Add the appliances in your house once. See at a glance which are healthy, which are mid-life, and which are running on borrowed time — so the next failure isn't a surprise expense.
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Published averages for mainstream brands. Premium built-ins typically run about a third longer; builder-grade units run shorter.
Life expectancy figures based on NAHB and industry life-expectancy studies. Real-world results vary widely with usage, water hardness and maintenance.
Dust and pet hair on the coils force the compressor to run continuously and still lose ground. It is the number one cause of premature compressor failure and it takes ten minutes with a vacuum brush. Pull the base grille or slide the unit out, unplug first.
The screen catches maybe half of it. A restricted duct is what blows thermal fuses, kills heating elements, and starts the several thousand dryer fires the US sees every year. Once a year, disconnect the duct and clear the full run to the outside flap.
Nearly every dishwasher built in the last fifteen years has a removable cylinder filter under the lower spray arm. Most owners have never taken it out. A clogged filter is behind the large majority of "it stopped cleaning" and "it won't drain" calls.
Self-clean runs at roughly 900°F and routinely takes out the thermal fuse and the electronic control board together — a $250–$750 repair on an oven that was working fine an hour earlier. Use a scraper and a cleaner instead. This is the single most expensive habit in most kitchens.
On front-loaders, the rubber boot traps water, grit and detergent residue. That's what tears the seal and what makes the machine smell. Thirty seconds with a towel and leaving the door ajar buys years.
We'll tell you whether to nurse it along or start shopping — and we'll tell you for free over the phone if it's obvious.