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appliance death
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Subject: RE: appliance death From: Donuel Date: 22 Sep 21 - 07:48 PM Rap suggestted the best priced and most efficient heating and cooling system as Lennox. So far he is spot on. Are there other success stories out there. |
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Subject: RE: appliance death From: Stilly River Sage Date: 22 Sep 21 - 07:25 PM I've talked about a small convection oven - I have two of them. One is a Black and Decker toaster oven with the fan, the other is a large glass bowl with a lid that contains the heating element and fan. Here's an article that discusses their uses. I reduce the baking time on my homemade bread from 35 to about 25 minutes when I bake it in the glass convection oven. It's an automatic thing now, doing a conversion in my head as I either turn down the recommended temperature or shorten the cooking time (or both). |
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Subject: RE: appliance death From: Steve Shaw Date: 22 Sep 21 - 10:53 AM The only alumin(i)um things I use are a couple of hard-anodised baking/roasting trays, and I'm phasing them out as well because you can't make gravy in them on an induction hob! Also, stuff sticks to them big time and you can't put them in the dishwasher. In the past, anything aluminium that I had had a non-stick coating, so never any direct contact with food. Of course, there's always aluminium foil... (I understand that if you go back far enough you find that the American spelling "aluminum" is the "correct" one). |
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Subject: RE: appliance death From: Stilly River Sage Date: 22 Sep 21 - 10:08 AM What Mr Red is describing is the difference between reactive and non-reactive metals for pans. When I pull out my instructions for various food preservation (canning) projects, invariably is the instruction "use a non-reactive pan." The grape juice I'm making into jelly or tomatoes I'm turning into sauce are going to react with the aluminum or copper. From Martha Stewart.com, Reactive vs. Nonreactive Pans explains the difference. A reactive pan is one that contains metals that might interact with certain foods. Aluminum, cast iron, and unlined copper are all examples of reactive metals. Pans made of these materials conduct heat very well and are ideal for cooking rice, melting sugar, and pan-browning meat. But you should avoid cooking acidic foods such as tomato sauce in pans like these, as the metal can alter the color and flavor of the dish. |
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Subject: RE: appliance death From: Steve Shaw Date: 22 Sep 21 - 04:31 AM I agree. My bog-standard cooking utensils are are made from that colourful silicone stuff (they mostly seem to have a stiffening metal strip inside that doesn't see the light of day). The multicolours might look a bit amateurish but the big pot of them in the corner looks very jolly. Aluminium is playing a diminished role now that we have an induction hob. Most of my pans are made of steel, or have a steel bottom with an aluminium bowl coated with non-stick (cheapo pans, a false economy, not permitted), and my pride and joy are my three large Le Creuset casseroles, two deep and one shallow. Metal utensils are a big no-no. |
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Subject: RE: appliance death From: Mr Red Date: 22 Sep 21 - 04:16 AM The aluminum as a problem cooking material myth was mostly debunked a long time ago, but it still makes the rounds. IME - Cooking maybe be OK, but experience long since is "don't use metal spoons to stir the contents", and certainly don't eat out of them. There is something that gives it a taste when you do. I am not a metallurgist, but either the metal spoon scrapes some taste into the mix or there is a cathodic reaction with the dissimilar metals & the acidic food (alkalis are also available). The kind of pot I am thinking of is the military/camping oblong with the wire handle folding inwards, when wooden spoons are just to twee to lug around in the wild. |
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Subject: RE: appliance death From: Steve Shaw Date: 21 Sep 21 - 09:07 PM These days the only vegetable I steam is cabbage. I steamed everything once upon a time, but over the years I've become less and less convinced that just boiling loses you the vitamins (which I'm not especially short of in any case). I think that things like beans, peas, carrots, cauliflower and broccoli cook much better in plain boiled salted water. With cauliflower and broccoli I try to keep just the stalks in the water with the heads above the parapet. And there's a lot less washing up, always a boon. I do have one of those multi-tiered steamers, but it gets used only at Christmas by Mrs Steve when she's doing her Christmas pudding. |
