Shock! the cost ofappliances...

Caliann, your appliances sound wonderful!! Shoot, the whole duplex sounds cool.

Sis, I have no idea what type place you are moving but maybe you can think outside the box.

In our last house we had a tiny, tiny kitchen. To compensate for that french door fridge that took up space we used countertop appliances. Instead of a traditional stove we bought a 3 burner gas cooktop and used propane that we could take and refill. We also bought a Cuisinart countertop convection/rotisserie/brick oven and two or three other pieces, like a roaster, a griddle, and an elec frying pan. I loved that kitchen.

Here, we are redoing this house with the notion that it's going to be for sale when we are finished, so we have traditional appliances. However, I use my countertop oven for almost everything except baking bread - and if I made only 1 loaf at a time I'd probably use it. Besides the convenience of being countertop, I'm sure it uses a lot less power. And I still use the other countertop appliances probably as much as the regular stove.

We went for a new fridge and freezer, to lower our power consumption, since we are going solar soon. The new units use (measured with a Kil-A-Watt meter) less than 1/3 the power of our old ones.

Our washing machine is an early 70's Maytag wringer machine in primo condition. We got a set of rinse tubs with it for a total of $180. I had to replace the hoses and casters on the tubs. This is a real advantage for us since we depend on a cistern to water, and are thus at the mercy of rainfall for our supply. The wringer machine uses 12 gallons per fill, and the tubs get 6 gallons each, or 24 gallons to do our week of laundry, since we can run 4 loads with one filling. The automatic used about that much per load, or 96 gallons for a week's worth of laundry.

I will buy a spare washer for parts as soon as I can find one.

For drying we use clotheslines. We have a setup in the house on a sunporch for foul weather, and the standard rig outside. Our last electric dryer was free from the county landfill. It made a heckuva noise when I started it, but it quieted down as soon as I got the plastic cowboys and 43 cents in change out of the exhaust fan. I had to make a new rub strip for the front of the tub out of a slice from a milk jug. It still works after 8 years, but we quit using it to save power. Don't really miss it.

Appliance dealers would starve on what we spend there.

I posted a thread here last yr about my exp with "state of art" appliances-wanted new energy saving w/d-bought real nice ones-lasted 2.5yrs(took place of 20yr old w/d)-both failed within a month of 1 another-1st question asked by 3 appliance repair places-Are they in air conditioned room-NO-well the computers overheated......bought 5 yr old w/d for 200.00-still working great 3yrs later.Wifes Dr recently had motherboard and defrost timer replaced on 6 month old top of line(2200$)fridge....after replacing same on her 1yr old freezer-My conclusion-having a computer on an appliance is real dumb.

__________________
Watching msnbc is the intellectual equivalent of mutual masturbation by a group of monkeys.

I agree with zant. Too much reliance on electronic gee-gaws. You really need a whole house surge protector as basic insurance.

My only problem with Sears is they wanted $75 to convert to propane, $$ for parts, couldn't deliver on certain days because of the tech was busy. So I drove across the street to a local guy, same machine, smaller cost for conversion and their tech could do it any time I wanted the delivery. So, they got my business. When I look for my stove, I will start at my local guy. BTW, no problems with it so far!

__________________
Chris

PA Master Gardener

Sticker shock from conventional appliances at home stores? Try the cost of off-grid compatible appliances!!

Our 5 cu ft DC ultra-efficient chest freezer -- $1100 on sale, lightly used. Luckily, it's built to last and could probably survive Armageddon.

The Staber washer that is efficient enough for off-grid systems is $$$$. They're the ONLY manufacturer who will honor their warranty if the appliance is used on an off-grid electrical system. But, again, at least they're built to last.

Some of the LPG appliances used to be reasonably priced (ranges around $400 for the little ones, etc). Unfortunately, the ever helpful government has now mandated the use of glow bars in these appliances which means they are no longer appropriate for off-grid use because they gulp electricity. We were going to purchase a small LPG range so we had backup if we didn't want to fire up the woodstove... the one we wanted had piezo start, no electricity and no standing pilot required... but they don't/can't make it anymore

The absolute worst part of Sears is their service. I used to have all Kenmore but have only my 1975 deep freeze left of the original items. I purchased a new Kenmore stove a little over a year ago. They had to replace the enamel top twice and two of the burner grates twice. Fortuantely under warranty.

I'm now looking for a new washer and am dreading it big time. My current Maytag was purchased for $269 in 1976. In that time it has washed clothing for dh, me, our 3 kids, 4 foster babies, 4 foster teenagers, my m-i-l and my sister and her two boys. I wish I could have it rebuilt and keep it going but the time has come to replace. I know my dd and my mother have each had 3 or 4 washers, and my sisters each 3 in the time I've had this one. One sis bought a top of the line Maytag front loader and has had nothing but trouble. I've decided to go with as low price as possible top loader so if it dies I won't be out so much or inclined to spend a fortune on repairs like sis has. Any suggestions??

__________________
This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.

My little $75 magic chef (ebay 10 years ago) is still baking pies, and bread and frying eggs for breakfast with no problems. Now if I could just find the refrigerator to match....

__________________
"Nothing so needs reforming as other peoples habits." Mark Twain

Unless you are on 12V.... Energy Star have become so efficient its cheaper going with them and adding a panel or 2. The offgrid stuff has you paying for bleeding edge tech when solar costs have dropped so much you no longer need them,last few years have seen energy star get really really efficient.

IMO,just a thought,but the market is changing,I dont think you really need the super super efficient with alt energy prices so low.

__________________
Visit Life on the Homestead,a Friendly Forum

True, there are some pretty decent EE appliances out there that would work on medium-sized system depending on your power output. For us, the cost of more panels and/or batteries (and generator fuel in the winter -- oy!) comes about even with the upgrade in appliance cost. Just not enough sun or wind in the winter here to stack up on the electrics... we need absolute sippers. Of course summer we have the opposite problem, even with only a few panels, with all sun all the time, we need a big gulper to be a power sink so we don't cook the batteries (one electric water heater to the rescue!).

We have lived here 20 years and went through our new electric stove in 6. A stacking set of washer /dryer and a dish washer. Our fridge is just about gone. We bought a gas stove and run that on propane. But propane is high right now.
So we are using a counter top toaster oven, crock pots, and a apartment size electric stove to cook on. Got the toaster oven for $12, and the crock pot and electric stove for free.
The same thing with our living room chairs, got them for free.
Paid $350 for our mattress set and the dog peed on it 2 weeks after we brough it home. There is no winning with house hold stuff.

__________________
squashnut & bassketcher

Champagne D Argent, White New Zealand & Californian Cross Rabbits