Appliances Plus More

Review: My husband found an ad on Craigslist for a reasonably priced front-loading washer and dryer set for sale by Appliances Plus More in Anderson, CA for $800. This was our first time purchasing used appliances. Normally, we would prefer not to go this route but, unfortunately, due to recently purchasing our 1st home, this is all our budget allowed. Upon purchasing the washer/dryer set (which visually appeared to be in excellent condition), we were informed that the washing machine was "loud" and made a "knocking sound when washing clothes." However, we were repeatedly assured that there were no further issues and that the "knocking" would be nothing more than an inconvenience due to the noise when running the machine. My husband and I purchased the set which came with a 30-day warranty. Both machines worked fine (disregarding the fact that the washing machine was extremely loud - but in all fairness we were warned of this issue) for about 3 months. In the the third month, I woke up to find my laundry room flooded with water from the load of laundry I had started the previous night. My husband inspected the machine in detail to find that (you could not see this from just opening the door and merely looking inside - he had to take the machine apart)there were holes in the barrel which we can only assume had been puttied as some sort of quick fix. [redacted] Appliance in Cottonwood, CA informed us that there would be no repairing it- the machine was shot. The knocking noise had completely destroyed the barrel and trying to repair the holes would be futile because more would be created. We took the machine back to Appliances Plus More who denied that they were (obviously) aware of the holes and that they sold us a damaged piece of equipment. They then made the extremely offensive offer of giving us $250 for returning BOTH machines in what I'm sure they dishonestly saw as an opportunity to deceitfully re-sell the machines to another family. Buyer beware - but this is blatantly fraud.Desired Settlement: Our 30-day warranty expiring does not leave us with a lot of options. But I honestly believe that (an individual who makes a living out of selling used appliances surely knows them well) they were fully aware of the washing machine being damaged and that their "quick fix" would hold out just long enough for our warranty to expire. If possible, we would like our money returned and we will happily return both machines. I know their actions were unethical but I'm also hoping they were unlawful.