Chapter 01Records · System
Appliance and warranty records: every machine, its numbers and the papers that go with it
Walk the house and give every appliance a number. Photograph each rating label and copy the model and serial number from the photo. Keep the receipt with the warranty: the FTC says the receipt proves when you bought the product and that you are its first owner. Write down the warranty length, who to contact and whether you sent a registration card. Then let the log work out each end date and keep the printout with the manuals.
Source: FTC, Warranties, checked October 9, 2026; Whirlpool, model and serial locations, checked October 7, 2026.
- Model and serial, both from the same label2 numbers Whirlpool, model and serial locations, October 7, 2026
- Places a GE range can carry its tag (GE)7 GE Appliances, range model tag, October 7, 2026
- Our ends soon window in the log, a reminder and not a warranty rule60 days Counted from this page
Do it, skip it or get help
Keep the records yourself
You need a phone, a flashlight and the receipts you can find. The first pass through the kitchen, laundry and garage takes the longest; after that each new appliance takes one row.
Skip the columns you can't fill
No receipt for the old dryer? Log its model and serial number anyway and leave the warranty columns empty. If the landlord owns an appliance, list it on its own page without the purchase columns.
Get help for repairs and coverage questions
This system keeps records. A question about what a warranty covers goes to the company named on it, and the FTC says to check whether that means the maker or the store that sold it. Repairs, gas appliances and anything wired in go to the maker's service line or a licensed technician.
Source: FTC, Warranties, checked October 9, 2026.
The steps, in order
Walk the house and number every appliance
Go room by room: kitchen, laundry, garage, basement and any utility closet. Give each machine a number and write what it is and where it stands. Count the small fixed ones too, such as the disposal and the range hood.
Have ready: The log sheet and a pencil
Find the label and photograph it
The label sits in a different place on each kind of machine. Whirlpool puts it on the rim of the door opening on a front-load washer, on the left side of the tub frame on a built-in dishwasher, and inside the fresh-food side of a refrigerator. GE lists 7 places a range tag can be. Photograph the whole label in good light.
Have ready: A phone and a flashlight
Source: Whirlpool, model and serial locations, checked October 7, 2026; GE Appliances, range model tag, checked October 7, 2026.
Copy both numbers from the photo
The model number names the product line; the serial number belongs to your one machine. Copy both from the photo at a table, letters and dashes included. GE says its dishwasher model numbers begin and end with a letter, so a character at either end is a letter, not a zero.
Have ready: The label photos
Source: GE Appliances, dishwasher model tag, checked October 7, 2026.
Put the receipt with the warranty
The FTC says to save the receipt with the warranty, since the receipt proves the purchase date and that you are the first owner. For anything bought online, print or download a copy of the warranty. Clip the two together and write the appliance number on both.
Have ready: Receipts, order emails and warranty cards
Source: FTC, Warranties, checked October 9, 2026.
Write down what the warranty card says
Copy the length, the start date it names, whether labor or shipping is on you, and who to contact: the maker or the store. These are the questions the FTC lists. Copy the card's words; don't fill gaps with guesses.
Have ready: The warranty card or the manual's warranty page
Source: FTC, Warranties, checked October 9, 2026.
Send the registration card, then note it
The FTC says some warranties need a registration card returned before they cover a repair. Send it, or register on the maker's site, and write the date and the method in that row.
Have ready: The card or the maker's registration page
Source: FTC, Warranties, checked October 9, 2026.
Find the missing manuals by model number
Most makers let you download the manual by model number. GE's literature page, for one, has owner's manuals, installation papers and energy guides. Save each PDF under the appliance number, or print the pages you use.
Have ready: The model numbers from step 3
Source: GE Appliances, manuals by model number, checked October 7, 2026.
Let the log work out the end dates
Type each purchase date and warranty length into the appliance log. It adds the months, sorts the list by end date and flags anything ending inside our 60-day window. Print it and file it in front of the receipts.
Have ready: The filled sheet
Add a line at every visit, review once a year
After any service visit, write the date, who came, what was done and what was replaced. Once a year, add new purchases, move anything sold or scrapped to the back and print a fresh log.
Have ready: The service visit page
Print the working copy
One page, black and white, US Letter. Tick the boxes and write the dates in.
- Every room walked, each appliance numbered
- Each rating label found and photographed
- Model and serial copied from the photo
- Receipt or order email clipped to the warranty
- Warranty length and start date written down
What goes wrong
One wrong character in the serial
Read a zero as the letter O, or a one as an I, and the number won't match the maker's records. Copying from a photo instead of kneeling at the machine cuts most of these.
The receipt went in the recycling
Without it you can't show when you bought the machine or that you are the first owner, the two things the FTC says the receipt proves. Order emails count; save them to one folder.
Source: FTC, Warranties, checked October 9, 2026.
The registration card is still in the box
Where a warranty asks for a returned card first, the FTC says you may need it before the warranty covers service. A dated note in the row shows it was done.
Source: FTC, Warranties, checked October 9, 2026.
The end date counts from the wrong day
Some cards count from delivery or installation rather than the sale. Use the date the card names, and write which one it is in the row.
