My $40 water level switch gamble that actually paid off

I had this Kenmore washer that kept acting like it was drunk, filling up way too much then stopping mid-cycle. After watching six YouTube videos I figured it might be the water level switch. But genuine parts were like $80 and I wasn't sure that was the problem. So I took a shot and grabbed a $40 generic one off Amazon just to test my theory. Took me maybe 20 minutes to swap it out and bam, the thing ran perfect for the last three months. I was sure I'd just tossed $40 down the drain but it saved me from calling a real repair guy. Has anyone else had luck with those cheap replacement parts or am I just asking for trouble down the road?

3 comments

3 Comments

bettywood15d ago

Hold your horses there. You got lucky once, but those cheap generics are a total crapshoot. They might work fine for a while then die at the worst possible moment, or they could be slightly off on the pressure settings and mess with the cycles in ways you don't notice until your clothes are ruined. OEM parts are expensive for a reason, they have to actually match the factory specs. I learned that the hard way with a dryer thermal fuse that lasted exactly two weeks before popping again. Saving $40 now could cost you a flooded laundry room or a fried control board later.

willow11415d ago

Geez, you're making me remember what happened to my friend @lopez.simon's cousin. She put a generic water inlet valve in her washer and three months later it started dripping just enough to warp the laminate floor. Cost way more to fix than if she'd just paid for the OEM part.

lopez.simon15d ago

Nah, @bettywood is right though. Cheap parts are a gamble I'm not taking on my washer.