Haha, your fridge story hits home. I've noticed appliances can be weirdly unpredictable. When I bought my first washer-dryer set, I went brand new thinking it'd last forever—barely made it past the warranty. Yet, my second-hand dining table has survived two moves and countless dinners without a scratch. Guess it's true:
"Sometimes practicality means making strategic compromises..."
Maybe appliances are just luck of the draw...or secretly plotting against us.
Your washer-dryer experience sounds uncannily similar to mine. I bought a brand-new fridge about two years ago, thinking it'd be a solid investment for at least a decade. Nope—within 14 months, the ice maker decided it had enough of life. Meanwhile, my old microwave, which I snagged used from a neighbor moving away, has been humming along for almost eight years now without a hiccup.
It makes me wonder if newer appliances are intentionally designed with shorter lifespans, or if we've just gotten unlucky. I've read somewhere about planned obsolescence—companies deliberately designing products to fail after a certain period. Could that be true, or is it just a conspiracy theory? Either way, it's made me lean more towards buying gently-used items whenever possible. Seems like older stuff was just built differently...or maybe I'm just nostalgic for appliances that didn't need software updates.
I've noticed the same thing—my parents' old fridge lasted 20+ years, but my new dishwasher barely made it past warranty. Planned obsolescence isn't just a conspiracy theory...companies definitely benefit from repeat buyers. I'm leaning toward used appliances too these days.
Went through something similar when we bought our house. The brand-new washer we splurged on died literally a month after the warranty expired. Meanwhile, the ancient dryer that came with the place is still going strong...go figure. Ended up replacing the washer with a refurbished model from a local repair shop—way cheaper, easy to fix, and it's been reliable for years now. Honestly, used appliances can be a smart move if you know what to look for and where to buy.
Totally agree, refurbished has worked well for me too. Got a used fridge from Craigslist 5 years ago—still humming along. New doesn't always mean reliable, sometimes simpler older models just last longer...and they're easier to fix.