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Subject: RE: appliance death From: Steve Shaw Date: 21 Sep 21 - 08:41 PM I buy only good-quality basmati rice for curries and for chili con carne. No own-brands or unbranded, thanks. That kind of "basmati" is notoriously likely to have been cut with hugely inferior grains. The most expensive rice you can buy is still cheap. It completely beats me why anyone would bother using an intricate gizmo for cooking rice, let alone bother to carefully measure rice and water. I've used the following method for basmati for many years and I can't remember the last time my rice failed to turn out fluffy yet nicely separated. Here goes: One mugful of rice for two. Put the rice in a biggish saucepan and rinse it three times with cold water. Boil the kettle with plenty of water therein. Turn on the hob ring. Pour an excess of boiling water (no measuring) on the drained rice along with some salt (see later). Bring it rapidly back to the boil and set your timer for precisely twelve minutes. Stir it a couple of times near the beginning to make sure it hasn't stuck on the bottom, then put on the lid and let it do a lively simmer. Pour yourself a glass. A couple of minutes before the end, just scoop a tiny forkful out to taste for salt. Add more if needed. If you've put in a bit too much, pour off a bit of the water and replace with fresh boiling water. Easy! As soon as the bleep goes off, tip the rice into a sieve and let it sit for a minute over its pan. Viola! If you use this method and end up with anything less than lovely rice, then I'm a Dutchman. |
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Subject: RE: appliance death From: Stilly River Sage Date: 21 Sep 21 - 07:44 PM The aluminum as a problem cooking material myth was mostly debunked a long time ago, but it still makes the rounds. I read about rice cookers on the Roger Ebert website. Though the beloved movie reviewer had a stomach tube due to jaw/face cancer, he loved to write about food, and when asked, said he was hoping that everyone else would eat well and enjoy their food for him. He loved rice cookers because they do a lot more than cook rice. I bought myself an 8-cup Cuisinart rice cooker for my birthday one year, and I'd say I use it about once a month. That isn't a lot, but there are some things around here that only get used for Thanksgiving or xmas. (I can tell it has been a number of years because it was probably $70 when I bought it). I used to make rice on the stovetop but always had a cooked-on layer in the pot when I finished. That isn't the case with the rice cooker. And the Cuisinart design includes a stainless steel basket that can be set on top of the main pot and the lid fits over the top - I steam broccoli or cauliflower there most often, saving the set up of another pot for dinner. (Don't steam the veg the whole time the rice cooks or the veg will be overcooked.) Sometimes I sauté chicken on the side then add it to the rice, add mushrooms, etc., and end up with a great comfort food of chicken and rice. So nice in cold weather. You could easily make the popular Mexican rice found in many restaurants, or brown rice, etc. I often sauté vermicelli on the side then add to basmati rice and cook it with or without chicken broth or a bouillon cube to go with lots of kinds of meals. |
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Subject: RE: appliance death From: Donuel Date: 21 Sep 21 - 04:10 PM https://deannaminich.com/toxins-from-cookware-what-is-the-best-option-to-avoid-adding-to-your-burden/ |
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Subject: RE: appliance death From: robomatic Date: 21 Sep 21 - 12:24 PM Now that there are some experienced appliance purchasers on the thread, I'd like a word of advice on rice cookers. I once was gifted a new one which had been a wedding present but the bride did not like the aluminum bucket in which the rice was boiled. I am materials conscious but I did not see how mere hot water could leech anything out of aluminum provided I used the appliance just for cooking. It sure was convenient. Now that cooker is long gone and most new ones seem to be aluminum as well. Any reason I should stay away from them? |
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Subject: RE: appliance death From: Donuel Date: 20 Sep 21 - 03:28 PM i'm not allowed to buy vacuums anymore. I killed 4 with a chinese cut carpet. I never had a Dyson. I would buy an Elon Musk vacuum... if allowed. Water heaters can be serviced to extend life. If it ever leaks a tiny bit, it means it will flood its contents in days. Solar panels on an old roof is a bad mix. I find it amazing when appliances heal themselves. I googled appliance death and the results were about appliances that kill people. I've tried for hours and I can not restring my weed whacker. |
