Repairs :(

I have to tell you all I have had a nonstop attack of crap breaking down lately. First is my 5hp outboard...it has been a biatch to start and I think I have pulled a muscle or two and my right arm is 5" longer than my left arm from yanking that dang motor string to get it to start and it won't. So I'm changing the fuel line to a ethanol proof one and new spark plug along with new fuel with ethanol sta-bil treatment. This should fix it!

Trolling motor battery died Saturday morning..... $100 later I'm in business.

Having a party at my girlfriends house on Sunday and she wants an outdoor ceiling fan for the porch so we buy one and I install that on Saturday after fishing.

Sunday....girlfriends garbage disposal gets clogged with food and won't drain....party starting in like 30 minutes and freak out mode is about to take place. I started taking the PVC apart and looking inside I find a "coconut fiber turd" clog that is 6" long. Cleared that out and tightened some fittings to stop some drips and it's fine. Of course it's filthy under there so I have to clean up other messes and mold spores.

My washing machine started making funny noises two days ago and wouldn't spin. I called a repair company and he sets me up for today between 9-11. Guess who calls at 8:30 to cancel?? It appears in that business he can bump you for other repairs that I assume he makes more money on. Me taking the day off and holding off on laundry had no bearing on his decision to bail on me. I told him that was crap but he was sooo nice to offer me a appointment for Monday!!!! Yeah right!.....So I jumped on "you tube" and did some research and then tore that dang washing machine into pieces!! I found out the my direct drive coupler was bad and went to the local appliance parts store and spent $23 for a new kit. The guys there were great and hooked me up with another site that actually goes step by step on how to fix it. I follow the directions( wish I watched the video before tearing into this thing) on how to replace the coupler and BAM it's working great! BUT....from turning the water off for the repairs I caused a leak because the packing is old in the faucets and that causes a pretty good mess. So I have to head to lowes and get some packing and clean the old stuff out and pack the new stuff in and I turn it on and it works great.

Ohhh also re-wired the grounds in the washing machine because the way they did it limited me on moving sheet metal and panels while troubleshooting.

A few valuable things I learned during this.... is make sure the tub and hoses are dry before tipping any washing machine! Make sure you connect ALL hoses to the washing tub before you actually put water on and test your work!! I'm washing about 10 towels that have been used for soaking up water that I spilled during the process. This took me all day to do these repairs and now that I know how it works I honestly can say I could do it in less than an hour. Also, just because you have a garbage disposal that can grind freaking coconut shells it doesnt mean you have to use it. The garbage can is usually a better move and in fact I would say don't use that disposal that often anyway. I replaced mine a few months ago and put in a Tim the Tool man, Mac-daddy high speed, chomping, slicing and dicing high output model but don't use it much. But it's there if I need it. :) if anyone wants to hire me for house repairs I'm available!!! Lol

All I heard was "outboard" and "trolling motor"....laundry and girlfriends garbage disposals are so much further down on the relevancy chart. LOL. If you had no girlfriend and didn't do laundry, this wouldn't be an issue...and more fishing time. LMAO

Kidding aside, sounds like a crapstorm of broken stuff, but you conquered it.

[QUOTE=DJD;492402]I have to tell you all I have had a nonstop attack of crap breaking down lately. First is my 5hp outboard...it has been a biatch to start and I think I have pulled a muscle or two and my right arm is 5" longer than my left arm from yanking that dang motor string to get it to start and it won't. So I'm changing the fuel line to a ethanol proof one and new spark plug along with new fuel with ethanol sta-bil treatment. This should fix it!

Trolling motor battery died Saturday morning..... $100 later I'm in business.

Having a party at my girlfriends house on Sunday and she wants an outdoor ceiling fan for the porch so we buy one and I install that on Saturday after fishing.

