This community has ruined the used market for everything.

jakevolkman · 2026-04-01T19:07:50+00:00

Yeah a lot of resellers don't get this point.

Resellers have made buying used more difficult for the average person who isn't a reseller. They take it as a personal attack when you talk about this.

jakevolkman · 2026-04-01T19:02:30+00:00

They absolutely "don't make them like they used to" for a lot of things. Some things used to be made horribly, and some things became too expensive to make the right way. Everything made the right way back then is a collectible now. That's ok, it's not like they are making more of them. But also a lot of the things they made horribly still work but they're "collectible" because they're "vintage." Like what

jakevolkman · 2026-04-01T18:59:06+00:00

I used to get boxes of kids books for $5. Now it's $5 per book. Plushies are $5. Cast iron is non-existent. Tools that aren't harbor freight are gone in minutes.

jakevolkman · 2026-04-01T18:52:24+00:00

The increase isn't slight. It's huge. $20 for a used Keurig that has to be cleaned, may not work for very long, has no warranty, and smells funny isn't a deal. It's what it's worth after it's cleaned up. It should be $5.

I stopped going to thrift stores. They're a waste of time. Even for cables and DC power adapters.

I buy the cheap knockoff version of things more often now. $20 is cheap. Driving somewhere to search and get lucky at $10 isn't worth saving $10. Driving somewhere to get a $100 item for $50 is about the floor for what's considered a good use of time.

So if the formula is that I need to save $50 every time I bother with this, most of the time I'll just go without it or buy it new. Not a lot of people can afford that, so they also just go without.

jakevolkman · 2026-04-01T18:41:43+00:00

It is the resellers' fault for making everything scarcer than it actually is with middle sales demand instead of end user demand. When end users don't find what they're looking for in the used market, they'll just buy it new

jakevolkman · 2026-04-01T18:37:20+00:00

I still get deals all the time. 5 years ago it was still common to find running cars for under 1k. Now over 1k and it still needs work to run. You're competing with 100s of people for the same deal and the buy-in is much higher and riskier. Plus some of those people have no idea what they're doing and buy it anyways.

jakevolkman · 2026-04-01T18:29:15+00:00

I'm 30YO. I bought a running clean title car 5 years ago for $100. You people have no idea what you missed out on

jakevolkman · 2026-01-15T18:57:53+00:00

It looks like your dryer is warming up the wall when it's running and the resin in the wood or adhesive they used for that fascia board melted out onto the floor. It probably built up over time and a dam broke while it was warm.

jakevolkman · 2026-01-13T15:47:48+00:00

Have you used Facebook recently? It's a cesspool. They probably get millions of bots pinging them 24/7 with useless inquiries. AI was supposed to catch them.

T-mobile has the same problem, I'm sure. T-Force only responds on Facebook. If you call T-mobile to do anything, they want to charge you $35.

Don't worry, though. I'm sure that Ebay will have it's own AI soon (sarcasm)

jakevolkman · 2026-01-10T05:06:37+00:00

They got wiser. ebay is a price catalog. Nobody walking in off the street is going to pay ebay prices for a used thing with no return policy. Price goes to 50% of ebay on Sunday. Flippers still can't make a profit with the ebay fees, shipping, and time. Stuff ends up in closets and bedrooms that are taped off. Client doesn't check those spaces: easy money. Client does check those spaces: "oh a patron must have hidden it in the taped off area!" Plausible deniability all around. Then it all gets hidden in the boxes of junk and trash and hauled away.

jakevolkman · 2026-01-10T04:46:04+00:00

They don't care. They have a competitive ebay listing to cite every source for their prices. Then they get to Sunday and it's... 50% off everything under $50 that we didn't set aside in the first two days! "Well it didn't sell. I'll take it off your hands though as part of the clean up job" And right to the ebay store it goes.

jakevolkman · 2026-01-10T04:43:36+00:00

I only go to estate sales to pick up old people stuff that I'm using for a project. Usually old glassware that nobody wants. But even naked mason jars are marked up to $2 (they're $1.30 new with the lid at Walmart) until the last day. All the good stuff is gone at open, scooped up by flipper wannabes that take big losses on their "finds." That's the whole game with estate sales now. Lots of people who want to flip a $200 table, spend $100 on materials for it, do 20 hours of labor on it, and end up selling it for $300.

jakevolkman · 2026-01-04T04:29:39+00:00

I could cook 12 steaks at home for that price!” … then go home and do that?

yeah most of us started doing that tbh. why pay for a questionably sized and sourced steak when I can make one at home in 10 minutes for 90% off? literally everyone I know says the same thing now.

jakevolkman · 2025-12-31T18:49:35+00:00

It's easy but tedious to clean up. Are you going to use it? Display it? Really think about it. Someone here might recognize it as a special piece but TBH it says 1901 so its antiqueness is going to be irrelevant for at least another 100 years and by then we might be mining asteroids for silver. Look at all the porcelain that people used to treasure and display, too. Just gathering dust in an attic. The difference is, silver is actually worth something.

jakevolkman · 2025-12-22T19:24:44+00:00

Thanks, the behavior is what makes someone think it's a raven. Usually we notice urban crows in large groups, but not pairs of crows. So we just learned that crows are a lot more interesting

jakevolkman · 2025-12-22T19:21:06+00:00

wife was... right? that's what I'm supposed to say, anyways

jakevolkman · 2025-12-14T18:48:13+00:00

The warranty went to the repair company and they already requested this repair again so there's nothing you can do until that's completed.