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Subject: RE: appliance death From: Stilly River Sage Date: 20 Sep 21 - 03:13 PM At the time that glass kettle was the best choice I could find available in stores or online. It may have changed since then - the main thing I want to avoid is solder lines or plastic in the boiling chamber - there can be chemicals released into the water through those places. That's why I look for steel (there was a wonderful Cuisinart all-steel kettle, but when mine finally died and I shopped around they had reconfigured it and put in a plastic "window" so you could see the water level. Why bother? Just pick it up and you can tell if there is water or not.) |
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Subject: RE: appliance death From: robomatic Date: 20 Sep 21 - 02:41 PM My 30 year old Sharp Microwave has bit the dust and I'm damn near mourning, because it was larger in size than its likely replacements. I was mostly using it for heating water, though it made some good scrambled eggs when used carefully. Guess I'm in the market for an electric kettle also. |
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Subject: RE: appliance death From: Senoufou Date: 20 Sep 21 - 12:55 PM Our very reputable plumbers serviced our oil boiler two years ago and found it was in a deplorable condition. So was the oil tank (cracked!) We had to pay six thousand pounds to get them both replaced. Major nightmare, but they sorted it admirably and I'm hoping the tank and boiler will both 'see us out'. Neighbours-across-the-road will have none of this fancy central heating, and have just one log fire in their sitting room. They use logs from their Manor House Farm (son lives there now with his nine children!) so it costs nothing and cannot break down. The historic Manor House has three floors and numerous rooms, each one heated by a log fire. Costs nothing apart from lugging logs around and sawing them up, then emptying all the wood ash and sweeping all the chimneys regularly. It's like living in the Stone Age round here! |
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Subject: RE: appliance death From: Stilly River Sage Date: 20 Sep 21 - 12:39 PM I have managed to get the whole family hooked on electric kettles - I don't want one that has plastic (why boil water next to something that is going to add particles to the hot water?) so I get either all steel or all glass. Hamilton Beach has a glass one with LED lights around the base (not necessary, but very pretty). I heard my son and his partner talking about appliances on the counter in their new house, and the one that has a place of honor is the kettle because it is used every day for tea. The Texas users have to run white vinegar through every few weeks to clear up the limestone buildup. Two years ago my old Harvest Gold huge upright freezer started dying (it may have needed the vacuuming out that Don mentioned, but it was 50 years old and not frost-free so I had a huge job to defrost it at least once a year). I replaced it with a well-ranked (Consumer Reports) one not quite as large, but it worked like a champ during three days without power last winter - nothing started to thaw. The old freezer wouldn't have been so well insulated. I've replaced the toaster oven a couple of times, but I never buy them new any more, I poke around thrift stores. The one I'm using now was very clean and not used much, it's a countertop convection oven. It seems as people get these new Instapots they discard all of the rest of their countertop appliances. I have told everyone I don't want an Instapot, I'm happy with all of the other things around here that work better for their particular specialties. Pressure cooker, rice cooker, etc. They don't do just one thing, but what they do they do very well. I would never buy something that has only one task (I remember when my mother bought a hot dog cooker and an egg boiler). I fixed my dryer myself this summer after ordering parts (and then realizing I needed something more and ordered it also). The parts cost me about $60, and while waiting for them to arrive I used the clothesline in the back yard. I know a service call would have been four times that, plus parts. Stoves have replaceable elements, but the one I'm using now is fairly new so none of that should come up soon. I replace the reflective pans under the burners every so often because they tend to rust (they're not as well made as they once were). I hold my breath when I think about the water heater . . . |
