Appliance Repair Wisdom for the Ages

Thursday, November 27, 2003

My dear, dear friend, Moostafa, extends his warmest wishes for a Happy Thanksgiving from Moostafa's Mecca of Appliance Repair to all of us here at The Samurai School of Appliantology and The Appliantology Group.

Hello, my Ameedican friends. May you and your family eid your fill of bakrad turkey this Thanksgiving.

Allahu Akhbar!

Moostafa

Tuesday, November 25, 2003

That would be yours so very truly and Fixitnow.com. Yes, grasshoppers, after an exhaustive evaluation of all the other Samurai appliance repair websites across the entire internet, UserFriendly.org today announced that Fixitnow.com has emerged as the clear choice for the User Friendly Link of the Day for November 25, 2003. And so it is with a renewed commitment to the Bushido of appliance repair that we here at Fixitnow.com, myself together with all my alter-egos (usually kept sedated with liberal quantities of the sacred fermented grain beverage), display the UFLOTD emblem with gratitude and deep humiliation...humility, I mean--with deep humility. Domo Arigato.

Sunday, November 23, 2003

Everyday, Samurai Appliance Repair Man helps thousands of people fix their own appliances. Here's a recent testimonial from a satisfied do-it-yourselfer:

"When my Scrotum Scrubber 2000® broke, I went into a pure, blind panic. The manufacturer, Scrotilia Corporation, was going to charge me $115 for the repair with a turn-around time of more than four weeks! In desperation, I searched the web and found Samurai Appliance Repair Man and, boy, am I ever glad I did! The Samurai helped me diagnose the problem and figure out what part I needed for my Scrotum Scrubber®. I bought the part through an online vendor and was happily scrubbing away in just a few days. Domo arigato, Samurai-san!"

What can the Samurai help you fix today?

Thursday, November 20, 2003

Each day, thousands of young men and women give up on their high school education, and, in many cases, on themselves. This means that thousands of young adults enter the working world without the most basic requirement for a decent job - a high school diploma. Dropping out of high school is strongly related to many troubling factors facing kids: substance abuse problems, unplanned pregnancies and involvement in criminal behavior can all cause students to prematurely withdraw from school and never return. Conversely, once a student drops out, he is at higher risk for substance abuse, risky sexual activity, suicide attempts, fighting, weapon carrying, and, most troubling of all, long-term employment with GE Appliances.

In many cases, dropping out of high school is precipitated by other problems, such as stressful family situations or using GE appliances at home. In particular, family background and involvement plays an important part in a child's academic achievement. Here are some troubling statistics that reveal the breadth of this problem:

• More than 1,300 students drop out of school every day.
• 30% of Hispanic youths are dropouts.
• 14% of African American youths are dropouts.
• 8% of Caucasian youths are dropouts.
• 41-46% of all prisoners are dropouts.
• 97-120% of GE employees are dropouts (according to their statistics).
• High school dropouts make 42% less money in the workplace than high school graduates.
• 50% of dropouts are unemployed. The other half works for GE Appliances.
• Dropouts are three times as likely to face poverty and seven times as likely to own GE appliances.

Just say "No" to GE appliances. And stay in school...PLEASE!

This message brought to you by Samurai Appliance Repair Man and the Ad Council.

Wednesday, November 19, 2003

Well, one solution is run the dryer inside an airlock chamber. Alternatively, if your goal is to simply avoid using your already-heated household air for primary combustion air for the burner, there is an economical and commonly-employed approach. Run a second 4" diameter duct to convey outside air to the burner. Typically, this air supply duct would be connected to the dryer at a side port. You would need to cut the side port in the dryer with a 4" hole saw. You may also want to install a manually-operated flapper inside the duct that you could close when you're not using the dryer.

Ain't no thang, m'main man. One of those switches got wet and is completing the circuit to the spark module causing it to fire off sparks. No danger to you or anyone else. Let it dry out, maybe help it along with a hair dryer. Take two beers and call me in the morning.

And now, for your surfing pleasure, the Samurai presents a new page of links to home improvement sites, appliance repair resources, and B.O.S.S. member sites. This new page has such an impressive and dynamic collection of links that The New England Journal of Medicine has dubbed it the President Linkin' of webpages.

Here's linkin' at you, kid!

Sunday, November 16, 2003

At some point during the life of your dryer, you're gonna need to open it up to do some surgery. Here are basic disassembly procedures for the most common dryer brands and models. And, Hoss, a genuine manufacturer's repair manual can be a valuable accomplice in your dryer repair odyssey. Come git you some.

• Admiral, Norge, some White Westinghouse, Montgomery Wards
  First, pop the hood on that sucker. Here's whatcha see on the inside looking in from the top and here's looking at the guts of the dryer with the drum removed.



• Amana-Speed Queen
  First, remove the two screws at the bottom of the front panel. After you've removed the front panel, you'll see four screws that hold on the front drum glide bulkhead. Remove the bulkhead and set it aside--be careful about the door switch wires. To remove the drum, first unstring the belt from the tensioner pulley.