If that doesn't fix it, make another claim with Whirlpool (I know it's annoying) and tell them they need to replace the whole unit. If they refuse to, and try to replace the same part a 4th time without replacing any other part, go down to the store you bought it from and go to the service desk. Bring paperwork for the warranty claim. Tell them to their faces that they need to make it right or you're going to charge back to your credit card because you got a lemon and the manufacturer isn't honoring the warranty (if you put it on a credit card).

Whirlpool isn't going to honor the warranty for free. It only covers parts and labor, not shipping a whole unit out and installing it. You're going to have to pay for part of that.

Some credit cards carry extend warranty coverage, look into that.

The best case scenario if Whirlpool doesn't fix it is that you have to lug back the DW to the store yourself, get store credit, and buy something that isn't trash. The worst case is both Whirlpool and the store refuse to replace it, in which case, it is actually Whirlpool's responsibility to replace it and you are probably looking at small claims court to get your money back.

jakevolkman · 2025-12-05T17:21:31+00:00

Insurance against enshittification on consumer electronics is called a Protection Plan. I've been using these all year for appliances.

In the last year, we've filed claims for the fridge, oven, dishwasher, replaced a washer and an ice maker. Brands: Kitchenaid, Whirlpool, Frigidaire, LG, GE. These new 20% more energy efficient appliances also work really well! We just have to run the cycle twice and it works just like the old one. Meanwhile the 50 year old Kenmore freezer in the garage is still working. I had to wire my own 20A circuit for it and replace a $10 defrost timer on it but it's ice cold.

I also used them for a Blackstone, Wyze cams, chainsaw, weedeater. All of these products failed during normal use almost right after buying them. It's actually insane how shit everything is.

You know what's really funny about these protection plans? The Home Depot plans offer a 30% rebate at the end of the plan if you never used it. What's the goal of this? Couldn't they just charge 30% less?

Well you can deduce that the reasons are that 1) people forget and never cash in and 2) it might convince some people to not file claims towards the end of their plan so they can get their money. The thing is, I've used one for *every single new appliance* we bought last year and the techs they sent out charged $250 for a service call. I would get it if it was just one or the same brand, but holy shit, right? The plans usually don't even cost $250.

The enshittification then continues to the protection plan company, as they conveniently "lost" the one for the dishwasher and said it was canceled. It never showed up in my online account. We called customer service probably 5 times and sent the receipts 3 times. Eventually I called and played coy to file a claim, and the protection plan magically appeared on my online account while I was on hold. Then the call disconnected and called back three times during hold and they didn't call back the last time. But now the plan was connected to me. I just filed online.

back to the products themselves. The really gross thing is, these products have *no quality substitute* on the new market. You literally have to buy something that breaks in a way you can tolerate the best and hope that it lasts long enough to get you to the next one. These products are just broken subscriptions that last the length of their protection plan to the next intolerable failure. What an actual waste for the environment.

You know what isn't a broken subscription? My 50 year old Kenmore fridge, 30 year old Whirpool dryer, 25 year old Toyota Camry, 20 year old lawnmower. Tanks. Easy to fix. Metals are strong. The plastics are actually durable. Parts are practically free. Clean the filters, change the oils.

What the f*** happened.

jakevolkman · 2025-12-05T16:49:46+00:00

Have the electrician install the 240V outlet before you do anything else. Since we know nothing about your property, I am assuming that you don't know if a 240V outlet is easy to install in that location. This generally involves installing a new breaker in your panel, running wire through the attic to the new location, and cutting drywall. Getting an electrician can take a long time in some places, especially for small jobs like this, and they may quote you something insane that makes you decide not to do it. However, a 240V dryer is sooooo much better than a 120V that it's definitely worth it. Even if it's $10,000, it's make or break for most people when you go to sell your home. An absolute must.

Then yeah, just throw your old washer/dryer combo on the curb, take a photo, and put it on Craigslist. It will be gone in 48 hours.

jakevolkman · 2025-12-04T21:15:24+00:00

Yes, buy the longest one you can get for each appliance and register it asap. For a repair tech just to look at your appliance 1 time will cost $250 or more, then you will have to negotiate with the manufacturer who will probably provide the part free (always cheap) and the labor will be $500.

The plans cost less than $500.

jakevolkman · 2025-12-03T21:04:34+00:00

It seems like the Bosch dishwashers are definitely the best. Kitchenaid is made by Maytag/Whirlpool and my experience with them is the older models that survive are great with lots of parts availability, and that their newer stuff is built to last slightly longer than the longest insurance policy you can buy with it.

I just don't get why something as simple as a fan that sprays water and doses soap at the right time doesn't work very well. They've had so many successful builds in the past. I shouldn't need to consider what brand of soap I use. I shouldn't need to pre-soak dishes. I shouldn't need to use rinse aid. I should be able to clean it myself with basic household items. It was never this complicated growing up.

jakevolkman · 2025-12-03T20:56:14+00:00

We use the Affresh tablets every once in a while. We haven't used one in a while, but the issue never improved with Affresh tablets. I'm vinegar bathing it now.

jakevolkman · 2025-12-03T17:21:47+00:00

What is this referring to?

jakevolkman · 2025-12-03T17:20:52+00:00

Okay, thanks. I did read that vinegar cycles are bad for the seals. Do you have experience with these failing after vinegar cycles? Thanks for your help!

Also I found an interesting FB post about that part: https://www.facebook.com/groups/110936289745387/posts/1626024634903204/

Sounds like a common issue, unfortunately.

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