I Just Made A $3000 Mistake….

[slo]

As I sit here eating my PB&J I thought I would type in a little vent about myself

Our fridge is probably 10 years old, ice maker doesn’t work, seems like it’s on borrowed time, but it’s white and I like white appliances. I’ve been told repeatedly how long it will take us to get another white fridge and we should settle for stainless - I absolutely can’t stand stainless (sorry to you all that own one - I know I’m in the minority)

So as I’m in my cleaning frenzy (washed kitchen walls this morning) I decide to pull off the back plate on the fridge and vacuum the dust out to put less stress on the motor or whatever. I see a fan running and said to myself - don’t get to close to the fan. What do I do? I get to close to the fan and broke off a blade. I call for DH and he looks at it and says that it’s now off balance and which may result in the fan to stop running. He looked online to see if this motor is still made and of course it isn’t . He found a used one on eBay, but then we need to find someone to install it.

So…..what did I learn?
Don‘t clean where the fan is without unplugging the fridge first.
This was a pretty expensive lesson I learned, because now I think we’re just gonna start shopping for a fridge.

I then pulled out the stove to clean behind that and DH says (jokingly)….Don’t be breaking that too and then ducked when I threw the washcloth at him

What‘s your expensive lesson you learned - help me feel better, because right now I’m pouting, because I hate spending large sums of money

 

[sam_gordon]

How the heck is that $3k? I guess maybe if you want a top of the line model, but most moderate models I've seen are around the $1500-$2000.

That being said, I've tried a number of repairs that just cause more problems and sometimes require bringing a professional in ($$).

 

[daisy2013]

Wait you are spending $3000 to somewhat fix a fridge that will still be broken when you’re done? For less than $3000 you can get a new one.
I would look around for a white one because I am sure you could find one for less than $3000

 

[dez1978]

I saw several white ones on Lowes under 2k. 3 grand for a fridge sounds pretty high unless you are getting a fancy one

 

[TheDad00]

3k ?? Lol

 

[slo]

Wait you are spending $3000 to somewhat fix a fridge that will still be broken when you’re done? For less than $3000 you can get a new one.
I would look around for a white one because I am sure you could find one for less than $3000

Sorry - I didn’t make it real clear. I was referring to the new fridge costing around $3000

 

[Kathryn Merteuil]

Ouch I am sorry to hear that!
To answer the question, I guess the most expensive mistake i ever made was buying a new Dodge.

 

[Dan Murphy]

If you need to get a new one, search ABT. Find what you want, call them, ask what the very best price is. We have very happily dealt with them, along with so many people we know, for years and years.

 

[_19disnA]

$3K seems high unless you are looking for a huge/top of the line model.

Just looked on Home Depot's website and they have many choices of name brand refrigerators starting at $1,200. (Check at Lowe's also since they sell many of the same ones.) They also have them in white. You can usually look at their local inventory to see what is available. Unless you buy one with an icemaker when you don't already have a water line, the only 'installation' these require are plugging it into an electrical outlet. Good to have them deliver it since they will also cart off your old one.

I would never buy a used major appliance on eBay. How much would shipping cost and who is going to drag it into your house along with how to get rid of the old one? Who knows if some used refrigerator even works or doesn't have its own set of issues?

 

[BlueStarryHat]

I don't remember doing anything that cost thousands (I'd probably have a coronary), but I did blow up a microwave once with a fork and we had to get a new one.

 

[lifesavacation]

Oh man. I hate it when I do stuff like this.

 

[sam_gordon]

Sorry - I didn’t make it real clear. I was referring to the new fridge costing around $3000

That's got to be a top of the line one then. Even those with ice/water dispensers can be had for <$2K.

 

[QueenIsabella]

Our current fridge, purchased maybe 5 years ago?, was $1350 or so. It's stainless, but has the extra drawer, ice and water dispenser, and it's huge.

