Finally got some high end flooring for the investment condo

[gzz]

One retro item that works as well or better than modern ones are digital alarm clocks from the 80’s.

During my very brief vacation rental experiment, I put different ones in every bedroom. Now I have a pile of them in storage, so I am set for life.

https://img1.etsystatic.com/058/1/8411034/il_570xN.714716571_m88z.jpg

http://thumbs.picclick.com/00/s/NjY5WDg5OQ==/z/wt8AAOSwaB5XvP92/$/Vintage-70s-Spartus-Alarm-Clock-Radio-Old-School-_1.jpg

That does not match with FlyerHI’s “W Hotel Look” though, more like “Ramada Inn That Has Not Been Renovated in 35 Years Look”. In an old beach house, however, they looked great by the nightstand.

[FlyerInHi]

gzz, i was at Home Depot today and didn’t see any vinyl flooring for a 59c.
They so have wood look ceramic for 68c on clearance. Was $2.69. SKU 1001-698-081

There is white grey Carrara imitation porcelain for $2.79. SKU 1001-399-924

[Balboa]

One retro item that works as well or better than modern ones are digital alarm clocks from the 80’s.

This is a rare opportunity to evangelize for one of my favorite products! Philips HF3520 Wake-Up Light With Colored Sunrise Simulation. Totally changed my mornings. (Not for vacation rentals, of course, given the price point. And I have a 5 year old model. But I love these things.)

[gzz]

I got laminate wood flooring for 49 or 59, don’t remember now, marked down from 99c.

They have this sale regularly, rotating colors. The boxes are yellow and come in 24 sq ft containers.

[CA renter]

[quote=gzz]One retro item that works as well or better than modern ones are digital alarm clocks from the 80’s.

During my very brief vacation rental experiment, I put different ones in every bedroom. Now I have a pile of them in storage, so I am set for life.

https://img1.etsystatic.com/058/1/8411034/il_570xN.714716571_m88z.jpg

http://thumbs.picclick.com/00/s/NjY5WDg5OQ==/z/wt8AAOSwaB5XvP92/$/Vintage-70s-Spartus-Alarm-Clock-Radio-Old-School-_1.jpg

That does not match with FlyerHI’s “W Hotel Look” though, more like “Ramada Inn That Has Not Been Renovated in 35 Years Look”. In an old beach house, however, they looked great by the nightstand.[/quote]

I love those old digital clocks. Had one just like that myself. 🙂

FWIW, I hope that your new dishwasher/fridge work out okay. Most repair people will tell you to keep the old ones until they literally fall apart because they are superior to the new ones. We’ve bought three KitchenAid dishwashers over the past 5 years, and every single one of them has had problems. When I was younger, we routinely had 20-40 year-old dishwashers that never failed. Planned obsolescence is a HUGE pet peeve of mine.

[FlyerInHi]

CAr, you’re romanticizing the past. I don’t miss much of anything about the past. The products we have now are so much better price/quality wise. Remember, in the past appliances cost a lot more as a portion of income. Now they are commodities.

Kitchen aid are the high end whirlpool. It’s all about marketing, but Maytag is rated commercial and have 5 year warranty, i think.

I have an 5 year old IKEA/whirlpool panel ready dishwasher. I love it because it’s beautiful and blends in flush with my cabinets. Wish we had more euro style choices of appliances.

If you want spotless dishes, use Lemi Shine detergent booster.

[CA renter]

[quote=FlyerInHi]CAr, you’re romanticizing the past. I don’t miss much of anything about the past. The products we have now are so much better price/quality wise. Remember, in the past appliances cost a lot more as a portion of income. Now they are commodities.

Kitchen aid are the high end whirlpool. It’s all about marketing, but Maytag is rated commercial and have 5 year warranty, i think.

I have an 5 year old IKEA/whirlpool panel ready dishwasher. I love it because it’s beautiful and blends in flush with my cabinets. Wish we had more euro style choices of appliances.

