Squeaky Wheels and all that

I don't know if any of you noticed the comment on my last post, but it was from Sears. We had a horrible week wrangling with their "service" center trying to get our water heater fixed. After 6 days without hot water, and complaining through every avenue Sears had to offer, and $150, it got fixed. I mentioned it in passing in my last post -- I was sick of dealing with it. Lo and behold, someone from Sears read it and commented. So, I talked to a very pleasant woman named Tammy; and the upshot was that they refunded our money AND sent us a $50 gift card. Now, having mentioned "Sears" by name in this post, they will probably read this one, too.

We learned two things from this experience:

1. Buy appliances from local merchants, with local service.
2. If you don't get satisfaction with service, complain in a public place (like a blog).

We're totally satisfied with the results we finally got from Sears, but definitely won't be buying any more appliances from them. My blood pressure can't take it.