THERMOPOLIS — When Martin Andreen was born, washing machines sold for $40 and were a coveted luxury for housewives across Wyoming.
If the washer broke, it was common to call a repairman who made house calls even to the most remote ranches. Older machines were designed to be repaired, not replaced in those days.
Today, 87-year-old Andreen continues that tradition as he tinkers in his workroom, a throwback who’s earned the nickname Mr. Fix-It for decades of rebuilding and repairing appliances in and around Thermopolis.
He saves people time and money in an age when it is often more economical to just buy a new appliance rather than fix it.
“I tell folks that they can’t afford to pay me by the hour,” Andreen said. “I charge by the job and don’t charge for service calls.”
When 87-year-old Martin Andreen hung up his homemade sign at his home in Thermopolis, Wyoming, the government said he was now an official business and repairmen. He is self-taught and can repair almost any appliance in a day when most people just buy new appliances. (Jackie Dorothy, Cowboy State Daily) 
Appliances are brought to Martin Andreen in Thermopolis, Wyoming to be repaired or used for parts. He is self-taught and can fix both modern appliances with fancy electronics and older models. (Jackie Dorothy, Cowboy State Daily) 
87-year-old Martin Andreen fell into the repair business out of necessity when he was getting broken appliances at his consignment store in Thermopolis, Wyoming. (Jackie Dorothy, Cowboy State Daily) 
When 87-year-old Martin Andreen hung up his homemade sign at his home in Thermopolis, Wyoming, the government said he was now an official business and repairmen. He is self-taught and can repair almost any appliance in a day when most people just buy new appliances. (Jackie Dorothy, Cowboy State Daily) 
Although he still does house calls, 87-year-old Martin Andreen of Thermopolis, Wyoming, prefers to have people bring their appliances to him. He has all the spare parts he usually needs to get the job done. However, it involves a specialized circuit board or part, Andreen will order one in. (Jackie Dorothy, Cowboy State Daily) 
When 87-year-old Martin Andreen hung up his homemade sign at his home in Thermopolis, Wyoming, the government said he was now an official business and repairmen. He is self-taught and can repair almost any appliance in a day when most people just buy new appliances. (Jackie Dorothy, Cowboy State Daily) 
Although he still does house calls, 87-year-old Martin Andreen of Thermopolis, Wyoming, prefers to have people bring their appliances to him. He has all the spare parts he usually needs to get the job done. However, it involves a specialized circuit board or part, Andreen will order one in. (Jackie Dorothy, Cowboy State Daily)
Shop At Home
These days, Andreen makes fewer house calls and prefers when the appliance can be brought to his shop.
His garage workshop is conveniently attached to his house for snack, lunch and smoke breaks with his favorite Marlboros.
The shop also has better lighting, and Andreen can work at his own speed since a repair can take anywhere from a few hours to a few days.
The best feature is that he has more room to maneuver in his workshop than in the cramped spaces at someone’s home.
“It’s getting to where I need a lot of room,” Andreen said, grinning. “Not to get down, but to get back up.”
In Andreen’s workshop, he keeps within easy reach of his tools, especially his favorite magnetic wrench that cost him nearly $30 but was worth every penny. In fact, Andreen bought two.
His hands have a new annoying habit of trembling when he wants them to work, and the magnets help him stay steady enough to loosen the nuts and bolts.
Washing Machine Authority
The satisfying sound of the whirring washing machine fills the small space in Andreen’s back workshop. It slowly comes to a stop and pauses in the cycle. Andreen smiles knowingly as he glances over at the washer.
“These new ones will sit there for a while and not do anything,” Andreen said. “I had one lady who kept unplugging her washer and starting the cycle back up even though I told her she had to be patient.”
For some reason, the newer washing machines will pause a wash cycle, and people immediately assume it is broken. That's not the case, and they are doing harm to their washer when they keep restarting the cycle.
He finally sold this customer an older model that did not pause during its regular cycle and she was happy once more to do her laundry.
Another customer brought his commercial washer all the way from Ten Sleep, an hour’s drive away — except he forgot to bring the key to access the coin vault.
Now Andreen will have to put in a handful of quarters each time he runs through the wash cycle. It is a small hassle and one that only makes Andreen chuckle.
The washer finally stopped its spin cycle and is fixed. This machine took him nearly two days to repair. He had checked the sensors and changed the motor before discovering that one wire had worked loose.
Problem solved.
