The $500 J2 Mistake: A DIY Tale of Frustration, Tools & Humble Pie

By Daniel Birai

I’m not what you’d call mechanically inclined. You know the type: the Jeff-Bezos-in-a-garage archetype who thrives on gadgets, fixing things, and working with their hands. That’s… not me.

In fact, my 9-year-old is currently enrolled in a virtual engineering school. Every time I hear the dreaded “Daaaad!” something in me seizes up. But despite my lack of mechanical DNA—it happened.

Earlier this year, our front sprinklers quit working. I wasn’t about to be that neighbor with brown grass and a love letter (a.k.a. citation) from the HOA. The timing was perfect—by which I mean perfectly inconvenient. Parenting with a mortgage means juggling four kids, saving for college and retirement, paying for surprise expenses, and trying to keep the grass green. After calling the sprinkler guy and seeing the bill, I vowed to become more handy—enter the next chapter of my learning curve.

Then came the washing machine. One of our kids clogged the drain pump filter (aka the coin trap). The result? Our clothes wouldn’t spin-dry unless I manually ran an extra cycle. With six humans in the house, laundry doesn’t “pile up”—it multiplies like rabbits. I refused to return to the laundromat after last year’s 10-load extravaganza. So this time, I was going to fix it myself—with the help of ChatGPT, YouTube, and a dream.

Twelve screws, three disassembles, one very clogged filter:

I pulled out hair bands, candy wrappers, and sludge from the laundry abyss. Feeling victorious, I got ready to reassemble everything… until I hit a wall.

While removing the control panel earlier, I hadn’t properly disconnected a plastic connector. I figured I could gently wiggle it back in. Instead: SNAP. Silence. The J9 connector—a crucial part of the control board—was toast.

The handyman confirmed what I feared: it couldn’t be repaired. A new board was $395, plus his $85 service call. My confidence plummeted. Four days later, the replacement arrived, and I treated it like a sacred relic.

But my final boss was waiting: the outer O-ring. It needed a special tension tool. Back to YouTube. Tool found. Tool ordered. Tool arrived… wrong one. Because, of course, my washer had two O-rings. Back to Amazon. Meanwhile, the kids ran out of clothes. My older son only wears pants—no pants. My younger son only wears shorts—no shorts. Emergency Target run: $244.45.

Day seven. The right tool arrived. Everything clicked into place like a dream. The washer roared back to life. I had done it. But at what cost?

The Final Tally

• Replacement Control Board – $395.00

• Service Call – $85.00

• Tools (x2) – $112.76

• Emergency Clothes – $244.45 Total: $537.21

Life lesson + humble pie? Priceless.

Here’s what I realized somewhere between the snapped connector and my third Amazon order: having the right tool matters. But having the right guide matters even more.

I spent hours diagnosing a problem I barely understood, hoping YouTube and trial-and-error would be enough. If I’d had someone next to me—someone who had done it before, who could point out the pitfalls and shortcuts—I could’ve saved money, stress, and self-doubt.

That’s exactly what coaches and therapists do. They don’t fix things for you—they walk with you while you fix them. They help you see the real issue beneath the surface, hand you tools you didn’t know existed, and encourage you when you’re ready to give up.

Maybe there’s something in your life that keeps clogging up the works. Maybe you’re feeling stuck, frustrated, or one tool short of a breakthrough. You don’t have to go it alone.

If you’ve been thinking about working with a coach or therapist, consider this your sign. Whether it’s your confidence, your relationships, or just keeping life moving—you don’t have to waste $500, a trip to Target, and your sanity to learn that lesson.