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This reminds me of the other day when my power went out in the middle of washing laundry. I was going to take out the wash to put it on the line to dry but the

• userbinator 6y ago
  You say "lid", but is it a side-load washer? Those have a valid reason to not open if the power is cut --- because they'll empty their contents all over the floor. I have an old top-loader, it doesn't care at all (or know) whether the lid is closed.
  • WalterBright 6y ago
    It still should have a manual way to open it.
  • mssundaram 6y ago
    It is a top loader. I don't understand why it has a lock. It has been very annoying actually, because I am used to letting the washer fill up while loading it.
    • megablast 6y ago
      So you don’t hurt yourself by putting your arm in while it’s spinning.
      • roywiggins 6y ago
        Seems easier and cheaper just not to put your arm in there while it's spinning. Toploaders have existed for actual decades without solenoids locking them closed, is this actually a problem or just some manufacturer putting in a solenoid because their side loaders have one?
        • oh_sigh 6y ago
          Seems easier and cheaper to not put airbags in a car and just not get into accidents.
          • roywiggins 6y ago
            What's the body count on toploaders?
            • nobodywasishere 6y ago
              My biggest concern would be children doing what they're not supposed to.
              • freedomben 6y ago
                When she was five years old (late 80s/early 90s timeframe), my sister propped the lid up on the washing machine, and jammed a toothbrush into the safety switch so it would run thinking the lid was down. She thought it looked really cool and pretty. At one point she decided the vibrating was cool too. She got up and danced on the top of the washer. Being that soap gets slipper when wet, and kids don't always have the grace of a gymnast, she slipped and landed feet first in the washing machine. It's not every day the emergency room get to body cast a five year old kid with multiple femur fractures. The grotesqueness aside, I do loath the pendulum swing we have toward safety these days. It's so bad now that it makes things worse in a lot of cases. I have to dick with my phone for navigation (which requires a lot more looking away and danger) because my car won't let press a couple of buttons while it is moving in the name of "safety."
              • CamperBob2 6y ago
                My biggest concern would be living in a world where all product design decisions are made with children in mind.
                • TeMPOraL 6y ago
                  You already live in this world, though. Or at least something close to it. It's actually quite astonishing how, despite the growing chemical and mechanical complexity of household items, most household things are actually quite safe to have around children. It would be quite easy for these things to be actively dangerous, but fortunately a combination of thoughtful design, fear of lawsuits and regulation works to make them safe. (Also if we're talking in context of white goods, you can't ignore children in the design process, as a good chunk of the target market has them, and the play around where such appliances are deployed.)
      • cesarb 6y ago
        Every top loader I've seen solves this with an interlock: opening the lid stops the motor and brakes the drum. Closing the lid resumes from where it stopped.
    • spicybright 6y ago
      Yeah, I do the same too. Like if I find a loose sock I can throw it in during the first cycles. I don't think top loading washers make enough of a splash to even warrant a lock, I may be wrong though.
    • dunnevens 6y ago
      It's a safety mechanism mainly intended for children. I think it's been around for a while. The washer Mom bought 10 or 15 years ago had it. I think there's an unlock button on hers, but I can't remember. I do know it's incredibly annoying.
      • toomanybeersies 6y ago
        Wouldn't it just as likely be a safety hazard, with children getting locked inside the washing machine?
        • OJFord 6y ago
          Only if the lid closed and someone (else, outside) turns it on. Possible... But... Seems to me it's more likely you just run them over.
    • war1025 6y ago
      If it's anything like mine the latch for the lock looks like it could be bypassed pretty easily with a hacksaw.
      • mssundaram 6y ago
        Oh yeah I agree, but it wasn't /that/ urgent that I needed to get my laundry out that I'd ruin the latch :D
    • NoPicklez 6y ago
      Some have locks to prevent people (incl. kids) from putting their arm in during the wash cycle.
  • electro_blah 6y ago
    I'm pretty sure a real Engineer is able to design one that doesn't do that.
  • cstrat 6y ago
    It could also be a safety mechanism if the contents is too hot?
  • marcan_42 6y ago
    Meanwhile my Japanese side-loader sits at a slight angle and never fills up enough to go above the door line, so you're allowed to interrupt the cycle at any point and the door will unlock (after the drum has stopped spinning). When I first saw it I realized how poorly designed all the side loaders I saw while growing up in Europe were in comparison (nevermind not being able to throw something you forgot in after starting, also the risk of a problem leading to water not draining properly, and a flooded room when you go take the laundry out... been there). I do wonder what it does if I pull the plug with the door locked though. I should try it.
    • Izkata 6y ago
      > also the risk of a problem leading to water not draining properly, and a flooded room when you go take the laundry out... My condo has two front-load washers, and I once saw someone start one up, the door lock, and the seal break - so it was spraying water everywhere. These don't have any way to interrupt them, so we got a maintenance guy to unplug it - but the door still didn't unlock, even after plugging it back in. The maintenance guy ended up jerking it open hard (might have broken the lock, don't remember), so the other resident could get their clothes. I only ever use our top-load washers, which don't have any lock on them.
