Monthly Archives: March 2012

Sara will never look at her refrigerator door gasket the same way again!

Your Name: Sara

Type of Appliance: Refrigerator

Brand: Roper not to be confused with Al

Model Number: no way in hell I am sticking my head in that thing again for it

Your Precious Words:
Love your site. I really needed a laugh. I now know what a gasket is and will never look at the seal the same way again. I didn’t know I could use that much profanity or hate a strip of rubber that much. Gotta say you made my day and made a fan outta me. Would kiss you but you are too far away.Do you have a face book page that I could”like”?

Thanks for your awesome email, Sara! I could always use a kiss, even a long distance one will do. kiss And your email really gave me a laugh!

You bet we have a Facebook page and we’d love to have you as a fan ==> http://facebook.com/fixitnowsamurai

Domo!

Samurai Appliance Repair Man

Ray removed a small pebble from his Maytag dishwasher and now it runs like new!

Your Name: Ray

Type of Appliance: Dishwasher

Brand: Maytag

Model Number: MDB6701AWB

Your Precious Words:
Great info and diagram to assist addressing the grinding noise in the dishwasher. A small piece of sand/pebble was lodged between the grinding blade and the metal mesh filter. Runs like new now! Thanks!!

Way to go, Ray! 8)

Wanda removes an ear plug, baby socks, bobbi pins and some coins from her Whirlpool Duet washer pump and fixes it!

Your Name: Wanda

Type of Appliance: Washer

Brand: Duet

Your Precious Words:
Thank you! My husband was able to fix our washer. In the filter we found 1 ear plug, 4 baby socks, a small rag, 4 bobbi pins, and 98 cents and some yucky lint! Again, thank you for saving us some money!

Domo, Wanda! Fixitnow.com is all about helping people fix their own appliances and saving big bucks as we say in the intro to our podcast episodes…

Another killa podcast: Untangling the Samurai’s Websites

Join Samurai Appliance Repair Man and Mrs. Samurai for another action-packed, adrenaline-gushing episode of their award-winning podcast as they talk you through the Samurai Suite of DIY appliance repair websites and explain why they are the way they are. This podcast episode was inspired by and is dedicated to Samurai Apprentice and supporter, Bill D.

Bill writes:

No real problem, Sensei. Just a note to say thanks–I love your site. I donated $10 to the Beer Fund this morning.

I will say that I had to open a new account on Appliantology.org (xxxx) because my old applianceguru.com account (xxxx) doesn’t seem to let me log in or send me a password reset even though my e-mail account is registered there. Not a big deal, just letting you know. I used my work e-mail for the second account, which is fine I guess. I would rather use the account with my home e-mail address, but I seem to be locked out or something. Every time I use your site (once per year?) I have to re-learn where the real repair forum is. I totally do not understand the difference between fixitnow.com, applianceguru.com, and appliantology.org. And they don’t seem to have the same membership login info. I doubt that I am the only idiot who is confused by this. Why not unify everything and use redirects to get all sites pointed to the same place?

Click the play button below to listen!

Why does an icemaker fill tube keep plugging up with ice?

Your Name: VICKI
Type of Appliance: Refrigerator
Brand: Frigidaire
Model Number: FRS22ZRF
Your Precious Words:
We have replaced the ice maker. Tried tapeing to insulate the tube for the water, and it still will not make ice. Tube keeps freezing in freezer. We have also turned down the freezer. I have to keep mopping water up in front of the frig too, because, my husband says he thinks thats from the insde hose being blown off when it freezes up. We need to know why it freezes. Thank yo so much, Vicki

Icemaker fill valves for all brands and models ==> http://www.repairclinic.com/Ice-Maker-Valve-Or-Float-Assembly-Parts

Click the play button in the audio player below to listen to my reply.

Testing a gas range or oven ignitor and safety valve [videos]

The ignitor and gas safety valve are the two key workhorse components in a gas oven or range. They’re also the two most common fail items that will stop an oven from working; ignitor is number one, safety valve is number two. These two videos show you how to test each one to determine if they’re bad. You can buy the replacement parts right here with a 365-day return policy– just enter your model number in the pretty orange parts search box at the top of the page.

To learn more about your range/stove/oven, or to order parts, click here.

Why do all new dishwashers suck?

