Last Thursday, my wife was doing a load of laundry when she yelled...Something bad's happening. I went into the laundry room and I could smell burnt electronics. The washer was still working, but I shut it down immediately. I tried to restart it, but no luck. Now, my wife is panicking because we couldn't really deal with having to buy a new washer. That night, after she went to bed, I went online to see if there was anything that I could do to fix it. After doing a complete brake job on my car last spring, and feeling confident in my abilities, I figured why not? After some surfing, I found out that my Maytag Neptune had been recalled due to a faulty motor control board. Unfortunately, this recall ended a few years ago. Our washer was no longer under warranty, but there was a motor conversion kit available to fix the problem. Replacing a motor and the electronic control board on a washer seemed kind of beyond my abilities, but I was told by a repair person on ApplianceBlog.com, that it was a simple plug and play type repair. Well, he was right, it took me less than an hour to fix, and now I don't have to buy a new washer.
There is something so satisfying about fixing something complex on your own and saving money in the process. If I had to replace the washer, it would have cost me at least $700. For less than $200, I have a new motor and new electronics that should give me another 5 -7 years on this washer, which I bought in 2001. Sweet!
