A foaming good site! (washerhelp.com)

Member Name: Shazzy

Product:	washerhelp.com
Date:	27/01/03 (1720 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Lots of free advice, Easy navigation

Disadvantages: Are there any?

One of my chores as a kid was helping my mum lug the weekly wash round to the launderette. A huge black plastic sack of dirty washing, enough to fill several of those whopping great machines that, as a child, seemed big enough to swallow me up. That wasn't the worse part though. Mum didn't have much money so using the dryers wasn't an option and the whole lot had to be lugged home again, wet. I'm telling you, that bag was heavy!!

I can understand what older people mean when they say that we don't know we're born. These days, almost all of us have washing machines in our homes and can just pop on a wash whenever we feel the need.

But all this modern day equipment isn't without it's problems. With so many choices available, how do we know which machine to buy, the best detergent to use, and what to do if our beloved washer goes wrong? This is where washerhelp.com comes in very handy.

Andy_(Art)_Trigg, one of dooyoo's respected members (well I don't know about you but I respect him), with 25 years experience of washing machine repairs notched onto his bedpost, has created a website designed to help us with any questions we may have related to.... yes, you guessed it, washing machines.

Whether you're just about to go out and buy a machine, need advice on how best to use it, or are experiencing problems with the one you have, there's plenty of advice to be had. Should you buy new or reconditioned? Are all washing machines the same size? Which machines are the most reliable? Where's the cheapest place to buy one? Is powder detergent better than liquid? Should you use Calgon tablets? What should you do if the door won't open or no water comes into the machine? The list of questions goes on and on, and although dealing with the household clothes wash isn't exactly rocket science, there's obviously far more to choosing and using a washing machine than "that one looks nic
e" and "bung the clothes in and turn it on".

The site design is easy on the eye without lots of graphic overload and navigation is as easy as it gets. A list of links to the various areas of the site is placed clearly on the opening screen along with Andy's contact information. Clicking on a link brings you straight to a list of questions related to the area of your choice. The answers are all on the same page so save page loading time, but are linked so that you're taken straight to the answer when clicking on a question. The text's large and legible, unlike the tiny fonts that some site designers choose to use, and everything's written in non-techy language that even I can understand, and believe me, anything with buttons and knobs (don't even go there - you know exactly what kind of knobs I'm talking about) usually has me running a mile suffering full blown incomprehension.

To make things even easier, there's a search option too. Just put in your key words and up comes a list of links to areas that could contain the answer you're looking for. Each link gives a few lines of text to help you decide whether your answer is likely to be found there or not.

One feature that I found both interesting and useful, is the forum. If you can't find the answer to you question elsewhere on the site, just pop along to the message boards and add your question to the ever-growing list. There are separate sections for "Hoover", "Hotpoint" and "Other Makes", already containing subjects like "Candy Eclypsa taking 24 hours to complete its cycle" and "Indesit: Replacing the door seal". In most cases, Andy appears to have answered questions within a few hours and, at times, within just a few minutes! How's that for efficiency? You'd be hard pressed to find this kind of free service elsewhere.

I've seen the site grow from its infancy and can
honestly say that I'm extremely impressed with the work and, probably more importantly, the knowledge that Andy's put into it. Anybody who owns or is considering buying a washing machine would undoubtedly find a visit worthwhile.

And don't forget to bookmark it. You just never know when you'll be needing Andy and his virtual spanner.

Now, if only my machine would stop eating the clothes and spewing suds all over the kitchen floor......


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