Do not call the Repair man!

I left the house this morning to go to a Bridal Show with my Future Mother in-law. Right before leaving the house I went downstairs in the basement to take a load of sweatshirts out of the washer in order to hang-dry. (Fiance is rather tall and gets upset when his attire shinks in the dryer). The sweatshirts were soaked! I reset the washer for the Spin Cycle, and when I went back down to check, they were still soaked.

I left the issue with my Fiance since I had to run out the door.

When I arrived home he was browsing new washers on the Lowes, Home Depot and Sears websites (he's a savvy shopper like me). Something in the washer was broken and he was juggling with the idea of getting new washer or getting it repaired. A repairman would cost about $100 to come out and check it out and then another $50+ for the part and labor. Should he buy a new washer- an Energy Saver that would be the mate for our newish dryer?

The matching washer was on sale at Home Depot for $429 (inclusive of shipping and haulaway). He had the washer in his virtual shopping cart and was about to press "check out," but I started complaining that I just spent $20 on laundry detergent and there are never coupons for the special detergents you need for those types of washers. He decided to research the model washer we have and found some advice online on how to dissemble it to dissect what could be wrong.

The Investigation:

(the drum, casing is removed)

(scary controls)

(the motor)

(the casing)

THE CULPRIT

(the pieces that broke and need replacing)

After taking the washer apart and finding the broken bits (some part of the agitator) he was able to order the parts online for $18.90 (inclusive of tax and shipping).

This fiasco could have racked up a bill for $150-$200 for repairman services or $450 for a new washer, but instead less than $20 is coming out of our pockets. Bonus: I can continue to purchase the laundry detergent of MY choice (with coupons).

You do not need to be a rocket scientist or a contractor to do repairs like this. My Fiance is a Financial Planner who happens to be very handy around the house. Please do yourself a favor and investigate your home repair issues before calling a repairman or buying a brand new appliance.