That service call where I refused to replace a perfectly good part

I read a post last week where someone said you should always swap the control board on a washer that's acting up, no matter what. That got under my skin. Friday night I had a call in Austin for a Whirlpool that was stopping mid-cycle. Customer was ready to drop $200 on a new board. I spent 20 minutes checking the lid switch first, found it faulty, and charged them $35 for the part. The whole job took 40 minutes. I think we push these expensive swaps because it's easier than digging into the simpler stuff. Has anyone else run into situations where the quick fix turned out to be the wrong call?

2 comments

2 Comments

aaron88413d ago

tbh i used to be the guy who would just swap the board and call it a day, but reading about you checking the lid switch first really made me rethink my whole approach. it's way too easy to jump to the expensive fix when the simple stuff like a $35 part would've done the job. your post definitely shifted how i look at those quick service calls now.

felix_lane9913d ago

Dude same here. I got burned on a washing machine last year where I swapped out the main control board for like $200. Turns out the door latch was just a little loose and not sending the signal back. Spent an hour on that board swap when a 5 minute check wouldve saved me. Now I always start with the cheap stuff first, makes you look smarter than you actually are haha.