{"id":1213389,"date":"2023-12-19T13:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-12-19T18:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.prime-wow.com\/?p=1213389"},"modified":"2023-12-19T13:00:00","modified_gmt":"2023-12-19T18:00:00","slug":"there-might-be-a-cheaper-fix-to-your-expensive-appliance-repair","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.prime-wow.com\/?p=1213389","title":{"rendered":"There Might Be a Cheaper Fix to Your Expensive Appliance Repair"},"content":{"rendered":"

Some appliances are more or less necessary to survival these days, like a refrigerator. Others, like dishwashers<\/a> or laundry machines, save us a lot of time and personal labor. These appliances can be a significant investment in terms of money, but the time and effort they save is kind of priceless.<\/p>\n

If there was just one initial cost to an appliance and you were set for life, that would be great. Unfortunately, like everything else in this world, appliances have a useful life span<\/a> and eventually break down. And then you go through the rite of passage known as Finding Out How Much Appliance Repairs Cost, which is a number economists have defined as a lot. <\/em>If your hair turns white when you get a repair quote on an appliance, don\u2019t despair: There\u2019s a much cheaper option for many appliance repairs.<\/p>\n

Why repairs can be so expensive <\/h2>\n

What\u2019s frustrating about repairing an appliance is that it\u2019s essentially paying money to get back to zero, the situation you were in yesterday when your dishwasher wasn\u2019t blinking an inscrutable error code and making a weird grinding noise. And the money you\u2019re paying can be significant: The average cost to repair a major appliance like a dishwasher or a clothes dryer is about $175, and some appliances like an oven can cost as much as $500<\/a>\u2014which means the repair can cost as much as a new unit.<\/p>\n

There are many reasons for these costs. Companies have to manufacture and warehouse replacement parts for a long, long time after introducing an appliance to the market, and that costs money. And the older an appliance gets, the harder it can be to find those parts, making them even more expensive. And then there\u2019s labor, which averages between $50 and $150 an hour. That means that with some repairs, you\u2019re already going to be $300 in the hole without even paying for a replacement part.<\/p>\n

With some appliance parts, like small motors or mechanical items, your only option will be a repair professional or a replacement model. But many modern appliances malfunction because of failed control boards\u2014essentially a circuit board that runs the mechanical bits of the appliance. The control board is kind of your appliance\u2019s brain, and it can be one of the most expensive parts to replace<\/a>. If you\u2019re getting an error code on a display, it\u2019s often a control board problem. And you can get control boards repaired through the mail\u2014often for less than $100.<\/p>\n

How to mail in the control board <\/h2>\n

Step one will be to identify the specific control board you need repaired, so you\u2019ll need to know the model number of your appliance. If you kept the manual, you\u2019re golden. If you didn\u2019t, or inherited the appliance, there are some typical locations where model numbers are located. Home Depot\u2019s appliance repair center<\/a> can help you locate the model number if you\u2019re not sure.<\/p>\n

Once you have the model number, you can use Home Depot\u2019s site or a site like PartSelect<\/a> to look up the precise part number of your control board, then go to a mail-in repair site like Electronic Restore<\/a>, Circuit Board Medics<\/a>, or FixYourBoard.com<\/a> to check on availability and price. Typically, repairs cost a flat fee between $70 and $100, plus shipping, so this can turn out to be a lot<\/em> cheaper than hiring a professional.<\/p>\n

Of course, there are a few things to keep in mind:<\/p>\n