Ole Yeller(s), always faithful

Steve Barnes

It was an early, blessed Christmas present: Old Yeller has been cured.

Old Yeller — actually, Yellers, plural, a treasured pair — are the washer and dryer that were delivered to our home a couple days after we moved in more than 31 years ago. Brand-new Kenmores, in the butter yellow (Sears called it “Golden Wheat”) that matched the laundry room walls and shelving. (Surely we would have balked had the room been done to match a washer and dryer in avocado or bronze, which in 1992 already were passe; and today’s appliance options seem limited to white or black.)

We still have the sales receipts and the instruction manuals. If you must know, the washer is Model 110.92281600, and cost $439.99, tax included. The dryer is 110.87980600, though the sales slip is so faded I can’t make out the price. But it was 25 bucks to deliver and install.

Ole Yellers worked beautifully for about 20 years. Then came the day when one half of the duo — the washer — simply stopped in the middle of the rinse cycle. A co-owner of the house, whose first instinct in such situations is to replace a malfunctioning item, was annoyed (“This thing is 20 years old!”) that the other co-owner thought it advisable to consult a repairman. At first sight of the washer, the repairman’s first instinct was to offer to buy it from us.

“Best washer ever made,” he grinned. “Wish me and the missus had one.”

A half-hour and a replaced capacitor later, the washer was humming like new.

“You oughta be good for a few more years,” the repairman said.

He paused. “Sure you don’t wanna sell it?” I was sure, especially after his assurance of “a few more years,” and, later, after every person, every single one, with whom I’ve shared that episode, including readers of this column those dozen years ago, urged us to under no circumstances get rid of Old Yellers. They all had one thing in common, the Cassandras: All had relatively new washers and dryers, none of which, regardless of price, performed as promised, and all of which had required servicing short years (sometimes months) after installation.

None of the newer machines, according to consumer guides, were expected to last more than a dozen years, and only that long without “occasional” tune-ups and very light loads.

“Keep it. Fix it, and if something goes wrong then fix it again,” was a friend’s stern recommendation, she having struggled with her threeyear old front-loader “almost from the @#%* day they brought it.”

Still, 31 years is rather a long time, so when Old Yeller (the washer) stopped agitating and spinning the other day, there was the thought that perhaps it was beyond repair. Three — count ’em, three — repair guys I reached via the internet advised that, yeah, it would probably be cheaper to replace than repair.

At lunch I mentioned that assessment to a friend, whose immediate reaction was to (a) bolt upright and announce that his beautifully functioning washer was even older than ours, (b) insist that I not sell Ole Yeller, or Yellers, and (c) that I call “this guy I know.”

This guy he knew said: “Aw, they just didn’t want to mess with it,” referring to the other service men. “I’ll be there in, maybe, ten minutes.” Ten minutes later, maybe, and sure enough, and I swear this is true, he took one look at the patient and said: “Best washer ever made!”

To get Old Yeller agitating and spinning again took him about 45 minutes, most of it spent removing and reinstalling its cowling. “You just needed a new coupling,” he smiled, holding a plastic disc worn smooth from 31 years of faithful service.

The machine’s other innards, he said, “looked pretty good.”

He did not ask if we wanted to sell Old Yellers, either or both, but I suspect he would have snapped it/them up had we so signaled.

What he did do, this guy, was charge a pittance for his work: about a hundred bucks, part and labor. A C-note versus the $1,400 (at a minimum) we’d spend for a new washer and dryer that everyone, including this guy, has urged against purchasing if at all possible. There was no charge for his commentary, which included a cautionary about “environmentally friendly” washers, which use comparatively little water “and give you dirty clothes in return.” And a lament for the poor quality of too many home appliances in today’s marketplace.

They don’t make ‘em like they used to, he said, adding that he’d be happy to help us again though we were probably set “for a few more years.” He took his leave after taking one last, affectionate look at Ole Yeller, the last of its kind.