What appliance could you not live without?

I don't think I could live without kitchen appliances; the refigerator, the microwave, the oven. I love to cook and to eat and I spend a lot of time in the kitchen. I don't really mind washing dishes or washing clothes by hand, even, so I think could go with out washing machines.

Right now I would have to say that that would be the microwave. My husband and I have been doing a lot of microwave cooking / heating up, and so we would definitely need one to heat / cook our food. A washer we could do without as we can get by with just washing two to three loads a week, and that wouldn't be so bad if I had to wash by hand or go to a laundry mat as you've mentioned.

Yes, washing machine is number one for me that I don't want to live without. People these days are quite busy with everything and washing manually is very time consuming. Of course one cannot live with one set of clothes every day so washing machine is a must to have one at home.

OMG! thats exactly what i was going to say. when i saw your headline on this the washer popped into my mind. when the kids were little, we could never afford one. was always either doing like you said, spending the whole day at the laundromat, with kids driving me crazy. or at our friends house, same problem, or my aunts house. today its my prized possesion because of so many years without. son and i both hate dirty clothes laying around. by the weekend, i have enough for a few loads and thats my weekend work

I would say my microwave. I am always trying to heat things up and it is just so much faster than the oven. I would say a very close second is the washing machine as well. We have three children and I also do usually a load a day. Lately though I feel I would get it all done so much quicker if I went to the laundromat. I could get all the laundry down in about 2 hours and no running up and down 2 flights of stairs all day long. LOL

I think it would be my microwave. i have a tendancy to wait to the last minute to make plans for dinner, then I have to thaw meat, or whatever is in the freezer. It is just so convenient to re-heat left overs. i understand about the washing machine, but i found, when my washer wasn't working, I brought all of my laundry to the laundromat, and it was done in just over an hour. The dryer's are more efficient, and the washers hold more than mine at home, so I ended doing less loads. I also went at a time when no one else was there so I could use multiple machines and get it done in a quarter of the time.

The refrigerator. YOu can always wash dishes, and clothes by hand if you have to - been there done that! You can cook on a grill, fireplace, etc. again been there done that. But the refrigerator, you need to keep the food cold! Otherwise you would be constantly running to the store or trying to find other old fashion ways to preserve the food!

I agree with you...I can wash dishes by hand, so I don't need a dishwasher. Actually, we have one, and I never use it. I prefer washing them by hand. My wife uses it, but it is too aggravating for me, not to mention my way uses less water and virtually no electricity except for what little power the hot-water heater uses to replace the hot water I use. I can cook in the yard if I have to. I am good on the grill, and I can also cook over an open fire if necessary, so I don't really need a stove. I can hang clothes out to dry, so I don't really need a dryer. However, I do not really relish the thought of washing dirty laundry by hand, so I would probably choose the washer as well under normal circumstances. Although, notice that I said NORMAL circumstances. If I truly only had to choose ONE appliance to have in the house, which is a situation I have been in before after a hurricane when we had no electricity and the generator we had was only big enough to run one thing so we had to chose ONE thing, I would chose the refrigerator every time. I noticed that you didn't mention the refrigerator in your post, so I assume you have never endured the aftermath of a hurricane, when the power can be out for weeks, and the only source of electricity you have is a generator. I remember the weeks after Hurricane Ivan here in Pensacola, and we were without power in our area for two weeks. We kept the refrigerator going all the time, and the generator had enough left to power a couple of lamps, but that was all we had besides flashlights and candles. We cooked on the grill (there was PLENTY of wood lying around to cook on), and we washed clothes and everything by hand. We took COLD showers. We did have a gas stove in my mother-in-laws house, but we didn't have much gas in the tank for it, so we had to use it as little as possible, which we usually only did to boil water, since we were under a boil-water advisory.

I would have to agree with you dorann besides the obvious appliances like fridge and stove I would say that I need a washing machine...I have two children that dirty a ton of clothes and then with my husband working in the food business he needs clean clothes so we do laundry atleast 3 days a week we try to do a load in the middle of the week(Wednesday) and then on Fridays I have the kids bring down their baskets which then usually leaves us doing anywhere from 2-5 loads throughout the weekend. I couldnt afford to go to the laundromat with as much laundry as we have to do throughout the week...

Electric fan. We have three (3) units at home, and they are all running 24/7. My two (2) kids would be very upset if they don't feel the cool breeze and would sweat a lot in its absence. So, to keep it rotating unlimitedly we have bought a generator set in order for it (electric fan) to work 24/7.

Hmmm, yes to washing machine but living in a tropical country where humidity is so high and being a certified asthmatic, i would go for an airconditioning unit. it cools my day and my being temperament (wink). i could stay the whole day inside an airconed room and read, read, read, and read. if an aircondition unit has not been invented, i probably have snuggled inside the freezer of a regrigerator. lol!

I have been moving to an empty house 1 year back. That time I had nothing in my rented house and it make me realise the thing I just couldn't live without. 1. Stove or cooker - I need something to cook my food and boil my drinking water. 2. Refrigerator - I cannot go to market everyday to buy my groceries. I need a refrigerator to keep my uncooked food. 3. Washing machine - I just cannot stands to wash my laundaries even for half an hour. I easily get back ache. Other than that, I will be fine.

I can't choose because i need all the appliances that we have. But I guess the appliances that would make you lazy would be okay to live without like the washing machine, vacuum cleaner, etc.

One major appliance that i could not live without is probably my computer, because i probably use the computer in everyday life and if i didn't the computer for one day i dont know what i would have done God bless who ever invented the computer and the internet

hi droannmwin well sinceI am here at Gold Crest my computer and my monitor and my led flashlight are the most important applinces in my life right now.Flashlight for trips to the bathroom at night as my roomie has the windows with the blinds by her bed and makes our room totally black at night. since I do not want to trip over her rocking chair and her walker in the night. I fear a fall so much as three years ago I tripped and fell and landed hard on my left shoulder on t he sidewalk. the bones were shattered so badly that I had to have an artificial shoulder joint put in surgically. If I fell now and hit that shoulder it might cause the joint to separate and necessitate more surgery and another imiatation shoulder joint. That I do not want to deal with again.

The refrigerator/freezer - I'd have to be grocery shopping every day, and not be able to keep perishable stuff.

Oh yes,that would be one of my choice too. With all the other house chores and without the washing machine,oh my,i just can't imagine the mess. Spending many hours washing with hands,and,not to mention the hard labor Not with washing machine... have a good day always

Yes, I agree with your statement. I don't think I would be able to live without a washing machine. It just is probably the most handy appliance to have around. Just load up the clothes and put in the detergent and start it up. I don't think I could live like the people from a long time ago washing all their clothes by hand in a bucket.

hello dorannmwin, I would say the TV of all things. It is so nice to come and listen and watch old fashion black and white movie after a long day or sports etc... I would miss that the most. I think the next one would be washer and dryer but I do have clothes line in the basement as well as out doors. Thanks and have a great day! Sincelrey Unique16

For me, it's the vacuum cleaner (I'm surprised nobody mentioned it before :) ) I've lived without a washing machine for years (true, at that time I was living alone, and now there are three of us, but still, I think I can manage, with a bit of organization). I understand your point of view, though, I can see quite clearly how having a child would make this the first priority. During winter time I generally unplug the refrigerator anyway, it's just a waste of energy when it's below freezing outside (ok, during summer time, I guess the refrigerator would become number one on my list). My microwave is mostly for popcorn :) But having to clean the whole house with a traditional broom... perish the thought! I vacuum once every two days and there's still dust and cat hair everywhere, without it, I think we'd be completely overtaken by dust.