August 22, 2008
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Frugal Friday
I’m 51 years old and if there is one thing I’ve learned it’s that a daughter is never too old to learn from her mother!
It’s been nearly 2 years (in October) since Daddy left for heaven. My mother had many things to learn since Daddy took care of all business matters plus the maintenance of the house. My mother jumped right in and did her best to learn everything she could so that she could be independent. One thing that amazed me was her determination to fix things on her own before she called a repair man.
So, this is what Mama taught me. SAVE & READ your OWNER’S MANUAL!.
This week I was having problems with my vacuum cleaner. The self-propelled feature wasn’t working. I thought possibly I could vacuum anyway but it was nearly impossible to move it. I had the same problem several years ago and ended up taking it to a repair shop which cost me quite a bit.
I remembered Mama’s example and went to find the owner’s manual which I had thankfully filed away and was able to find (in spite of our life being in boxes from the move). Normally there is a ‘problem’ area in the manuals which give you a solution. The manual suggested checking a belt that was located under the vacuum cleaner. Once I took off the bottom panel I was able to see that the belt was indeed broken. A quick trip to town with a $4.00 purchase for the belt solved the problem.
Mama would be so proud!
Comments (8)
That’s very good advice!
Many years ago our microwave quit working. I was sure it was going to be very expensive to fix since it was one of the older models….so we just did without…..for two years! Finally we decided to take it in for a free repair estimate only to be told by the repairman that a fuse was out. He very nicely showed my husband how to replace it. Cost?? Eighty-one CENTS. LOL…..
Yes, saving and reading that manual is a very good idea.
Blessings to you today! Q.’
I completely agree with you. Our vacumn also has seen better days. The motor works fine along with all the other motorized parts but the hose has split between the ‘ribs’ of the coil. Turns out that the ribs are actually the wires leading from the handle to the beater head. I thought we would have to replace the complete vacumn, but amazingly, a person is able to buy just the hose!! So although it may seem expensive to buy a new 40$ hose, one must remember that to replace this particular vacumn would cost 400$ and the new models are NOT as study in constuction as the older model. I’m grateful!!
Glad it was only a broken belt in your case. We have always saved all the owners manuals (sic) of any appliances we have bought over the years. We keep them all in one drawer. Whenever I give away or garage sale an item I am able to pass along the manuals with the item. Every so often I go through the drawer and discard the manuals for anything that may have been broken, lost, or forgotten. It happens… what can I say?
Great idea!
Are you moved yet?????
Good for you! I save stuff like that, but usually can’t remember where it is. I need someone to come and organize things for me, or make me organize them. My mother still tells me what to do, and I’m 70. She’s nearly always right too.
You go girl!
Thanks for sharing your life lesson with us. And for the record….an owner’s manual and helped us find the problem leading to a repair on more than one occasion.