The problem: white goods (e.g. washing machines) are going further into the enshitification direction. The Internet of Shit is becoming unavoidable for new appliances. Your washing machine will likely depend on Internet and connect to a server that tracks your usage.
For the past 20 years or so they already have kill switches where they refuse to function if an error occurs. The manufacturer conceals from consumers the procedure to reverse the kill switch. So even if you can fix your machine, you can’t.
The fix:
Stop supporting the motherfuckers. When your machine breaks down, try to fix it. If you fix it mechanically but the kill switch blocks you from starting it again, don’t repeat the same stupid decision to buy a new one.
Instead, wash your clothes by hand until you find a dumped machine. Then fix the dumped machine, if you can. If it has a spinning drum, give it a hand spin and make sure the ball bearings are good before going further because they have made those irreplacable in recent decades. Repeat as needed.
If you’re just starting out and have not had a machine previously, don’t make the stupid decision of buying a machine that is made to exploit you. Look for a dumped one and own that shit.
Hand-washing isn’t as bad as bending over and and helping the predatory motherfuckers eat your soul. If you want easier hand-washing, buy a washboard from Ohio (USA); those probably never break down. Or this repairable machine from India \url{www.thewashingmachineproject.org}.
“But my addiction to convenience is too overbearing - I must buy”
Try this before you do that:
- Find the model you would normally buy.
- Write to the manufacturer and falsely state that you have that model and ask for the service manual (not the user manual), and ask for the software reset procedure. Or call them but be ready to give them a fake story of breakage to legitimise your request.
- Watch as the mfr ignores you, evades, or tells you to fuck off and buy a new machine.
You will not get the svc manual from the manufacturer. Still feel like buying it after knowing how they treat customers after they think you bought their product?
That’s exactly why they get away with it. People’s intolerance for inconvenience is directly proportional to the level of enshitification suppliers can get away with.
I have been washing my clothes by hand for a year now to ensure that I am on the right side of the curve. I wash my much clothes with much less frequency now and do more airing out.
We don’t live in the kind of reality where your proposal works. The jurisdiction where legislation is the most viable on the world stage would be Europe. Europe decided against it. “Ecodesign” and right to repair are a shit-show after a 10-year attempt. Have a look at this thread:
https://discuss.tchncs.de/post/46422830
It’s just like the climate problem. You cannot sit back and expect the state to fix it. Hence the existence of Extinction Rebellion. The problem needs both state action and people taking personal responsibility.
Europe has gone as far as to make consumers immune to prosecution for reverse engineering their own property (IIRC). But that’s as far as they go. So effectively, the Polish train hacking approach is allowed but Europe is helpless as far as obligating suppliers to share repair info with amateur repairers (only pros).
People outside of Europe are fucked even more.