The extended plan gets mixed up with the warranty
The FTC treats a service contract as a separate thing from a warranty. Give a store plan its own line with its provider, plan number and end date, so you call the right company.
Source: FTC, Warranties, checked October 9, 2026.
When the steps change
Renting
Log the machines you own, such as a washer you brought or a window air conditioner, with all the columns. List the landlord's appliances on a separate page with model, serial and the dates you reported any problem.
Just moved in, no paperwork
Log every machine by its label first. Download the manuals by model number, leave the warranty columns blank and mark the row no paperwork. A guessed purchase date can make an expired warranty look current.
A new purchase arriving
Start the row on delivery day: photograph the label before the machine is pushed into place, keep the order email and the warranty together, and send the registration that week.
Source: FTC, Warranties, checked October 9, 2026.
Selling or moving out
Print the finished log and leave a copy with the manuals for the next household. Keep your own copy and the receipts for anything you take with you.
Tips and tricks
- Tip 01
Photograph the label before it's pushed in
On a new fridge or dishwasher, the label is easiest to reach on delivery day. Take the photo before the machine slides into its gap.
- Tip 02
Write the number on everything
Put the appliance number from step one on the receipt, the warranty, the manual and the photo file name. Anything that turns up loose can go straight back to its row.
- Tip 03
One folder, two copies
Keep paper receipts in a pocket folder behind the printed log, and the order emails and manual PDFs in one folder named for the house. If one copy goes missing, the other is still there.
- Tip 04
Tape the numbers inside a cabinet
A small card with each machine's model and serial number, taped inside the cabinet nearest it, saves pulling the machine out when a service line asks.
- Tip 05
Review with the fall checklist
If you already run the fall home checklist, add the yearly log review to the same weekend. New purchases from the year go in, and the next warranty to end shows at the top.
What we would do
Number the machines first, then chase the paper
Spend the first session on labels only: number every appliance, photograph each label and fill the model and serial columns. Chase receipts and warranty cards the next weekend, send any missing registration cards, then print the log and file it in front of the paperwork. After that, a new appliance takes one row on the day it arrives.
The tools and guides in this system
Chapter 01Appliance and warranty logRecord each appliance's model number, serial number and purchase date, see which warranty ends next, and print a one-page log for the drawer.Open the tool
Chapter 01Home inventory sheetList what you own room by room, with what you paid, serial numbers and which items have a photo. See each room's total and print a one-page sheet.Open the tool
Know-howWhere to find the model and serial number on each applianceWhere the label usually sits on a fridge, dishwasher, range, microwave, washer and dryer, how to tell the two numbers apart, and how to copy them right.Read the guide
Practical noteNew home, no paperwork: build an appliance list in one afternoonMoved in and the manuals are gone? Walk the house in order, photograph every label, find each manual by model number and end with one printed list.Read the guide- Chapter 01All records toolsPrintable home records with a calculator behind each one: appliance and warranty log, HVAC filter sizes and change dates.Open the chapter
Questions
How do I keep track of appliance warranties?
Keep one row per appliance with the model number, serial number, purchase date, warranty length and who to contact. Keep the receipt clipped to the warranty, as the FTC suggests, and let a log sort the rows by end date so the next one to end sits at the top.
Source: FTC, Warranties, checked October 9, 2026.
Do I need to keep the receipt if I registered the product?
Keep it. The FTC says the receipt proves the date you bought the product and that you are its first owner. Registration is a separate step that some warranties ask for.
Source: FTC, Warranties, checked October 9, 2026.
Where is the model and serial number on my appliance?
On the rating label, which moves around by type and maker. Whirlpool lists the rim of the door opening for front-load washers and dryers, the left side of the tub frame for built-in dishwashers, and inside the fresh-food side for refrigerators. GE lists 7 possible spots on its ranges. The manual names the spot for your machine.
Source: Whirlpool, model and serial locations, checked October 7, 2026; GE Appliances, range model tag, checked October 7, 2026.
What should an appliance record include?
The appliance and its room, brand, model and serial number, purchase date and store, warranty length and who to contact, whether you registered, any extended plan on its own line, where the manual is, and each service visit with what was done.
What if I have no paperwork for an appliance?
Log it by its label anyway. Download the manual by model number from the maker's site, leave the purchase and warranty columns empty and note no paperwork rather than guessing a date.
Source: GE Appliances, manuals by model number, checked October 7, 2026.
The primary source
Warranties, Federal Trade Commission (FTC), Consumer Advice. Checked October 9, 2026.
The steps on this page follow this source. Other figures cite their own source where they appear.
Other sources on this page
- Where is my Model and Serial Number Located?, Whirlpool Corporation, Product Help. Checked October 7, 2026.
- Find Your Range Model & Serial Numbers, GE Appliances. Checked October 7, 2026.
- Find Your Dishwasher Model & Serial Numbers, GE Appliances. Checked October 7, 2026.
- Owner's Manual & Installation Instructions, GE Appliances. Checked October 7, 2026.
See every source on the site on the sources page. Spotted an error? Tell us.