Longevity of refrigerators & other major appliances

StarSong

StarSong

Awkward is my Superpower
Location
Los Angeles Suburbs
@moviequeen1 just bought a new fridge and mentioned a tidbit from Consumer Reports that refrigerators now last 7-10 years. What???

My refrigerators and freezers have all lasted 20 years or so. Ditto dishwashers, washers, dryers, stovetops and ovens. My dryer, stove and oven are all at 30+ years and still going strong. Admittedly, some have needed minor repairs now and then (most of which DH has done), but still...

Have I been exceptionally lucky or is my experience common?
 

'Planned Obsolescence'

The planned obsolescence strategy has been applied to a wide range of consumer products for decades. As said, cars are a clear example, but so are electronics, with everything from computers, televisions and mobile phones to household appliances such as washing machines, dishwashers, microwaves, etc. and software.

7-10 years is the norm.
 
Last edited:
I think the main culprit for the reduced longevity is all the complexity. In the past, machines were made much simpler and there was less to go wrong. Today, there are motherboards with all kinds of sensors for out of balance, load size detection, and many others. Often it isn't the motor or the gearbox that goes bad, it's something in the electronics that has gone haywire and prevents it from operating properly. The solution may be that you need a new motherboard, and the cost to replace it for labor and parts is almost as much as a new machine, so it's junked.
 
yes my washing machine, stove and fridge freezer in the kitchen are all abut 10 years old now..... the previous ones I had for a couple of decades.. The larder fridge freezer.. and the chest freezer both in the out houses.. are just about 3 years old...but in truth I don't buy anything which has any fancy gadgets on it, or working using blue tooth etc.. so I fully expect them to last a lot longer than those which have...
 
bobcat48 said:
I think the main culprit for the reduced longevity is all the complexity. In the past, machines were made much simpler and there was less to go wrong. Today, there are motherboards with all kinds of sensors for out of balance, load size detection, and many others. Often it isn't the motor or the gearbox that goes bad, it's something in the electronics that has gone haywire and prevents it from operating properly. The solution may be that you need a new motherboard, and the cost to replace it for labor and parts is almost as much as a new machine, so it's junked.
Click to expand...
So true. When my 25 year old washer was on its last legs a few years ago I knew I didn't want one of the new whiz-bang models. My in-laws passed away 5 years ago. Their washing machine was the old fashioned type with a mechanical dial to choose and start cycles. I happily scooped it up. No flashing lights, electronic buttons or other unnecessary electronics to go wrong.
 
My Kenmore w/d is from the 1970s. I had a problem w/the washer a couple of weeks ago, it was the spin button ? that needed replacing. He charged me $90.

$30 to come out to my home and $60 for the part and labor. The repair took him less than 30mins.
I'm happy with what I've got.
 
dobielvr said:
My Kenmore w/d is from the 1970s. I had a problem w/the washer a couple of weeks ago, it was the spin button ? that needed replacing. He charged me $90.

$30 to come out to my home and $60 for the part and labor. The repair took him less than 30mins.
I'm happy with what I've got.
Click to expand...
that's the other thing.. the cost of reapir for so many things can be sky hihg, making it more financially viable to buy new. My husband fixed everything that went wrong.. he fixed my tumble dryer, which I've had for about 30 year... 3 times over the years, so that could have potentially been 3 new tumble driers, if I hadn't had him to repair it...
 
hollydolly said:
that's the other thing.. the cost of reapir for so many things can be sky hihg, making it more financially viable to buy new. My husband fixed everything that went wrong.. he fixed my tumble dryer, which I've had for about 30 year... 3 times over the years, so that could have potentially been 3 new tumble driers, if I hadn't had him to repair it...
Click to expand...
Yes, DH is also quite handy - as apparently are many of the men on this forum. My sweetie has saved a number of appliances from early graves, including my heavily-used, roughly 25 year old Kitchen Aid mixer just a couple of years ago. YouTube has been very helpful in that regard.
 
Over the past 20 years, we've had to replace All of our major appliance....the refrigerator twice. We have an ancient (1975) Montgomery Ward chest freezer in the basement which still works. It has a lot of ice buildup, but I don't want to empty and defrost it, as I suspect that if I "disturb" it, it will break down. Our 8 yr. old dishwasher has been failing to complete its drying cycle, so I took the door apart and reseated all the connectors on the control panel, and it has worked ok twice since then.....However I will not be surprised if it fails again. A new CP is well over half the cost of a new dishwasher, so I suspect we will be replacing the appliance before long.

Anymore, A person is lucky if these things last 3 or 4 years after the warranty expires.
 
I believe they purposely build appliances to not last as long. When I had the water heater replaced at that house I owned, they actually told me that. He said this new one will not last as long as the original one did. I don't know if the stove and dishwasher were the original to this apartment which was built in the early 1990s. I suspect they are. The stove works, the dishwasher has crapped out and I'm doing the dishes by hand. Won't ask for a replacement with these shark owners.
 
Old appliances were made to last. The companies had a reputation to uphold and longevity was a selling point. Most things were made in the USA back then. Overseas manufacturers don't give a damn about the American consumer but just the American dollar.
 
My old GE frig was in the apt when I bought it in 1988, I can't remember if the previous owner had just bought the frig or not.I never had a problem with it until last wk
 
My first refrigerator was an International Harvester one that was over 10 years old when we got it from another military member. It had been shipped all over from the U.S. to different postings.

We used it for 2 1/2 years, shipped it back home, used it for another 4 years and then it sat in my dad's garage for several more years as a beer fridge.

He sold it to a bunch of frat guys to cool their beer. They way that thang was built, it might STILL be cooling beer somewhere.

These days? Nothing is going to last that long.
 
In my old house, there was a Whirlpool washing machine, it lasted 25 years and who knows how long it was there when my parents bought the house in 1975. One day it didn't empty the wash water. I called a repairman and he said the machine was so old he doubted he could get parts to fix it - something about a pump. After that I started to go to the laundromat. Now I have a Kenmore an until that fails, I don't have to the laundromat anymore.
 
Do they still have Kenmore products at Sears in the US. We bought all the appliance from Sears 18 years ago. The all-fridge didn’t have the Kenmore label. It didn’t last 5 years, replaced by warranty and failed after 3 years. They wouldn’t honour the warranty and would just give a credit towards a new fridge. Not a good deal. I’d love to be able to buy Sears/products still.
 
When we bought our condo we were given paperwork that stated the waterheater was 17 years old. CR and another source stated that the life expectancy was 10 years. I elected to replace it before it became a problem. Think about 50 gallons of hot water in the floor of the Florida room.
 
It probably depends partly on how much use the appliance has gotten. A senior living alone, who does one or two loads of wash a week, is going to have a washer much longer than a family of 5-6 people.
 
When I bought my first washing machine in the 70s, it had two cycles and 1 knob. The next was a few years ago, it's got computerized water levels, wash cycles, etc. It's got a 50 page book of "instructions" . I can barely turn it on. My point is in the 70s, we didn't care how much water, or electricity the damn thing used, now it does. And complicated machines break down faster than the simple 70s ones.
And like C50 said you DO NOT want to tempt the curse.
 
StarSong said:
Have I been exceptionally lucky or is my experience common?
Click to expand...
As others have said I believe modern appliances do not last as long as the old ones. Many are more energy efficient with more useful features, but just don't last as long, not as heavy or well built and often harder to repair.

With refrigerators I think the energy cost savings of the new ones can more than offset the cost of more frequent replacement.
 

You must log in or register to reply here.

Back
Top