{"id":505803,"date":"2026-10-23T21:58:15","date_gmt":"2026-10-23T21:58:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/505803\/"},"modified":"2026-10-23T21:58:15","modified_gmt":"2026-10-23T21:58:15","slug":"nbc-7-responds-helps-san-diego-daycare-replace-rusty-washer-nbc-7-san-diego","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/505803\/","title":{"rendered":"NBC 7 Responds helps San Diego daycare replace rusty washer \u2013 NBC 7 San Diego"},"content":{"rendered":"

A San Diego daycare that spent $1,400 on a new commercial washing machine said the appliance developed rust just months after purchase, but received a replacement after NBC 7 Responds stepped in to help.<\/p>\n

The Children’s Growing Center, which serves approximately 75 to 80 families, relies on its washing machine to keep up with the daily laundry needs of its young children. But when the new appliance began leaving rust stains on laundry, staff found themselves washing items at other locations while trying to resolve the problem with manufacturer General Electric.<\/p>\n

Washing woes<\/p>\n

Rhonda Valencia, assistant director of the Children’s Growing Center, said the daycare raised money through fundraisers and savings to purchase the commercial-grade washing machine in January. It was time to replace the old that served them well for about 10 years.<\/p>\n

However, about six months after installing the new one, a caregiver noticed something unusual inside the appliance.<\/p>\n

\"<\/p>\n

Rhonda Valencia says this is what the basket for the new commercial washing machine looked like after a few months.<\/p>\n

“She noticed that it was rusting on the inside, and we’re like, that’s really strange, because we’ve never had that happen before with any of our washing machines. And that’s when we reached out to GE,” said Valencia.<\/p>\n

GE sent a technician who replaced the washing machine’s basket, according to Valencia. Initially, the repair appeared to solve the problem, but the rust returned just four days later.<\/p>\n

The broken washing machine created a significant inconvenience for the center, where staff typically relies heavily on it every day.<\/p>\n

“We do probably about four to five loads a day. We wash sheets, we wash bibs, washcloths, their toys like loveys or stuffed animals. And it’s very necessary for us to have a good working washing machine”<\/p>\n

Frustration sets in<\/p>\n

Valencia explained the daycare struggled to get another technician to return and address the recurring issue.<\/p>\n

\"<\/p>\n

Rhonda Valencia from Children’s Growing Center in San Diego gestures to the stack of emails they sent to repair the washing machine.<\/p>\n

With dozens of children depending on clean bedding, bibs and other essentials, staff had to find alternative locations to do laundry.<\/p>\n

“We can’t afford to wait around and we put a lot of money into this washing machine,” said Valencia. She added that after weeks of frustration, a staff member suggested they look for outside help.<\/p>\n

“One of the custodians here said, you need to reach out to NBC response and see if they can help you,” she said.<\/p>\n

NBC 7 Responds steps in<\/p>\n

NBC 7 Responds\u00a0is fighting to recover your money. If you feel you\u2019ve been wronged or treated unfairly, reach out to our team. We want to help get you answers as well as resolutions. Fill out our\u00a0complaint form<\/a>.<\/p>\n

NBC 7 Responds contacted General Electric about the daycare’s experience. The company said it would look into the situation.<\/p>\n

Valencia said a member of GE’s executive team subsequently reached out to her to discuss a resolution.<\/p>\n

“She said, ‘What can we do for you?’ I said, ‘Well, at this point, I think this machine is a lemon. We don’t want the same machine. We don’t want the basket replaced again.’ I said, ‘We need a new machine,'” Valencia said as she described the phone conversation.<\/p>\n

This time, the daycare received a completely new washing machine. Valencia said it’s been working perfectly.<\/p>\n

“It’s been wonderful. No issues so far,” she said.<\/p>\n

The resolution was welcome news for the daycare, which prides itself on providing a nurturing environment for children and families.<\/p>\n

“We probably have about 75 to 80 families in our school, it\u2019s based on play, it\u2019s very loving and caring and very much like a family environment here,” said Valencia.<\/p>\n

\"<\/p>\n

The new washing machine has been working like a charm says the staff at Children’s Growing Center.<\/p>\n

What to know before buying an expensive appliance<\/p>\n

The experience highlights the importance of understanding warranty coverage when purchasing major appliances.<\/p>\n

Consumers should consider what warranties are offered by retailers and manufacturers before making a purchase. It’s important to determine whether the warranty covers parts, labor or both, and whether product registration is required to activate coverage.<\/p>\n

Shoppers should also ask about any conditions that could void a warranty.<\/p>\n

Some credit cards offer extended manufacturer warranties when the card is used to purchase an appliance, providing another potential layer of protection.<\/p>\n

For the Children’s Growing Center, the replacement washing machine means staff can once again focus on caring for the children instead of worrying about where to wash their laundry.<\/p>\n

This story was originally reported for broadcast by NBC San Diego. AI tools helped convert the story to a digital article, and an NBC San Diego journalist edited the article for publication.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A San Diego daycare that spent $1,400 on a new commercial washing machine said the appliance developed rust…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":505804,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[16098,74,76,75],"class_list":["post-505803","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-san-diego","tag-nbc-7-responds","tag-san-diego","tag-san-diego-headlines","tag-san-diego-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/505803","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=505803"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/505803\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/505804"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=505803"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=505803"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=505803"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}