The Day My Washer (Almost) Died

We just returned from a ten day vacation last week, which included a few days in Florida, and a few days aboard a cruise ship, which stopped in several spots in the Caribbean. When we returned home, I was faced with mountains of dirty laundry, that I knew would take days to wash, dry, and put away. Begrudgingly, I sorted the dirty clothes into several piles, and started washing them, load by load. I never used to mind doing laundry, until I became a mom! My time spent doing laundry has probably tripled!

When I got to load three or four, I dumped it into the washing machine, and pulled out the water knob, to let it fill up before adding the detergent, as usual. Everything seemed normal, so I added the detergent, and then closed the lid. At the end of the cycle, I noticed that the clothes in the washer were more than just damp- they were soaked, and there was a small pool of water in the bottom of the washer. I wondered if the machine somehow skipped the spin cycle, so I reset it, and let it spin. When the washer signaled that the cycle had ended, I checked the clothing and they were still soaked! Frustrated, I had no choice but to throw the soaked clothing into the dryer.

As I started the next load of clothes in the washer, I noticed that the agitator kicked on right at the start of the cycle. I called my husband into the laundry room, and he fiddled around, and then took to the internet to research the model of the machine. The information we read on the problem with our washer had us on the hunt for a new washing machine. I remembered a friend telling me about a great deal she got on a new appliance for her kitchen, just before the holidays, so I told my hubby that we ought to check out Pricegrabber.com. We found some great deals, and he spent the rest of the night scanning through washers and dryers, too!

The next day, the washer seemed to be acting normally, but I won't hold my breath that it'll continue on working as well as it used to for much longer. I'm glad to know we've got some great options right at our fingertips when it's time for a replacement!

Have you ever had to replace a major household appliance?