Modern appliances don't seem to last well, that's for sure. The dryer in my house broke down a couple of years after I moved in so I took it apart and found the problem, a broken drive belt, and fixed it myself. The most difficult part of the process was finding a replacement belt which was made a bit difficult because Sears is circling the drain and not stocking Kenmore parts anymore it seems. I found the equivalent Whirlpool belt at a local appliance repair shop after phoning a couple of places and turning up blanks. That experience gave me some insight in how older appliances are designed and built and the confidence to tackle repairing them myself when the need comes up vs have a repair shop send someone to do it or junking them and buying new ones.
