Throwback Thursday: News Recap

If you have been reading the W.L. May Blog but haven't checked us out on Facebook, Twitter or Google+, you may not be getting the whole story. We use all of those social media outlets to share news stories that relate to our industry as well as appliance tips we have found from other sources. Here is a recap of some of the top stories we have seen lately. There is quite a bit here since our last news recap. Next time we will try to update you sooner.

We start with a few consumer friendly articles we feel would be great for sharing:

• Alltech Appliance offers some tips to avoid a costly washer repair. Link
• The blog "Helpful Information for Appliance Repair" counseled readers on the age old debate, "Buying New vs. Repairing Your "Old" Appliance". Link
• Huffington Post offered tips for cleaning a refrigerator with salt and water. Link
• Diane Estrella's blog shared a recipe for refrigerator pickles. Link
• The Telegraph from Macon GA published an interesting article about refrigerator cleaning and food storage for optimum health and safety. Link
• Western Appliance Repair had a great post about troubleshooting and repairing a non working icemaker. This may be a more technical than some consumers will be ready for, but still useful to the right person. Link
• HealthLine News posted this article that is sure to scare you a little. It also makes a persuasive argument for dishwasher cleaning products. Link
• MSN shared 20 tips to save money on laundry. Link
• About.Com shared tips for moving a refrigerator. Link

Next, we look at the manufacturers and how they have been in the news recently:

• Frigidaire reported growth in North America, which they credit to an improved U.S. housing market. Link
• Wall Street Cheat Sheet reported an increase ad revenues being spent by GE to keep up with Whirlpool and Electrolux's ad budgets. Link
• Whirlpool reported they are adding 150 new jobs at their Tulsa plant that will be working on a "new cooking product". Link\
• LG reported stong international sales of their six-motion front load washers. Link
• The Motley Fool was bullish on Whirlpool. Link
• A writer for Sacramento Bee was impressed by technology on a GE machine that calls the factory for service. Link
• Whirlpool made the news again with their acquisition of a Chinese appliance manufacturer. Link
• Whirlpool paid out a dividend to their shareholders. Link

We found a few articles that might be of interest to those of you who love all thing appliances:

• The Daily News had a story about a lady who was hiding money in her refrigerator, when her husband got sent the machine to the recycler. Luckily it has a happy ending. Link
• From India, The Daily Bhaksar posted the story of a girl who has invented a pedal powered washing machine. Link

Sometimes, the links we post related to technology, business or happenings on the internet:

• Huffington Post discussed yet more changes to Facebook. This time it is a feature that shows what you were doing one year ago. Link
• Consumer Reports offered some tips to save money on gasoline. Link

A few contests were announced:

• Bob Vila announced a contest on his website with GE appliances as the prize. Link
• Electrolux announced a contest with the Grand Prize being a trip to the Bahamas and French Door refrigerator. Unfortunately, most of us in "the industry" are not eligible. But tell your friends, because with every entry Electrolux contributes a dollar to ovarian cancer research. Link

And we close with a thought provoking article the Appliance Samurai shared with us:

• Wired discussed the "maker" movement and suggests a movement toward "fixing" is an idea whose time has come (again). Link