Sunday....girlfriends garbage disposal gets clogged with food and won't drain....party starting in like 30 minutes and freak out mode is about to take place. I started taking the PVC apart and looking inside I find a "coconut fiber turd" clog that is 6" long. Cleared that out and tightened some fittings to stop some drips and it's fine. Of course it's filthy under there so I have to clean up other messes and mold spores.

My washing machine started making funny noises two days ago and wouldn't spin. I called a repair company and he sets me up for today between 9-11. Guess who calls at 8:30 to cancel?? It appears in that business he can bump you for other repairs that I assume he makes more money on. Me taking the day off and holding off on laundry had no bearing on his decision to bail on me. I told him that was crap but he was sooo nice to offer me a appointment for Monday!!!! Yeah right!.....So I jumped on "you tube" and did some research and then tore that dang washing machine into pieces!! I found out the my direct drive coupler was bad and went to the local appliance parts store and spent $23 for a new kit. The guys there were great and hooked me up with another site that actually goes step by step on how to fix it. I follow the directions( wish I watched the video before tearing into this thing) on how to replace the coupler and BAM it's working great! BUT....from turning the water off for the repairs I caused a leak because the packing is old in the faucets and that causes a pretty good mess. So I have to head to lowes and get some packing and clean the old stuff out and pack the new stuff in and I turn it on and it works great.

Ohhh also re-wired the grounds in the washing machine because the way they did it limited me on moving sheet metal and panels while troubleshooting.

A few valuable things I learned during this.... is make sure the tub and hoses are dry before tipping any washing machine! Make sure you connect ALL hoses to the washing tub before you actually put water on and test your work!! I'm washing about 10 towels that have been used for soaking up water that I spilled during the process. This took me all day to do these repairs and now that I know how it works I honestly can say I could do it in less than an hour. Also, just because you have a garbage disposal that can grind freaking coconut shells it doesnt mean you have to use it. The garbage can is usually a better move and in fact I would say don't use that disposal that often anyway. I replaced mine a few months ago and put in a Tim the Tool man, Mac-daddy high speed, chomping, slicing and dicing high output model but don't use it much. But it's there if I need it. :) if anyone wants to hire me for house repairs I'm available!!! Lol[/QUOTE] my hat's off to you brother, it's good to hear a young guy that can fix things for himself. I do think that there are people out there, that would hire someone to tie their shoes before doing it themself.

Great story,thanks for posting.

I had the same problem with our washing machine and went to the internet [B]first.[/B] Found out how to take the panels off,diagnose,etc and felt real proud of myself on fixing it myself.:D

I forgot to post the one thing that didn't make me smile at all.....my fairly new iPhone 4S was on the floor when the water hit the floor. Those things don't do well in water! Trashed mine pretty good so I went to the Apple store and got a new one. Sooooo thankful I purchased the apple care plan when I purchased the phone. That only cost me $50 to get a brand new one.

No doubt i was happy to fix the washer just for the experience and also felt proud I saved myself alot of money....I been fixing my dryer for years. Bad switches, heat stats and heating elements are pretty common repairs on those dryers.

Easy solution on the outboard. Have your girlfriend start it for you.

Drive coupler on washers will wear out, I've put 2 in mine. Also a new clutch. This may have to do with my wife washing anything soft enough to squeeze in the tub regardless of size or weight. They're simple machines, no need for repairmen, but if the transmission goes it's time for a new one. You'll not need to pay anyone to fix it again, pretty easy repair (after the first one that is).

You should never mention coconut fiber turds on here.

I laughed my ass off, love this post...

Get-r-done Dasher................lol

It sounds like you have been moving so fast you need to stop and wait for your butt to catch up with you.