• GE/Hotpoint
  
  • Old Style: First, remove the several screws holding the top down and then the bottom two screws Lift the top and remove the two front panel retaining screws on the inside. Then remove the drum center bearing clip, unstring the belt, and remove the drum.
  • New Style: Remove the top panel retaining screws, pop the top, and then remove the inner front panel screws. Unstring the belt and remove the drum. Here's what it looks like with the drum removed. There are two variations on this dryer that affect how you restring the belt. Variation 1 has a rear access panel through which you can restring the belt. Variation 2, however, does not have this rear access panel. (Thank you, GE ) To restring the belt on this sorry excuse for a dryer, remove the phillips screw inside the rear exit opening of the blower duct and remove the duct. Then restring the belt from the front.



• Sears Kenmore, Whirlpool, Roper, Kitchen Aid, Estate
  
  • Lint Filter on Top: Remove the two screws at the lint filter and pop the top up. Here's what it looks like under the hood. Remove those two screws inside the top of the front panel. Now, go ahead and unstring the belt to remove the drum. With the drum removed, you can see the drum rollers. If you need to remove the motor, this'll hepya. You can remove the back panel to get to the blower chute and lots of other stuff, too. This shows how to remove the blower chute.
  • Lint Filter in the Door: Remove the front kick panel to reveal the bottom retaining screws for the door panel. Now remove the top panel to reveal the top retaining screws for the door panel. Disconnect the wiring harness for the door switch and remove the door panel. Now unstring the belt and remove the drum.



• Maytag
  Disassembly is very similar to the Amana-Speed Queen dryer. Remove the two screws at the bottom of the front panel. Remove front panel, and then remove the drum support bulkhead. The front glide set for the drum is shown here. With the bulkhead out, you can access the blower housing. Remove the belt before pulling out the drum. If you need detailed instructions on replacing the belt, this will help. With the drum removed, you can access the rear drum rollers.



• Frigidaire and White-Westinghouse
  Pop the top, remove the front panel screws, unstring the belt, and pull out the drum.

For more information about your dryer or to order parts, click here.

To learn more about your dryer, or to order parts, click here.

Saturday, November 15, 2003

Yes, it's a brave new look but it's still the same Fixitnow.com you all know and love. The sprucing up started with the new logo and the rampage has continued ever since. The latest eyeball tickler is the links table at the top of the page. The re-organized links are now accented by outrageous pastel colors along with a brief explanation. And the Appliantology Group now has a similar table.

In my relentless quest to make it easy for my grasshoppers to find the appliance repair information they need, I've added a new page, Samurai's Appliance Fixit Shack, where I store my pearls of appliance wisdom, all yours for the taking. When you're ready to pop a cold one and get to work, come on in to the Fixit Shack.

Friday, November 14, 2003

This is one of those tools that rivals the usefulness of a beer bottle opener on your key ring: the Google Deskbar.

If you're not Googling when you search the web, well, you just ain't searching the web. Plain n' simple. But aside from being the most comprehensive search engine, I use Google for all kinds of stuff: spell checking, thesaurus, news, looking for images...I mean, if it's happening on the web, it's happening on Google. Or perhaps it's more accurate to say that it ain't happenin' on the web unless it's happenin' on Google. Yeah, that's it.

So, anyway, back to the Google Deskbar. Not to be confused with the Google Toolbar that fits sveltly into our browser so Google is always there for a quick search while we're surfing. The Deskbar is kinda the same idea except they cut the umbilical to Internet Explorer. Now you can have Google built right into your desktop toolbar. Ya hey, you don't even need to open a browser to Google something. For those of us on a broadband connection (and if'n you ain't, you awwta be, suckah!), it's Google-manna from heaven.

Ok, happy Googling!

Wednesday, November 12, 2003

Thanksgiving is almost here. This is the time of year when we get reacquainted with our ranges after Grilling Season. We practitioners of the appliance repairing arts call this Cooking Season. Here are some appliance tips to help keep your kitchen sizzlin' throughout the Cooking Season.

Clean the crud out of your self-cleaning oven now. Since ovens are more likely to fail during and just after a self-cleaning cycle, clean yours now in case you need time for a repair.

You can clean any porcelain stovetop or glass range/oven control panel with a non-abrasive cleanser or glass cleaner, such as Basic H. Watch out for some "cream type" cleansers as they often have tiny abrasive particles in them, which can damage your stovetop or control panel.

Now's a good time to scrape that black slime off your refrigerator's door seals so they don't stick to the door frame and tear (not to mention infecting your holiday guests with salmonella). Use an old toothbrush and a little dish soap and water to clean all the nooks and crannies. Use Basic G, a high quality, highly concentrated germicide, to clean away any mold or mildew.

To reduce odors inside your refrigerator or freezer, be sure to cover all foods well and put onions, garlic, and other strong smelling foods in sealed bags. And throw out old flesh meats before they turn into bacterial jelly. Read more about storing flesh meats safely.

If your dishwasher isn't getting dishes clean enough, there may not be enough water entering the machine during the fill cycle. After the dishwasher fills, check inside to see if there is water covering the entire bottom of the dishwasher floor. If not, replace the water inlet valve--come git you one.