I would take a look at Home Depot/Lowe's. Don't be afraid to check out the "scratch and dent" section. One of the reasons that ours was so (comparatively) cheap was, someone had ordered it, had it delivered, and it didn't fit. So, it was considered "used", even though the protective plastic sheets were still on the shelves.

 

[Turn the Page]

A few years ago, in the summer, I wake up to find we have no hot water. The water heater was out. Now, mind you, the water heater was approximately 20 years old so we knew we were going to have to replace it at some point. I called a plumber, they came and looked at it and said they may be able to use some spit and glue to get it running again but it's 20 years old, it's on borrowed time as it is. We said go ahead and replace it.

$2,000 later we have a brand new water heater that still won't light. I called the plumber again and finally he asks if we are out of propane. No, we're not out of propane, I checked it in March and we had half a tank left. By this point it was July and the only things we use propane for are the furnace and water heater so we don't go through propane in the summer since the furnace is of.

Weeeellllll......it had been a cold spring. The only thing wrong with the water heater was that I had inadvertantly let the propane tank go empty. We didn't need a new water heater at all. But, at the end of the day, the water heater was 20 years old and was on borrowed time. We just replaced it slightly earlier than we necessarily needed to. The furnace is still going strong.

 

[evilmommie]

LOL Sounds like some of you would crater if you knew what I spent on my refrigerators.

@slo Gurrllllll I've made plenty of spendy mistakes that have actually come out better in the end. Enjoy your new fridge!

 

[mamamary]

Our recent bathroom remodel was a disaster. I’m mad just thinking about it. We learned a lesson though so I’m trying to get over it.

 

[Starport Seven-Five]

Replacing that fan probably isn't that hard if either of you are handy with a socket set. Appliances are relatively simple to work on and there are how-to's online.

 

[sunshine1178]

A few years ago, in the summer, I wake up to find we have no hot water. The water heater was out. Now, mind you, the water heater was approximately 20 years old so we knew we were going to have to replace it at some point. I called a plumber, they came and looked at it and said they may be able to use some spit and glue to get it running again but it's 20 years old, it's on borrowed time as it is. We said go ahead and replace it.

$2,000 later we have a brand new water heater that still won't light. I called the plumber again and finally he asks if we are out of propane. No, we're not out of propane, I checked it in March and we had half a tank left. By this point it was July and the only things we use propane for are the furnace and water heater so we don't go through propane in the summer since the furnace is of.

Weeeellllll......it had been a cold spring. The only thing wrong with the water heater was that I had inadvertantly let the propane tank go empty. We didn't need a new water heater at all. But, at the end of the day, the water heater was 20 years old and was on borrowed time. We just replaced it slightly earlier than we necessarily needed to. The furnace is still going strong.

I’ll always be bitter about spending $1,500 on a new water heater in a 10-year-old house because the buyers wanted it as a condition of sale. Then their financing fell through and we had to carry the house another three months.

 

[design_mom]

Ugh. I feel your pain. Several years ago now, our (white) refrigerator died and we wanted to replace it with another white refrigerator. There isn't nearly the selection of refrigerators available in white as there is in stainless. And the white ones are mostly "high end" or really bare bones. We ended up ordering a Kitchen Aid. We ordered it from a home-improvement store who *said* they had it in stock while all the other places said it was backordered. (Note: We assumed that meant the store had it in THEIR warehouse, but apparently all of the stores in our area pull from the same manufacturer's warehouse, so if it's out for one, it's out for the other.) We looked for something else but anything that wasn't super bare-bones was also backordered.

We were originally told it'd be 6 weeks... and we decided we could make do with the extra fridge in our basement for that long. But then delays and cancelations and more delays and cancelations. It ended up taking -- no joke -- 9 months to get the new one. (I was ready to switch to stainless just to get SOMETHING, but DH didn't want mismatched appliances and the rest are white.

 

[georgina]

This is why I don't clean

Sorry for your trouble, I think a lot of us have made a costly mistake in our lives.