and larger. We had enough left over to treat ourselves to a dinner and fill both vehicles with gas. I can't remember the last time the van has been full. Again, thank you Terry and Dianne for giving us the money. We love you guys!