Andreen is also quick to dole out free advice and let folks know if their appliances really are even in need of repair.
Recently, a local was complaining that her water-efficient washer wasn’t very efficient. Andreen told her to just use the deep clean cycle.
It would use more water, but her clothes would get cleaner. She gave it a try and was elated.
Another problem solved.
87-year-old Martin Andreen enjoys tinkering in his workshop and plans to continue working the rest of his life. Repairing appliances gives him something to look forward to each day and he will spend days on a challenging project, determined to discover why an appliance has quit. (Jackie Dorothy, Cowboy State Daily) 
In 87-year-old Martin Andreen’s workshop in Thermopolis, Wyoming, he does not need fancy tools to get the repair job done. A magnetic wrench is his best friend and a clear mind to figure out the problem. (Jackie Dorothy, Cowboy State Daily) 
87-year-old Martin Andreen enjoys tinkering in his workshop and plans to continue working the rest of his life. Repairing appliances gives him something to look forward to each day and he will spend days on a challenging project, determined to discover why an appliance has quit. (Jackie Dorothy, Cowboy State Daily) 
87-year-old Martin Andreen enjoys tinkering in his workshop and plans to continue working the rest of his life. Repairing appliances gives him something to look forward to each day and he will spend days on a challenging project, determined to discover why an appliance has quit. (Jackie Dorothy, Cowboy State Daily) 
87-year-old Martin Andreen is a self-taught appliance repair man. He repairs both modern and older models, especially washing machines. He is not fazed by circuit boards and modern technology. Andreen has found ways to repair sensors and other new-fangled contraptions that come his way to his shop in Thermopolis, Wyoming. (Jackie Dorothy, Cowboy State Daily) 
87-year-old Martin Andreen is a self-taught appliance repair man. He repairs both modern and older models, especially washing machines. He is not fazed by circuit boards and modern technology. Andreen has found ways to repair sensors and other new-fangled contraptions that come his way to his shop in Thermopolis, Wyoming. (Jackie Dorothy, Cowboy State Daily)
Mr. Fix-It
Andreen has always been a man who could not sit still.
After growing up on a ranch, he continued in that line of work for many years. In the 1960s and '70s, he was managing a ranch along Owl Creek in Hot Springs County, but then his wife Patty became ill and needed a kidney transplant.
They moved to Thermopolis and made regular trips to Denver for dialysis.
Andreen immediately got a job at Reda Pump where he worked any job asked of him, including shipping and rebuilding pumper motors. He lost his wife to complications from her childhood diabetes and finished raising his kids as a single parent.
After nearly a decade of working at Reda Pump, the plant closed and he was laid off on a Friday. The next morning, he started a lawn care business.
In the 1990s, he opened a consignment store with his second wife, Linda, that they later relocated to downtown Thermopolis.
It was there people would bringing him their appliances to sell and he started his repair business.
People would tell him an appliance they were putting on consignment worked but when he sold it, the machine would be returned because it was broken.
“I had no way of checking them out,” he said. “I wasn't selling any and they were taking up space.”
Frustrated, Andreen hired a man to repair three washers, and three times the assistant failed to fix the machines.
Andreen fired him and started figuring out how to repair the appliances himself so they would remain sold. He had only determination to teach him how.
Andreen earned the title Mr. Fix-It through the school of hard knocks.
He never read a manual or took a class. He just studied the machines and tinkered.
Now, he uses that same determination to fix modern models with fancy electronics including refrigerators, freezers, stoves and dryers.
Doctor’s Orders
A few months ago, Andreen woke up dizzy. Later that day, while visiting with his doctor, Jason Wyer, Andreen said he was ready to retire but his doctor advised against it.
“I wanted to quit,” Andreen said. “And my doctor said, ‘No, you're not.'”
Wyer told him that he was treating him like he would if he were his own dad. His recommendation was that Andreen needed to get back out and keep working.
“He said that he’s been watching me work long hours and hard hours,” Andreen said. “Wyer told me that if I quit, I wasn’t going to last very long.”
Andreen knew that his doctor was right and decided retirement is not for him. His repair work continues to keep him active and gives him new challenges to look forward to each day.
In the meantime, all Andreen’s hospital tests came back, and it was decided that he didn’t need any surgeries.
“I'm going to be cremated,” Andreen said, smiling. “And when they shut that door on the furnace, that's when I retire.”
Jackie Dorothy can be reached at jackie@cowboystatedaily.com.