  • SilasX 6y ago
    Yeah that was my thinking too, but it should still have a manual override of some kind, if for no other reason than the possibility of a child getting stuck inside. One of many stories: https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/asia/child-rescued-after-being-trapped-in-washing-machine-at-johor-11565252 https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/asia/child-rescued-afte...
• Chris_Newton 6y ago
  Some things are just bad design. Earlier this year, after a few months of lockdown, I discovered that even car batteries that were in reasonable condition can go completely flat without much warning if the vehicle is only being driven rarely over an extended period. I was aware of the possibility of the small power draw draining the battery over time, but hadn’t expected such a strong effect so soon given I was still driving the car a few miles a couple of times a week. That was annoying enough, but then it turned out that the alarm system in my car has a backup battery to continue powering the siren in the event that the main battery is disconnected, presumably someone’s idea to stop a thief from silencing the alarm quickly. That backup battery can run the siren for several hours, obviously without reference to where the vehicle is or what time of day or night it is. Moreover, if you’re unlucky, when you try to unlock the car the failing main battery can have just enough juice in it to trigger whatever condition makes the alarm system think the main battery is being disconnected but without actually disarming the alarm system, thus setting off the siren. Which you can’t stop without power from the main battery. Which has just run out.
  • ehnto 6y ago
    It's usually a voltage drop detection that sets of the alarm. If your battery is going flat, or is tired, it can drop below the voltage threshold set in the alarm it off. You may still be able to start the car. You may have a bad alternator though, if it's not the battery. It really depends on the car configuration, but it is surprising that even that short trip doesn't recoup the cost of starting. You can get alternators and batteries that are better at your use case too, work site utes and shuttles often get used like you describe.
    • Chris_Newton 6y ago
      Yes, the voltage drop was the likely trigger for actually setting the alarm off. When I had the battery replaced, they did a quick test on the old one, and it was performing very far below normal. With the wisdom of hindsight, I should probably have left a trickle charger on the old battery now and then while it wasn’t getting much long distance driving to keep it charged up. I was just a bit surprised that there was so little warning given the dire state it had apparently reached before the alarm incident. But of course, the real problem here isn’t that a battery with unusually low usage drained faster than I incorrectly anticipated, it’s that my own car had an alarm going off that I had no reliable way to stop even standing next to it with the key in my hand. Clearly this should never be possible. In fact, I read that a lot of vehicle security systems do have some sort of emergency override for this sort of situation, but I found nothing relevant in the documentation that came with the car, and unfortunately the various suggestions I found online for similar models didn’t work on mine.
• toomanybeersies 6y ago
  My car [Ford Falcon BA] battery completely died the other day (was reading 8 Volts) and I couldn't even unlock my car to pop the bonnet, since the locks are solenoid actuated. It also only has one external lock, on the driver's door. I ended up having to wedge the door and open it from the inside with a coat hanger. Apparently the only other way to open the car when the battery has completely failed (as opposed to having charge, but not enough to turn the starter) is to connect jumper cables to the positive lead on the starter motor and the chassis. Of course my jack was in the boot, which I couldn't open since the battery was dead! I've now attached a wire to the bonnet latch, so if this happens again I can just pull the wire to open it.
  • jackvalentine 6y ago
    I've got to ask - why weren't you able to use the key in the driver's door?
    • toomanybeersies 6y ago
      The lock itself is actuated by a solenoid, so when the car has no battery (or it's turned into a paperweight) the doors won't unlock. The key will turn, but that's it.
      • jackvalentine 6y ago
        Hah, what an amazingly dumb design. Ford Aus certainly came up with some weird ones.
  • abenga 6y ago
    Most cars seem to have a subtle trick to open doors when the battery is dead. Mine (an E90 3-series) has a physical key, but you have to know to pull the lock on the driver's door then turn the key to open it. Turning the key does nothing. Turning the key then pulling the lock does nothing. I found this information buried in the comments of a YouTube video that had elaborate instructions to get underneath the car, and look for some wires in the engine bay to pull so as to pop the bonnet.
• satyrnein 6y ago
  You surrendered your laundry autonomy to a power company, instead of running your own generator?
  • mssundaram 6y ago
    Well yes, a generator is what I've been looking into now - as well as a 12v solar setup
• raxxorrax 6y ago
  I think most washing machines need power to release the lock. Water damage would be very common otherwise. Without power the machine cannot pump out the remaining water. At least that makes sense for front-loaders. Why this is also commonly implemented for top-loaders I cannot say. There is probably a mechanical switch somewhere but it might not be documented.
  • Xylakant 6y ago
    All front loading wash machines I have owned had a small hatch at lower part of the front, hiding a sieve. That can be used to release the water and the emergency door release is usually in there, too.