The bane of every washing machine
Girls. Specifically, girl things. More specifically, girls’ hair things.
The latest mechanical failure in our life occurred last week on Wednesday when the washing machine, which had been making rattling noises for a while, simply stopped draining.
Previous recent mechanical failures include:
September 15: car (‘94 Corolla) engine dies on way to airport near I-80 and Redwood Road. I was able to coax it over the hill to the off-ramp, start it a few more times as it died, and left it at a gas station nearby. Caught a ride from Diamond Parking and Shuttle (thanks dude!) and made my flight anyway. Car still in shop.
September 16: on the flight home, the zealous flight steward filled my water glass to the brim and as he handed it to me, spilled an unknown quantity on my laptop (‘10 MacBook Pro) keyboard. Keyboard behaves as if the Command key is down all the time. $300 to replace keyboard.
September 20: scooter (‘07 Genuine Buddy) loses all power on the Lindon hill going north into Pleasant Grove. I coast for maybe a quarter mile, goose it, and the engine revives, but with a new rattling noise. The next day I see that there is no oil at all in case. I add maybe 300ml and drive it up to the Scooter Lounge and it’s out of oil again. Dave says he’s not sure what’s going on there.
October 1: van bumper meets irresistible force (boulder) in Millcreek Canyon. New bumper needed. Van is in shop for 3 days (we broke down and got a rental).
October 5: washing machine stops draining, constant beeping (this is a Fisher & Paykel GWL 15, for anyone finding this from the internets) and then unfamiliar light patterns on the control panel (3, 6, 8 from left to right). A call to customer support let me know that that’s a pump problem. Saturday I took a few hours and disassembled the machine. Look what I found in the pump:
The silver chain you see in the picture was wrapped around the pump spindle. The bobby and straight pins were lodged in the impeller. Total time for repair: 3 hours. Quality time spent with my sons in learning new skills and, ahem, interesting conversation: priceless.
Love you, gals!