This is it – the new washing machine!
As I mentioned over here, my landlord finally agreed to split the cost of a new machine 50/50, and his daughter recommended a Samsung model for about 300 euros that she has at home and is very pleased with. I was to have it delivered and installed here on Friday, but of course, things are never that simple or easy. Turned out the store was out of that model until further notice, which meant I had to (eep!) go out to the suburbs yesterday to see what else could be found…
First of all I should point out that I have never bought a washing machine before and didn’t realise there were so many options, especially with drum sizes. And so, as I had ended up way out there in no man’s land without a clue as to the size of the machine drum at home, I opted for an average-sounding 6 kilo one (they ranged from 5-8 kilos). Is that a good size? Will I be able to wash duvets and blankets in it?
And so after about an exhausting hour of back and forth phone calls to Pepe we finally agreed on the 6 kilo Fagor pictured above. I had also found a 7 kilo machine for the same price but Pepe wouldn’t go for it, saying it was “excessive and unnecessary”. Huh? We argued about that for ages because it just didn’t make sense to me to get the smaller one if they were both good brands and the price was the same, and yet all Pepe would do was repeat that it was too big for me and accuse me of being stubborn (moi?). But I had logic on my side and, okay, maybe I am just the eensiest bit stubborn … in any case, Pepe finally yelled at me “Oh, just do whatever you want!”, and then disconnected his mobile phone. At which point I ordered the 6 kilo Fagor, texted him with the news about an hour later, and then he phoned back and we both apologised and “made up”.
Don’t ask. This always happens when Pepe and I try to negotiate a deal, only usually it’s done in person with lots of arm waving and yelling on his part, as well as plenty of arm waving, eye rolling and sighing on mine (I’ve picked up the arm waving thing from him). If I really want to play dirty I’ll start crying, though sometimes I end up crying without wanting to. At various times we’ve stormed out of each other’s apartments in anger and frustration, saying stuff like “You’re impossible! I just can’t talk to you!”. But we always go back and make up. It’s been like this for 15 years now and so I guess it’s kind of our schtick.
Thing is, we both really like each other, but I think we are also both hoping that nothing else breaks in the near future. And luckily there are still a few months before the annual rent increase negotiations (Pepe: “Don’t give me that face!” Me: “I don’t understand this, there are too many numbers.” Pepe: “You know I’m always fair, remember that time when…” Me: “Why are you smoking? You’re going to give yourself another heart attack!” Pepe: “Yeah yeah, but this should really be more, look at my calculations…” Me: “You’re making me dizzy, I have to go home now” etc etc). . .
Anyhoodle, should have the new machine by Tuesday. 🙂
casa azahar 
When the rent negotiations come up, negotiate for windows that close or some other way to keep cold air out. Congrats on the new machine. I would have ordered the bigger one if it was the same price.
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Perhaps Pepe is considering the added cost of electricity to run a larger machine… Of course, if you have to run it more often because you have to break your laundry into smaller loads, is there any saving?
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Unfortunately that will never happen, Silverstar. He’d have to change all 30 balcony doors in the building, tall double doors that are 3/4 window panes. I’ve only got two windows in the apartment, which close more or less okay – it’s the six balconies that make it so cold.
Yeah, I could have ordered the bigger one, but then somehow things would never have been quite the same between me and Pepe. It just drives me nuts sometimes when he gets stuck on a notion that makes no sense and then refuses to listen to reason. On the other hand, he really didn’t have to pay for half the machine.
It wasn’t about the price or the extra electricity, Anneke. I pay for the electricity here. It was about me “not needing” such a large machine, even though the machine itself wasn’t actually bigger, just the drum inside it. Ach, I can’t even think about it any more. Suffice it to say that over the past 15 years, I’ve sometimes got things I’ve needed and Pepe has sometimes been able to ‘save face’ by not giving in to every request. So I have to choose when something is important enough to stand my ground. And since I am getting a brand new washing machine for 180 euros, that I can pay off in monthly installments, I decided not to push it any further.
I just needed to vent a little earlier on in order to lower my blood pressure. 😉
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I too would have gotten the bigger drum, but I am also fully aware of people like ur landlord. There called dumbasses! Im also fully aware of the art of ‘giving in’. Your right there is no point to their arguments but the dumbasses will just continue to suffer from their disease, which is called D.A.S. Unfortunately, there is no cure for dumbass syndrome!
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Depends on what your average size load is – I’d go for the big drum because I know I have 2 mucky teenagers and an OH and a dog, all of whom create large volumes of washing. But when it’s just you and Nog then there probably is some sense in going for a smaller drum (it’ll use less water for a start, and spin better than a half full larger machine, and you won’t have to wait for 2 weeks before you have a full load ready to go…) Happy washing!
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I do so much laundry on a daily basis that when I go looking for a washing machine I get the biggest, most powerful, and best quality I can afford.
Sometimes you have to pick your battles, and it sounds like you have got Pepe figured out pretty well.
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Hmmm, wondering if I should call the store tomorrow and change the order … though the main thing is about being able to wash duvets and blankets. I’m sure the usual stuff can be done just fine in a 6 kilo machine.
Yeah, it was all about picking my battles, hmh. Who knows, next time I may have to tell him I can’t pay my rent. And, “dumbass” or not, I know he’d never throw me out if I missed a rent payment or two.
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what Linda says is true, it’s only you and Nog and we should all be trying to use less water and electricity no matter who pays for it. at least you got a front loader which is much more energy efficient than my top loader. but I’ve had it for 15 years and it refuses to break down 🙂
what’s your duvet made of? mine is feather and I get it dry cleaned twice a year. then again, I don’t usually suffer from allergies or dust mites
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I wash my duvet in the washing machine and dry it in the dryer (no clotheslines in our co-op…. and in winter, unless you want clothes that come in off the line stiff as doors, you have to use a drier).
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All washing machines these days have half-load cycle options that use less water, so not always having a full load to wash wouldn’t necessarily mean using more water and electricity.
I have to bring the duvets (mine are filled with some sort of fluffy stuff – not feathers) to a laundromat to be washed and dried and it costs 25 euros for each one. They’re too big to fit into the washing machine I have now and so probably won’t fit in the new one either.
Curious thing about Spain is that almost all rented apartments come with washing machines but they don’t have ovens. In Canada it was the other way round.
They don’t have many laundromats here and they tend to be quite expensive.
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Curious thing about Spain is that almost all rented apartments come with washing machines but they don’t have ovens. In Canada it was the other way round. <…. that seems so weird to me.
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I thought it was strange at first, DKL, but I soon discovered that it was preferable to live without an oven than a washing machine, especially as there are next to no laundromats here, and usually no community laundry rooms in apartment buildings.
It actually suits me much better as I am laundromat phobic … the idea of sharing a washing machine with total strangers kind of grosses me out, not to mention how depressing these places usually are. Here I can wash stuff whenever I like and then hang it up on the roof to dry in the sun.
Spending more than ten years without an oven was no big deal. In fact I got so used to not having an oven that I barely use the one I have now (installed by previous tenants).
Update! Got a call from the store this morning … they can’t deliver the machine until Wednesday now. Aaargh!
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