They have been part of the American landscape for as long as I can remember. When I grew up in Lewisville, NC, there was one across the street from us.
When we moved to Roanoke, Va in 1989, we bought our appliances from a small store at Apperson and Electric Road.
We were pleased that we did not have to pay for the appliances until they were actually delivered. We had moved from Maryland where it seemed a deposit was required in order to talk to a salesman.
Roanoke was a pleasant surprise. There were still people who knew their products and could actually explain all the features, and actually work with you on getting them delivered and installed at a convenient time.
Recently our Maytag washer started leaking. A visit from a repairman confirmed what has become so common these days. It was going to cost such a significant amount for the repair, that it made more sense to buy a new machine.
Based on a recent experience with a rental home in Cornelius, NC, we knew two things. One we were going to search out a small appliance store and two we would not be buying another Maytag. While Maytag's purchase by Whirlpool might fix the reliability problems, we do not want to be the people to confirm this.
Finding a small appliance store was not a problem. We just went back to the place we bought our last applances. It happened to be Tarpley's in Salem, VA. They are one of the few locally owned appliance stores left in the Roanoke area.
After visiting the Roanoke Farmer's Market on Saturday morning, we headed to Salem. We suspected Tarpley's would close by one.
We spent several minutes learning that top loading washing machines are going to disappear within a few years. We talked about reliability and about our need to have delivery at a specific time. It did not take long to close the transaction.
The next Tuesday morning the delivery men showed up. They worked with me when at their suggestion, I decided to blow out our dryer vent line with a leaf blower.
They were also patient with my wife while she cleaned the floor under the new machines. Tarpley's even agreed to hold our fully function dryer while we tried to donate it to charity.
All in all buying our new appliance was as pleasant as it cold be. In a few years, we will let you know what we think of Fridgerdaire appliances.
It would be wonderful if appliances lasted as long as the Hot Point ones that my mother had when I was a child in the fifties. That just doesn't happen these days.