Now that you have repaired everything you can find, you should be able to use the rest of the year exclusively for fishing.
If you are volunteering for anymore work, consider coming to my house and helping me clean up all the storm damage around my yard from Tues. night, acres of it. Five inches of rain and 60+ mph winds that lasted from 8:30 p.m. until 4 a.m. A tree blew down behind the boat and the top hit the motor and back of the boat. I purchased a good boat and motor cover when we bought the boat and I think that's what helped save it and the gas line from damage. Did get a couple of small dents on one side of the boat but nothing serious. Sweetie Pie is out of town and won't be back home until November and will check it out then. I told him that if he was showing his love for me by feeding the lawn before he left, not to be so aggressive because it was working me to death and I'm not having fun yet. The grass is growing so fast I don't know if I should turn the mower off and let it cool down or just park it and leave the engine running.

Wow, chit happening to ya one after the other, WTG on the repairs. When I have things break I go to the garage or the shop and make a new one, sometimes its good to be a toolmaker/machinist, always can fix it better then new.

[QUOTE=DJD;492402]I have to tell you all I have had a nonstop attack of crap breaking down lately. First is my 5hp outboard...it has been a biatch to start and I think I have pulled a muscle or two and my right arm is 5" longer than my left arm from yanking that dang motor string to get it to start and it won't. So I'm changing the fuel line to a ethanol proof one and new spark plug along with new fuel with ethanol sta-bil treatment. This should fix it!

Trolling motor battery died Saturday morning..... $100 later I'm in business.

Having a party at my girlfriends house on Sunday and she wants an outdoor ceiling fan for the porch so we buy one and I install that on Saturday after fishing.

Sunday....girlfriends garbage disposal gets clogged with food and won't drain....party starting in like 30 minutes and freak out mode is about to take place. I started taking the PVC apart and looking inside I find a "coconut fiber turd" clog that is 6" long. Cleared that out and tightened some fittings to stop some drips and it's fine. Of course it's filthy under there so I have to clean up other messes and mold spores.

My washing machine started making funny noises two days ago and wouldn't spin. I called a repair company and he sets me up for today between 9-11. Guess who calls at 8:30 to cancel?? It appears in that business he can bump you for other repairs that I assume he makes more money on. Me taking the day off and holding off on laundry had no bearing on his decision to bail on me. I told him that was crap but he was sooo nice to offer me a appointment for Monday!!!! Yeah right!.....So I jumped on "you tube" and did some research and then tore that dang washing machine into pieces!! I found out the my direct drive coupler was bad and went to the local appliance parts store and spent $23 for a new kit. The guys there were great and hooked me up with another site that actually goes step by step on how to fix it. I follow the directions( wish I watched the video before tearing into this thing) on how to replace the coupler and BAM it's working great! BUT....from turning the water off for the repairs I caused a leak because the packing is old in the faucets and that causes a pretty good mess. So I have to head to lowes and get some packing and clean the old stuff out and pack the new stuff in and I turn it on and it works great.

Ohhh also re-wired the grounds in the washing machine because the way they did it limited me on moving sheet metal and panels while troubleshooting.

A few valuable things I learned during this.... is make sure the tub and hoses are dry before tipping any washing machine! Make sure you connect ALL hoses to the washing tub before you actually put water on and test your work!! I'm washing about 10 towels that have been used for soaking up water that I spilled during the process. This took me all day to do these repairs and now that I know how it works I honestly can say I could do it in less than an hour. Also, just because you have a garbage disposal that can grind freaking coconut shells it doesnt mean you have to use it. The garbage can is usually a better move and in fact I would say don't use that disposal that often anyway. I replaced mine a few months ago and put in a Tim the Tool man, Mac-daddy high speed, chomping, slicing and dicing high output model but don't use it much. But it's there if I need it. :) if anyone wants to hire me for house repairs I'm available!!! Lol[/QUOTE]

Might want to consider framing it out in the future. My understanding is shop rates are around $70.00/Hour. Balance this against what you time is worth?? Just for you consideration....

Ok just when I thought it was over my dryer takes a dump. Easy fix by replacing the heating element but wow....sometimes you just gotta smile grab the tools and GIT-R-DONE!!!! I think I'm due for a trip to the lake!