i should be working (but i'm fixing my computer).

My clothes dryer quit working. So, I fixed it. I figured, one repair in seven years or so, not too bad. The problem was that the plastic strips the drum rides on had worn through.

It was not a fun job.

...

And then just a few short months later, it quit working again. This time, the bearings (or something) seized in the motor and/or the fan.

It's not ecological to throw stuff away if you can fix it. And, electric motor generally speaking can run for a really long time.

But most consumer machinery is not designed for repair. Or, perhaps more precisely, it is designed to prevent repair.

I ripped it apart and took the offending parts down to the parts store to find out what they would cost. Another $175 or so to be dumped into the machine, after the $75 or so I just spent on it. Geez! Shoulda bought a new one the first time out.

Well, my point of the post is actually to describe how to disable the end of cycle buzzer on a Frigidaire FWT647GH clothes washer. But, I'll get there in a bit. Because, as you will notice, I was talking about a broken dryer and not a broken washing machine.

After some brief consumer research and irritated by what I considered to be a relatively short life for a rather simple appliance, I opted against another Frigidaire and bought a Whirlpool duet sport. What "sport" do you use a dryer for, anyway?

I do not yet know how well it works. I hope the malcontent whose review rather disparaged the machine does not turn out correct. The preponderance of reviews liked it. But, karma has not been running well on this project ...

The problem here is that when I last replaced the washer/dryer combo I bought a stackable Frigidaire pair so that I could put a utility sink in the tiny laundry room. Which worked out well and I did not really wish to give up the utility sink.

So, I found a stackable Whirlpool, but it doesn't match the Frigidaire. Though after seven years, odds are a new stackable Frigidaire will not match the Frigidaire either. Well, and actually, the mounting hardware turned out to be readily adaptable. I only drilled a few holes in the wrong places...

And, I bought a new vent kit, which came pre-torn and did not work out so well. And then I bought another one because I needed more 90 deg. angle parts. Bad choice, wasted $$.

Finally got everything all stacked and ready to go. More or less. Took an entire day and then had to go to a dinner party.

Came home -- hooked up hoses -- could not stop leak. Went to Ralph's at midnight to buy more rubber washers. Could not stop leak.

Got up a.m., went to K-Mart -- where I discovered lots of mix'n'match dryer vent parts, dang. And bought a new hose. Came home, hooked up hose, leak gone.

Put clothes in washer. Now, we should keep in mind at this point that I did not do anything to the washer but stack a different dryer on it. "End of cycle" buzzer came on and would not shut off. Oh, it would be off for parts of the cycle and then come back on. Yeesh.

Dug out manual from the archives. Was this a warning buzzer? Was something going wrong? (I mean, other than the buzzer buzzing ...) Apparently not. None of the troubleshooting refers to what to do if the buzzer comes on.

Proceeded to misdiagnose the problem, since it appeared the cold water was not coming on (semi-true) so I thought maybe there was something wrong with my new hose. No, wrong.

Internet research. Anyone else have this problem? What is the solution? It seems people do not like the frigidaire end of cycle buzzer, wakes kids and the like. So, yes, some info on how to disable, except all for the wrong model.

Unbolted the stacking hardware and shifted the dryer over so I could peer in and try to find the buzzer. No luck. Could not unstack because I had to get brother-in-law assistance to put this thing up here in the first place. Not asking brother-in-law to make return visit ...

Plugged washer back in, triggered buzzer, got basic idea where it was. (It's between the "extra rinse" and "final spin speed" controls. Couldn't see it, but finally decided to use "random wire disconnect" troubleshooting method. Sort of like those movies where the bomb squad has to decide which wire to cut to avoid blowing up the known world. Except somewhat safer.

I did -- yes, I did -- remember to unplug the washer before sticking my hand in there. Pulled wire, started dryer, no buzzer. Yay! Taped the connector, re-stacked the washer/dryer, washed clothes. There still does seem to be a weird delay in filling with cold water. If I set for warm water, the warm water fills. Don't know if this is just normal operation or some new issue -- as I never paid attention to this before. System works, however, and no buzzer.

Can I explain what happened? No, I cannot. I thought maybe I had hit a wire and grounded or shorted something, or same issue from weight of dryer, but as far as I can tell -- no.

Just bad karma.

Are you kidding me? I am facing replacing BOTH the washer and dryer? Yikes. This is way too much work. I wonder if Microsoft had any involvement wit Frigidaire appliances ...