Appliance repairs... Stick or twist..

[Lucien Nunes]

Aaargh domestic repairs - the bane of my life. I don't do domestic or general commercial wiring so I don't run ap against faulty washers or dead fryers. But people know I do electronic stuff so they try to sneak in moody gadgets for me to fix 'if I have a moment.' How many moments do they think I have?

The problem is when you don't do much of it. When lots of the same models are going through your hands on a daily basis, you can get very quick and accurate at diagnosis and repair. From my days at university and shortly after, repairing IT / AV / music gear to earn a crust, I can still remember many of the circuits, component values, stock faults, mods, tweaks, and traps for the unwary even 20 years later. I would know which spares to carry in stock, which other parts to replace when one part fails (to avoid callbacks), which items to condemn on sight as more trouble than they are worth. If you are only doing it occasionally you don't get the benefit of that experience; jobs take longer and are more likely to bounce back.

 

[telectrix]

funnily enough, step-daughter 's oven stopped working saturday. went there yesterday. 30 mins to pull out, strip off top and back, 5 mins to replace spade terminal on neutral end of element. strrangely had no screws left over when done.

 

[David M]

.....I must get all the blocked pumps and brushes faults then!

Its amazing how many times you come across a washing machine where its just a simple job of unblocking the pump chamber. I've been to loads of jobs where the client has chucked out the old washing machine for a new one without any thought for having it repaired. Often I've offered to get rid of the old one for them, taken them home and found that it was an easy fault to fix. At one time I had a nice little stock of used but working machines. They've dwindled away now as friends and family have blagged them from me. Though at least they have been recycled and done a favour for those dear to me.

 

[telectrix]

i picked up a creda condenser dryer from the local council tip. all that was wrong with it was thermal overload on the heater had failed. 75p to fix and had it for 7 years before the motor packed in.

 

[NDG Elecs]

Thanks for all the replies folks. Some good info there, and so I shall continue as is I think with oven elements etc..

The step daughters oven was probably my fault Tel for starting this thread!! So apologies!

 

[Pat H]

Spent the day doing m other job repairing some of these.
The electricity and current is at a some what safer level....

 

[Barry White]

Hi pat where did you get the picture of the Studer B67 tapedeck ?

 

[Pat H]

Just off google. I forgot to take one at the workshop today.

Got two working third one had me stumped will go back Wednesday and try board substitution to help track it down. Normally I just work at component level but this one had a few added faults so I need to be sure its not multiple issues before I dig much further.

 

[Barry White]

Weird I have been watching that very machine today on youtube its in dutch or some other lingo
Dont know much about them was just searching for an old reel to reel we had when I was a child and eventually got here.

edit found it in my history

 

[Pat H]

I've been doing the work for the British Library. They have been collecting loads of them to digitise all the reel to reel tapes they have in the library why we still have machines that work. Giving up a few days of my time as a volunteer to help repair as many of the machines as I can for them.

 

[Pat H]

And todays challenge is finding the dry joint my surround amp.



Taking bets on how many screws will be left over...

Just had to order 2 X 10000 Uf caps as I can see they are starting to expand at the top. So now do I re-assemble and then strip down in a week or so or leave it in bits till then?

 

[Pat H]

Ok this time with smaller images that may upload!






Taking bets on how many screws will be left over...

Just had to order 2 X 10000 Uf caps as I can see they are starting to expand at the top. So now do I re-assemble and then strip down in a week or so or leave it in bits till then?