If you want spotless dishes, use Lemi Shine detergent booster.[/quote]

It’s not just about romanticizing the past (though I do like retro-style). I like things that are built to last. Paying $1,000 for a dishwasher that will last 20-30 years is a heck of a lot cheaper than buying a $400-$800 dishwasher that needs to be replaced every 7 years (or less!).

Add to that the fact that planned obsolescence is one of the main causes of environmental pollution — mining and transporting raw materials, manufacturing and transporting finished products, transporting from point-of-sale to customers’ homes/businesses, and the pollution created by transporting and then recycling or dumping the item being replaced. It’s a HUGE contributor to environmental degradation.

Personally, I’m a “function over form” kind of person. I like things to be clean and orderly, but don’t need extra frills or shiny “new” features that, more often than not, aren’t nearly as durable (or as efficient) as what they are supposed to be improving upon.

I would argue that we got better quality for our dollar in years past. FWIW, the Bosch, Viking, and even Miele dishwashers don’t seem to be that much better than the KitchenAid dishwashers (based on consumer feedback). We even purchased slightly more expensive KitchenAid dishwashers that were supposed to be more durable. All three (we have two dishwashers in our kitchen, and one already had to be replaced within 3 years!) have had problems, problems that are major enough to render the dishwashers unusable; these issues are well known, but KA refuses to do anything to fix the problem and make their customers whole. That is totally inexcusable. We did not have these problems 20+ years ago.

Not sure if you know this or not, but most of the major appliance companies have been bought out or merged with other companies so we essentially have only one dishwasher manufacturer. Whirlpool owns Whirlpool, Maytag, Hotpoint, Amana, KitchenAid, Jenn-Air, etc. The difference between most of these machines is just branding.

I’ve been trying to convince Speed Queen (commercial washers and dryers that are still built to last) to get into other appliance lines, with no luck so far. Still working on it. 😉

[FlyerInHi]

CAr, yes I know, whirlpool, GE (Haier), and Electrolux are the big 3 appliance companies + Samsung, LG, etc….

I don’t think speed queen even makes their own. I think they just use parts from other manufacturers for a commercial look. I have looked at repairmen fix machines at the laundromat in the condo complex where I have rental. It’s pretty much the same stuff with some different parts.

Electronics go bad more than mechanical because of water/heat. But trust me, motor, drums, etc… are the same.

[FlyerInHi]

gzz, this is how this designer redid a 100yo+ house.
I need to marry an architect!

[CA renter]

[quote=FlyerInHi]CAr, yes I know, whirlpool, GE (Haier), and Electrolux are the big 3 appliance companies + Samsung, LG, etc….

I don’t think speed queen even makes their own. I think they just use parts from other manufacturers for a commercial look. I have looked at repairmen fix machines at the laundromat in the condo complex where I have rental. It’s pretty much the same stuff with some different parts.

Electronics go bad more than mechanical because of water/heat. But trust me, motor, drums, etc… are the same.[/quote]

Speed Queen makes their own washers and dryers. They’ve been doing it for decades, and use higher quality materials because they specialize in commercial units (for laundromats and communal laundry rooms). The repair people will tell you that these are the highest-quality machines out there, and they weigh a lot more than their competitors’ machines because they are made of metal, not plastic. They also have mechanical knobs, as opposed to electronic control boards, making them much more durable.

I just wish they would make dishwashers and other appliances, too.

[FlyerInHi]

Depends what your definition of “make” is.

You should open appliances sometimes and look at the parts. Manufacturers don’t design and “make” everything. They buy and put together or they even contract out and slap on their own label.

Mechanical knobs is the key to durability… electronics are fine, but you have to be more careful not to get wet. Hard to do with busy family. Oh and electronics allow for precise programming to meet performance and energy star requirements.

Think of it this way….. Some companies use ruggedized iPad or tablets for their operations. They could use consumer iPad too. But the employees would have to be a lot more delicate.

[spdrun]

Not sure if I agree. A circuit board plus a few LEDs and momentary switches can last decades. A washer/dryer knob often has a lot more moving parts, including a motor, geartrain, micro-switches, etc, all of which can break.

Also, some of the new washer/dryer knobs are just a rotary switch that sends an input to a control circuit board.

[Author]

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