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Subject: RE: appliance death From: Charmion Date: 20 Sep 21 - 09:37 AM Modern vacuum cleaners MOST DEFINITELY won't last that long, Sen. My parents’ vacuum cleaner, of the same early post-war generation, lasted into the early 80s and finally died of hose problems. It was a Swedish Electrolux, all metal, with a cloth bag that one emptied onto a sheet of newspaper — no expensive disposables for us! My own first vacuum was another Electrolux, only slightly younger, that I bought at a charity shop circa 1985; it was still going strong in 1998 when I gave it to my brother because Edmund and I had bought a house with a central vac system. The central vac lasted only about five years, and by then the original Electrolux company had folded and sold its name to another outfit that makes its vacuum cleaners out of plastic. Guess what? They don’t last 30 years. Do I take this personally? Probably. |
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Subject: RE: appliance death From: Senoufou Date: 20 Sep 21 - 07:43 AM We were so pleased with this kettle, because it was very cheap, simple style, white, pours without dripping, boils fast (when connected to a socket that works!). One can pay three times as much for one of those fancy kettles, but hot water is hot water. Husband has a lovely coffee-making machine I bought him one Christmas, and he gets different flavours in what he calls 'cartouches'. I don't like coffee at all, but we both adore tea. Years and years ago in the early fifties, my parents bought a vacuum cleaner and proudly cleaned our carpets for decades with it. It kept working and never let them down. I don't know if modern vacuum cleaners would last that long! |
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Subject: RE: appliance death From: Donuel Date: 20 Sep 21 - 07:15 AM Such forgiveness is rare. |
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Subject: RE: appliance death From: Senoufou Date: 20 Sep 21 - 04:11 AM We bought a lovely new electric kettle in Asda quite recently. We were delighted with it, then only yesterday it started playing up, refusing to heat up. Husband grumbled, turned it on/off/on/off, then put a pan of water on the electric hob for his cup of tea. This morning I had a little idea. I took the plug out of the socket and popped it into the next socket on the counter top. Success! The first socket is faulty, even the toaster won't work when plugged in there. Time to ring our lovely electrician and get him to investigate. Sorry Asda for blaming you!! |
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Subject: RE: appliance death From: Rapparee Date: 19 Sep 21 - 08:06 PM Our 9.5 cu. ft. freezer is dying. The problem is a) finding one that will fit in the available space, and b) finding a dealer that has one in stock. We ordered and paid for a new dishwasher the first of February and it finally arrived and was installed in mid-August. |
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Subject: RE: appliance death From: Donuel Date: 19 Sep 21 - 04:49 PM https://www.healthline.com/health/iron-poisoning#treatment Early symptoms of iron poisoning may include stomach pain, nausea and vomiting. Gradually, the excess iron accumulates in internal organs, causing potentially fatal damage to the brain and liver. Brain damage may present as being argumentative, seizsures and even death. |
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Subject: RE: appliance death From: Mr Red Date: 19 Sep 21 - 01:51 PM Washer "furring up" may be worst in the valve(s) that turn the water on and off. Change that. I tried but came up against obsolescence. Though it may have been the solenoid winding. I tried using the hot water one but that had failed long ago & I did not notice. Modern washing machines only use cold water. My microwave was inherited from an aunt 15 years ago and AFAIK she got it second hand. The clue is the brand - Thorn/EMI (the company that gave us the Beatles). Mind you it only has to do 2 minutes a day, or 3 when I have Staffordshire Oatcakes. |
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Subject: RE: appliance death From: Jeri Date: 19 Sep 21 - 12:30 PM Thank you for all the information on how to do things. My washer died because of the iron in my water. It built up until pipes (and internal washing machine parts) seized up. How do I fix that, oh font of knowledge? The plumber only got water in my house flowing by cutting out a section of pip. This was maybe 5 years ago. |
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Subject: RE: appliance death From: Donuel Date: 19 Sep 21 - 11:10 AM Most refridgerators suffocate to death. Go to youtube and learn how to clean filters behind unit. Most washer dryer repairs are simple and can be done yourself, I did. Ovens I don't touch but in this age of covid, custom size ovens can take up to a year to get delivery, chips and labor are to blame. |
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Subject: RE: appliance death From: fat B****rd Date: 19 Sep 21 - 10:58 AM My microwave (at least 14 years old)died on me recently. I, stupidly, picked it up off the worktop and put down on the floor njuring the sciatic nerve in my right leg :-{. The new one is smaller but lighter :-}. |
