Arizona's appliance rebate program drove a lot of residents crazy early Monday, but for thousands of them, the frustration paid off.
Starting around 6 a.m., customers furiously clicked and dialed, hoping to score one of about 30,000 chances at a rebate for buying a new washing machine, dishwasher or water heater.
What they found in many cases was a Web site that would not load or a busy phone number. Worse, they waited on the phone for an hour only to be disconnected before getting the chance at a rebate, or filled out the online form only to be unable to submit it.
"I called at exactly 6 o'clock, and I got through," said Jerry Handelman of Tucson. "There was a lot of ringing, then music. Occasionally the music would stop; then it would continue. I stayed on the phone for an hour, and exactly at 7 o'clock it was disconnected."
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Handelman didn't get through again, and his chance at a rebate for a new dishwasher was lost.
Despite such frustrations, for the Arizona Department of Commerce, which handled the rebate program, "it was a huge success," spokesman David Drennon said.
All the reservations for getting a rebate were used up within three hours and 38 minutes, Drennon said. They could have been used up in the first minute or so, but the phone and Internet system couldn't handle the volume, he said.
In all, 21,000 reservations were issued for new clothes-washing machines, 4,800 for new dishwashers and 4,480 for new water heaters. The money available for the rebates, which ranged from $75 to $425 depending on the appliance, added up to $5.8 million, Drennon said.
In addition, waiting lists were established for each appliance. If those on the waiting lists buy the appropriate appliance before May 12, they can submit that information and hope that a rebate becomes available, Drennon said.
The rebate money is from the federal stimulus bill and is intended to encourage consumers to replace old, energy- and water-wasting appliances with new, more efficient ones.
That's what Joe Bidwell, who lives just over the Pinal County line, is planning on doing.
"I got online at 6 a.m. and after repeated reloads and waiting got the rebate form for a dishwasher about 6:40 a.m.," Bidwell said by e-mail. "I'm replacing a 24-year-old dishwasher with one that uses less than one-third the amount of water - important when you are on your own well."
Appliance retailers are looking for a boost in sales now that the rebate is over. Not only will there be the customers who got rebates, but there also will be those who were waiting to see if they would get rebates before they bought, said Doug Betts, owner of Christie's Appliance, which has three Tucson stores.
If Monday was any sign, the program will mean a big increase in sales, Betts said.
"We've had a pretty fantastic day."
Contact reporter Tim Steller at 807-8427 or at tsteller@azstarnet.com