By the Numbers: How long will your appliances last? It depends

35 & 6

Average life expectancy in years of a thermostat and a compactor, respectively the longest-lived and shortest-lived appliances in the American home, according to the National Association of Home Builders/Bank of America Home Equity Study of Life Expectancy of Home Components. (See the table below for an alphabetized list of appliances.)

Keep in mind that the life expectancy listed here is just a general guideline—depending on the model and brand of appliances you buy and how well you treat them, your gear might last longer or might need replacing even sooner.

So after you figure out where to buy appliances, be sure to check the brand-repair histories (available to subscribers) of the gear on our Appliances hub.

Appliance	Life Expectancy (years)
Air Conditioners (room)	10
Air Conditioners (central)	15
Boilers (electric)	13
Boilers (gas)	21
Compactors	6
Dehumidifiers	8
Dishwashers	9
Dryers (electric and gas)	13
Freezers	11
Furnaces (electric warm air)	15
Furnaces (gas warm air)	18
Furnaces (oil warm air)	20
Garbage Disposers	12
Humidifiers	8
Microwave Ovens	9
Range/Oven Hoods	14
Ranges (electric)	13
Ranges (gas)	15
Refrigerators	13
Refrigerators (compact)	9
Thermostats	35
Washing Machines	10
Water Heaters (electric)	11
Water Heaters (gas)	10
Water Heaters (tankless)	20+

Comments

[Randall]

These estimates are ridiculous. The items listed will last much longer than the times listed here.
This must be a plug or endorsement for appliance insurance which in of itself is a rip-off.

[Charles Selkird]

We've lived in our current house for almost 17 years with pretty normal appliances. Not on of the appliances we own on the above list lasted *less* than the life expectancy. All except 2 have lasted quite a bit longer than the table claims is "expected". (The two in question--hot water heater and garbage disposer--lasted about the same as the table would indicate). Statistically, that's pretty unlikely. I have to say I'm a bit dubious about this table.

[dale forrest]

We bought Bosch appliances ( dishwasher, washer and dryer ) in early 2001. We have had all three go out the 2nd half of 2008. We had each one repaired. They do not have qualified technical support in Tulsa, OK. We contacted corporate but they were of no assistance. The service tech that came out multiple times was just replacing parts and not troubleshooting or diagnosing the problems. We will never buy the Bosch brand ever again and will let everyone we know our experience with the brand / product / company.

[Harry A. Dittman]

I am trying to find information on water softeners to help me choose a reliable replacement. I find nothing helpful in your reviews on water softeners--WHY???

[Jacques]

Most of these numbers seem too low. For example, most of my friend's and acquaintance's fridges have worked for 20 years or more. Are changes for aesthetic reasons included in these averages?

[Mr. Allen]

Those numbers are not surprising in the least. I work in the appliance industry, and field many calls for broken appliances. A compactor lasting only 6 years? Pretty common. Sure, some of you are lucky and never have problems. Good for you! Not everyone is so lucky. I see washers with tubs that fall out after three years. I see refrigerators with blown compressors in two. While some brands are more trouble prone than others, I see these kinds of problems in every brand. The problems I see are frequent enough for me to feel these numbers are correct.

Please keep in mind how averages work. Some will last longer, and some will not. If YOU had great luck, that means someone else had terrible luck. That's how averages come about.

[Marcus]

Thank you for gathering all of these into one place. However, I tend to agree with many of the above comments. Times do seem a little short, but I suppose we can revert to the good-old-saying: "They don't make 'em like they used to!"

[Paul Michaelis]

I find that all my appliances last significantly longer than estimated. For instance my central air was 35 years old, never serviced and finally replaced this year because of inefficiency. The Maytag washer & drier are on their 12th year, the Maytag gas stove top and frig are both in their 15th year and the Weil-McClein gas hot air furnace, high efficiency, is in it's 20th year. The only device that fell short was the humidifier because of our extremely hard water supply. Perhaps you should describe the life expectancy in terms of average life with some form of statistical distribution such as normal or Poisson.

[Eddie]

Randall calm down this is the true life expectancy in these times, sure older appliances may have lasted longer, but those were the old days, you have to jump into the 21st century where nothing lasts like it used to

[Kyle Frank]

I agree with Mr. Allen, I too work in the appliance industry and have seen appliances get replaced many times under these averages. And I would tend to think that the people that have memberships to Consumer Reports are savvy buyers and would therefore get better quality appliances that last longer. There are brands that used to be high quality that I no longer recommend and brands that used to have poor customer service that now have some of the best service.

[TerriLee]

We are researching gas boilers for our gas hot water baseboard system. Brands include Munchkin, Lochinvar Knight, and Lennox.
All are at least 90% efficient.

We are also researching the water heater-Weil McLain vs SuperStore.

It is difficult finding research. Some plumbers are afraid of the Munchkin due to their past problems.

Comments?

[TeresaL]

We've had appliances that lasted way beyond the life expectancy, and some that were under. We had to replace our central air conditioner after 8 years; our freezer was still running fine after 20 years when we replaced it for a frost free model. Like Mr. Allen said - the times shown are averages.

[charlie]

I am looking for information on 2 gas fired hot water boilers as to reliability / maintenance issues: Munchkin H199M and Weil-Mclain Ultra 230.....any comments ??

[Peg T.]

I'm thinking of making use of the Energy Tax Credit with purchase of a high effic. gas boiler (110,000 btu) and a water storage tank to replace my current old units. The specs are very technical and I would like to get additional opinions (my plumber is talking up Weil McLain and Burnham) before using cost and warranty lenght as primary considerations. Thanks.

[cdaler]

My parents bought a new HE Kenmore washer/dryer combo unit and didn't get the long term warranty, the washer died about 6 months after the 1 year warranty. The parts and labor to fix it were about 75% of new. So they were definetly on the short life side of the bell curve

[linda]

Did complete kitchen remodel 12 years ago. Just had first appliance, the microwave go out. So it is pretty much on schedule at 12 years but it was used a lot. By the way, my Kenmore washer and dryer are are 24 years old probably because I am the only family member did the wash and did not overload them.

[cjnuttall]

I agree with Harry Dittman. My softener, a Peerless from kalamazoo, MI, is acting up. About 14 years old. Has it lived out its usefulness????? What on earth to buy next?!!!1

[nan-c]

My dad has a freezer purchased in 1954 which is still running today (2010). THOSE were the "green old days".