Sometimes that new appliance falls apart in just a few years, and sometimes you get more than your money's worth out of the purchase. Take that Whirlpool washing machine in your laundry room: it could be so old you can't remember when you brought it home. Maybe you can't put an age on it because you inherited it from Grandma or because you picked it up at a garage sale. If you're deciding whether to replace or repair, you need to know for your insurance or you're just curious; Whirlpool gives you a way to find out when it was built.
Step 1
Locate your machine's nameplate, which contains both the model and serial numbers. On top-loading Whirlpool washing machines, open the lid and look for the tag at the top rear of the tub. On front-loading washers, the tag is usually inside the door or near the bottom of the left or right side of the cabinet. If the tag is not in one of those places, pull the machine away from the wall and check the rear.
Step 2
Record the serial number with a pencil and paper or take a photograph. Be sure to record the serial number, not the model number.
Step 3
Decode the serial number at an online source like Appliance Cafe or Appliance 411 (links in Resources). Whirlpool serial numbers include a code in the second character for the year the product was built. Before 1990, the character was a number; from 1990 to 2010 the character was a letter. The number sequence started over in 2011.