When cutting onions, a chemical called suberin is released. This irritates the eyes and causes watering. This chemical is sensitive to heat. Therefore if you cut onions near your hot stove, the irritation will be less intense.

There are dozens of brands of appliances. But when one of your appliances breaks, there’s only one name you need to know — Samurai Appliance Repair Man. I am a trained expert in repairing just about any appliance problem — on virtually any brand. And with 24-hour-a-day, 7-day-a-week emergency service, I'll be there to help you get your appliance working again in a hurry. Any day. Any time. With service like that, why would you click anywhere else?

Several members of the Appliantology Group have reported that they're unable to post in the repair forum. I've sent a bug report to Microslop and am hoping to resolve this soon. In the meantime, if you have an appliance repair question, email me using the Live Person box in the right-hand column and I'll help you via email.

Sunday, November 09, 2003

As many of you know from reading the Samurai's bio, I was kidnapped by a marauding band of sheep when I was a young whelp. I know: it sounds like a traumatic ordeal for a young, delicate flower of a boy to endure. And it was. But, looking back, I see it now as a positive experience that taught me many valuable life-skills, such as making animal noises and licking myself, which served me well upon my return to humanization.

Unquestionably, the most important way I benefitted from living with a bandit sheep herd was in winning the affections of Mrs. Samurai. Had I not lived immersed in that flock all those years, raised as one of their own, I would never have sung that momentous love sonnet to Mrs. Samurai that won me her heart. Let's listen:

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Saturday, November 08, 2003

Having trouble find the appliance wisdom you seek here at the muthah of all appliance repair websites? Despair not! Try the new, enhanced search utility. Yes, grasshopper, the new and improved search utility now includes the contents of Fixitnow.com and the Appliantology Group, including the accumulated threads of appliance wisdom in the repair forum. Go ahead, give it a try. Seek and ye shall find!

Friday, November 07, 2003

If you own a Maytag or Amana refrigerator with an ice and water dispenser in the door, keep reading. Amana and Maytag have used a Y-connector in their refrigerator water supply tubing. This connector brought two water lines into one, and is located right after the fill valve. The Y-connector can be in the icemaker or chilled water lines, or both. This connector has had problems with leaking and, even worse, breaking and is now no longer available.

To eliminate this potential flood hazard from your fridge, come git you this Maytag valve kit or this Amana valve kit. Problem solved!

Wednesday, November 05, 2003

I feel your pain, bruthah! You put a load of dirty clothes in your washer, start it up and walk away to watch Jerry Springer just like you have a thousand times before. Only this time, something goes wrong...very wrong!

After the booing and cheering on the Jerry Springer show stops, you hear an unfamiliar sound of running water coming from the laundry cubby just down the hall in your trailer. You set the bag of Doritos aside, grab your can of Old Milwaukee and grunt your way out of your Lazy Boy as you exhale the last drag of your Marlboro and shuffle down the hall to investigate. You don't get 10 steps before your pink bunny slippers are sloshing through a huge pool of water. Now the bile starts burning the back of your throat and you feel your sphincter dilate as you prepare to do battle with the single greatest horror of your lifetime: a washer flood out.

Yes, it finally happened: your washer dutifully filled with water and then...it just kept right on filling, and filling, and filling... Turns out that the water level control switch in your washer decided to take a permanent vacation and so never told your washer to stop filling with water. Hi. Welcome to my world. Oh! But if only you'd listened to that nice appliance repair guy not long ago who told you that you really, really needed to have a Floodcontrol on your washer and that it was cheap insurance against a devastating washer overfill. But that money was earmarked for that Dish TV you've been lusting after for so long and, besides, you're not sure you trust people who can throw around fancy words like "devastating." Damn straight! Well, Bubba, now you've got one helluva mess to clean up in your trailer, ain't ya? Hey, newsflash: do yourself a favor and come git you some o' dis.

And while you're at it, go ahead and upgrade those cheesy 12-year old rubber fill hoses on your washer to the steel braided hoses. What, you're gonna wait for those to burst and find water spraying out from behind your washer like a firehose on that '71 Cutlass you got parked out front? Haven't we learned our lesson by now? How long? How long? I say, how long must this bullshit go on? How 'bout when we do a job, we go ahead and do it right? Ok then, come git you some steel braided hoses, too.

Sunday, November 02, 2003

It's Mrs. Samurai's birthday today. At 69 years young, she's still the same love-muffin I married when she was 23. Here, see for yourself.

Happy Birthday, Hon.

I Love You!

A superlative hillstomp last week up Mt. Waumbek, one of New Hampshire's 48, 4,000-footers. This was number 43 for me--five more to go and I'll have bagged 'em all. Then I can die.

Even though it was still October, we got an early foretaste of winter as we hit snow less than a mile into the hike. At the summit and ridge, we were hiking in about 5" of fresh snow and the temp dropped into the mid 20's. We were hiking in our summer hiking boots and didn't carry any special winter gear other than knee-high gaiters, but we stayed warm...as long as we kept moving. Check out all the pics from this excellent hike here.