Your Name: rick

Type of Appliance: Dishwasher

Brand: frigidaire

Your Precious Words:
customer is not satisfied with the drying, i checked everything is working properly. the heater comes on and the vent door opens. so he wants a new dryer [sic]. he wants me to get it for him. i was hunting for one that dries the dishes good

Rick gets more of an earful than he probably expected when Mrs. Samurai and I talked about this in our latest podcast. Click the play button below to listen:

How to replace the touchpad in a microwave oven [video and podcast]

Your Name: Clint
Type of Appliance: Microwave Oven
Brand: Whirlpool
Model Number: MH1150XMS-3
Your Precious Words: How hard is it to replace a touchpad?

Part links:

Touchpad ==> http://www.repairclinic.com/Whirlpool-Microwave-Model-MH1150XMS3-ID-654671-Touchpad-Parts

Circuit Board ==> http://www.repairclinic.com/PartDetail/Main-Control-Board/8206448/1178021?modelNumber=MH1150XMS3

Click the play button below to listen to just the audio portion of this reply…

Seeking the ever-elusive GE muthaboard concession list of affected refrigerator model numbers

Roger wrote:

There is a PDF associated with message # 11 – GE_Refrig_Board.pdf

I would like to get a copy but it’s not found on appliantology board. I have a GE Refridgerator with a problem. I want to see if the model # is on this list.

Forum Message Title:
GE Profile Refrigerator PDS22SBSBLSS Fan/Display – Started by sooty, Sep 03 2007 04:03 AM

Thanks,

Roger

Greetings Roger,

Another pilgrim seeks the mythical and fabled list of refrigerator model numbers included in GE’s muthaboard concession (or “motherboard” for those of you who are humor-impaired).

Sounds like you searched the Appliantology forums but did you know that my blog over at Appliantology.org is also a veritable geyser just gushing with appliantological wisdom? Oui, oui, mon petite shoo-shoo, ’tis twoo, ’tis twoo!

In fact, the information you seek is in this post at my Appliantology blog:

http://appliantology.org/blog/1/entry-388-ge-refrigerator-muthaboard-concession-list-of-affected-models/

How to start a new topic in the Appliantology appliance repair forums and get free help

Oscar writes:

Don’t know how to post a question.

Hi Oscar,

Well, lucky for you Mrs. Samurai has made a couple of screencasts on exactly this topic– getting started in the Appliantology Academy. Check ’em out…

http://appliantology.org/topic/36666-welcome-to-appliantology-check-out-these-short-screencasts-to-get-you-going-here/unread/

You can find whatever appliance part you need through the parts search box here at www.Fixitnow.com. No harm in buying and trying with our 365-day, no-hassle return policy, even on electrical parts that were installed!

Subscribe to our FREE, award-winning newsletter, Appliantology: The Oracle of Appliance Enlightenment ==> http://newsletter.fixitnow.com and download your free report on appliance brand recommendations! Every issue is jam-packed with appliance repair tips and inside information direct from the Samurai’s fingertips to your engorged and tingling eyeballs.

Samurai Appliance Repair Man
http://fixitnow.com

The Appliantology Academy
http://appliantology.org

Fixitnow.com Radio: The Whole Sick Social Web Trip

Listen in on Samurai Appliance Repair Man and Mrs. Samurai having an honest discussion on the pros and cons of using social media, like Facebook and Twitter, as a venue for promoting a business. How useful is social media for communicating with existing customers or users and how effective is it for reaching out to new people? (10 minutes)

Is there a problem with using GFCI outlet with a refrigerator, freezer, or ice machine?

Randall writes:

Upright Freezer kept indoors since 1993. Moved freezer to garage and plugged it into GFCI outlet. The GFCI keeps tripping. The drain was plugged and I cleared it of all ice and debris. Plugged freezer in, compressor came on, temp. got cold then tripped GFCI again sometime during the night. Your diagnosis Samurai is?

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

Why does the gasket on the refrigerator and freezer door get very hot and what does it take to fix this problem?

Robert writes:

The gasket on the refrigerator and the freezer get very hot. What causes this problem and what does it take to fix this problem?

Refrigerator and freezer condenser coil cleaning brush with instructions. (Also works great for dryer lint) ==> http://www.repairclinic.com/PartDetail/Long-Handled-Bristle-Brush/5303318693/12859

Refrigerator condenser fan motor (and lots of other refrigerator parts, too) ==> http://www.repairclinic.com/Refrigerator-Parts

You can see an interactive diagram showing the locations of various parts in your refrigerator here ==> http://www.repairclinic.com/Refrigerator-Repair-Help

Another post on this problem that you might like ==> http://fixitnow.com/wp/2010/08/14/why-is-the-cabinet-around-my-refrigerator-door-very-warm-or-hot/