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Subject: RE: appliance death From: Jeri Date: 19 Sep 21 - 09:19 AM Butterfly farts happen when they consume too much nectar from bean blossoms, or so I'm told. My washer and dryer died a few years ago. I'm a laundromat user now. I'm hoping my fridge hangs on. |
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Subject: RE: appliance death From: Mr Red Date: 19 Sep 21 - 04:13 AM appliance of science is the science of appliance? |
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Subject: RE: appliance death From: Sandra in Sydney Date: 18 Sep 21 - 08:50 PM my first fridge lasted 27 years, the next I live in 4-storey 100 year old apartment block, the original clothes lines were on our flat roof, but when the roof was renovated back in the late 70s there was no access so I need a dryer & my first dryer lasted c.17 year,the the second 9 years, dunno how long this one will last. 2 years back my bedroom scales died - "guarantee' said we'll replace within the first 12 months as it's too hard & expensive to repair, after that you just send it to landfill & buy a new one, or words to that effect. NO WAY!, the problem was the little battery was in a soft plastic nest & levering out said battery affected the connection, so I just put a small split ring on top to press it down, then taped down the plastic cover, & it worked! Well done, me! Here in the land of Oz our national consumer advocate Choice is fighting for Right to Repair legislation, vs. the current right of manufacturers to make stuff that does not last & is un-repairable. We're getting closer ... |
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Subject: RE: appliance death From: Stilly River Sage Date: 18 Sep 21 - 08:47 PM They also manage to die the moment you have extra cash (tax return time, for example). |
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Subject: RE: appliance death From: BrooklynJay Date: 18 Sep 21 - 08:36 PM Traditionally, major appliances (and minor ones) are designed to expire the week after the warranty does. At least, that's been my experience. Jay |
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Subject: RE: appliance death From: Tattie Bogle Date: 18 Sep 21 - 07:27 PM Our 30-+ -year-old tumble dryer stopped tumbling a few months back, and all for the want of a simple drive belt: we tried every supplier of spare parts in the land, real local businesses and online: all came back with the same answer - OBSOLETE - just that crucial 1cm difference in length from any that were still totally useful! So we have gone green and not replaced it: washing goes on airers or big stuff like sheets and duvet covers out on the washing line, and I now have another glory-hole where the dryer used to be, to stash iron, buckets, washing powder, etc. And Jeri, yes, this is SO important. No hairs in my meatballs tonight, and not seen(or heard) any butterflies for a while! Nun of that! |
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Subject: RE: appliance death From: Steve Shaw Date: 18 Sep 21 - 06:17 PM I've just done a nuns-touching-penises post in the joke thread. I have an attack of the horrors when I imagine finding a long hair in my spag bol. What's a butterfly fart? Do I or don't I want to know...? |
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Subject: RE: appliance death From: Jeri Date: 18 Sep 21 - 06:11 PM I was wondering who the hell would reply to this thread, but I should've known...and then, I did, too. (But I moved it, so I got a teeny bit of redemption) I think I'll start a thread about toenail fungus, or butterfly farts, or accidentally eating one's hair, or other things I think lots of people would be interested in. (Note to self: shut up, already, or have you forgotten about Art Thieme and his condom thread.) |
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Subject: RE: appliance death From: Steve Shaw Date: 18 Sep 21 - 06:10 PM Didn't Kate Bush do a song about a washing machine? |
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Subject: RE: appliance death From: GUEST Date: 18 Sep 21 - 04:44 PM I'll show you the works of my washing machine... |
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Subject: RE: appliance death From: GUEST,gillymor Date: 18 Sep 21 - 04:33 PM Westinghouse of the Rising Sun Merry Month of Maytag GE ain't I Been Good to You |
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Subject: RE: appliance death From: Steve Shaw Date: 18 Sep 21 - 04:22 PM Is there a folk song about it? |
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Subject: appliance death From: Donuel Date: 18 Sep 21 - 04:06 PM After 30 years the oven, disposal, dishwasher, hot water heater, refridgerator and washer&dryer don't owe us anything. I should be thankful they didn't all expire at the same time. |
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