I was asked to evaluate a series of washers and dryers in the basement of a friend's rental property.  There were three washers and three dryers in total.  Landlord/Friend was unclear which machines were property owned and which were left by previous tenants.  Previous tenant left on bad terms and possibly damaged machines.  Unfortunately, I didn't get any pictures.  Anyway, here are the machine's I found.

1) Kenmore blackface BD washer with penta-swirl agitator.

2) Kenmore Calypso in black.

3) Roper 3 cycle DD.

1) Kenmore blackface Gas dryer (match to the #1 above)

2) Amana Gas Dryer.

3) Frigidaire Electric base model dryer.

The Kenmore BD had the power cord cut off the back of it.  I was able to splice a new cord in place and to my surprise, she cranked right up.  Dry agitate and spin were smooth and quiet.  However, the water test proved the machine had rusted out as water poured from between the tub and baseplate as fast as it entered the machine.  Damn!

The Kenmore Calypso was a mess.  It appeared to have had control panel issues by the note left on the top of the machine.  I ran it through diagnostics with no errors reported.  However, again, the water test was painful.  The pump was humming but not working.  Machine had independant motor for the pump.  Disassembled the pump to find a toothpick jammed in her.  Removed the pick and reassembled.  Again, the pump would hum but not turn.  Advised not investing in repair.

The Roper, appeared to be less than a year old.  I commected it and it passed the water test.  However, when neutral drain engaged, there was the telltale clang and it began to spin with a full tub of water.  And you could smell the clutch suffering, wow!  How could a machine that was less than a year old already begin to fail.  Come to find out, the previous tenant claims to have purchased the machine to replace the Calypso when it failed.  And this tenant wanted to sell the machine to the landlord.  I recommended that the landlord not purchase this machine and let the previous tenant come and get it. 

The 2 gas dryers also had the cords cut off and since none of the three dryers were vented to the outside, I suggested not even attempting to put them in operation.

The Frigidaire dryer, when was at least 15 years old, operated flawlessly.  What a shock!  I guess the WCI machines aren't all crap.

All that and about a dozen mosquito bites made up my Saturday adventure.

Malcolm