Monday Motivation

Winning isn’t everything, but wanting to win is. –Vince Lombardi

                  For more education and entertainment from W.L. May Company click...HERE

Friday Morning Videos: Reverse Polarity

For this mornings selection, we have a video from internet appliance repair celebrity, technician trainer and field technician: The Appliance Samurai. In this clip he talks about the dangers and diagnoses of reverse polarity wiring at the wall outlet. He also runs a pretty good training program for technicians at appliantology.org .

        For more education and entertainment from W.L. May Company click...HERE

Throwback Thursday: News Recap August 27th, 2015

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. So without further ado:

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

• Gulf News posted a reminder to make sure you store food in the refrigerator correctly. LINK
• House Beautiful listened to some sounds around the house that should not be ignored. LINK
• Consumer Reports had some tips for getting clean laundry. LINK
• FoxRio2 gave us appliance moving tips. LINK

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

• Whirlpool was inspired by the Ice Bucket Challenge. Their Splash and Cash Challenge benefits the United Way. LINK

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

• Following up on the guy that was training to break the record for throwing a washing machine. He did it! LINK
• Nola.com remembered Katrina ten years later. And they let refrigerators tell the story. LINK

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

• Are you ready for a robot to help unload the dishwasher? It CAN be done! LINK

We close with few just for fun stories:

• In what seems to be an ongoing series, yet another reporter waxes nostalgic at the thought of replacing a beloved old dryer. LINK
• Some dogs are so smart. This one can drink from the refrigerators ice/water dispenser! LINK
• Everybody makes mistakes. But shower gel instead of cooking oil...Yuk! LINK

For more education and entertainment from W.L. May Company click...HERE

Wednesday Weekly Stock: Ranges

Every week at W.L. may we have several items we feature as good parts to consider adding to your stock. These parts also have special pricing available. For pricing details, ask your account representative for more information. This week we keep the summer cooking with some range parts.

5303935057 and 5303935054

Even if your range is looking well, drip pans tend to get dirty as they do what they were intended for and catch items that drip around a surface burner. These are an easy replacement and by and large drip pans are an inexpensive item. Beware though of the many home repair stores that have "generic" drip pans on their shelves.

Often we get calls from folks who have tried to use universal drip pans. They call us because they found that the pans do not fit correctly into the hole for them, or the elements don't sit correctly in the drip pan. Avoid those frustrations by using manufacturers specified parts, such as these chrome drip pans that fit most Frigidaire electric ranges. Part 5303935057 is the 6" size and 5303935054 is the 8" drip pan.

715877 and 715878

If you have a JennAir the chrome drip pans that are needed are different. The space where the element plus in is cut in from the lip as opposed to Frigidaire style that used a hole for the elements terminals to fit through. The Jenn Air style pans are not only found on JennAirs, but can be found on some Whirlpool, Maytag and Kenmore models as well. 715877 is the 6" drip pan and 715878 is it's 8" compliment.

700855K

Another part for JennAir ranges that we are featuring this week is their surface unit infinite switch. For many years, part 700855k was the switch used on JennAir cooktops for both large and small surface elements.

12001656

When I was telling you about the drip pans being featured this week, I made a point of mentioning the hole that the element passes through. Just outside the drip pan the terminals for the element connect to power passed down via wiring from the infinite switch. Where they meet there is a receptacle or "burner block". On many Maytags, the receptacle called for is part 12001656. It comes as kit that includes the ceramic black, the metal installation bracket, and wires and wire nuts.

5303935058

Electrolux also makes a "burner block" kit. They include a couple different mounting brackets making part 5303935058 a very useful item.

12001656

12001596

Other featured items this week include Maytag's 12001656 6' oven sensor and their spark module 12001596. We also have a lot of other items for your range that fall under our "Every Day Low Pricing" program. We'd love to help, so give us a call!

Kelly's Korner - Smoke on the Water...

Hey, All,

Creative Commons license on image.

...and fire in the sky!  And, man, is it everywhere!  I don't know how it is in your part of the country, but it seems like the whole western part of the US is on fire.  Portland was inundated this weekend by massive smoke from the forest fires burning in Washington, Idaho and Oregon.  Everything was bathed in an eerie glow from the sun filtering through it all and it smelled like an old campfire outside.  Sunrises were pretty awesome and the moon Saturday night was a bright orange all night.

Creative Commons license on image.

                                                                      Now what does this have to do with appliances?  Well, some appliances filter the same air you breath - mostly air conditioners, but your refrigerator and dryer circulate air also.  There isn't much you can do for the refrigerator or dryer, but if the smoke is heavy in your area, check your filters frequently.  Even if you can't see indiviual ashes, they are there and can clog your filters pretty fast.  If you have someone in the house with allergies, asthma or other breathing difficulties, making sure these filters stay clean is imperative.

Creative Commons license on image.

Our massive thanks to all the people that are out there fighting these fires and trying to keep our homes safe.  And our hearts go out to those who have lost their homes.  As for everyone else - please be mindful of the parched conditions out there - just the smallest spark can set off a blaze.  So watch your cigarettes, barbeques and anything else that can get hot enough to touch off all the dry foliage out there.  Most of all - be safe!

Have a great week!

Monday Motivation

A good way to judge people is by observing how they treat those who can do them absolutely no good.—Anonymous

     For more from education and entertainment from W.L. May Company click...HERE

Friday Featured W.L. May Employee: Robin Kehler

This is the part of the blog where we share a little about ourselves. Today we would like to introduce you to one of the people that help provide you with our famously fast and accurate customer service.

Name? Robin Kehler

Job Title? Purchasing Agent

Where did you grow up? I’m a native Oregonian, grew up in Salem and Portland.

How long have you been with W.L. May? 3 years now!

What did you do prior to joining W.L. May? I’ve worked in various industries from retail to real estate, food service to insurance etc.

What do you enjoy doing when you're not at work? I read a lot, listen to music, knit & crochet, and I spend time with my family and our adorable, little dog.

To what do you credit your success? Perseverance and determination – most likely learned from my dad who worked very hard and raised my sisters and I on his own.

What do you like about working at WL May? I love the people I work with and since I work in a warehouse I don’t have to wear heels!

Can you share one piece of advice for others in our industry? Take every opportunity to listen, learn, and grow.

Can you share something most people do not know about you? Ha! I am a fairly open book.

For more education and entertainment from W.L. May Company click...HERE