101–110 of 122 posts
With an abundance of YouTube videos and multiple parts suppliers many appliances can be repaired with a few hours work and $100 in parts (depending on what's wrong of course)
I've repaired a freezer (thermostat/temp control) and a clothes dryer. Have also fixed my furnace.
I've seen two people replace dishwashers because the power cord wasn't connected well and failed. They don't include a power cord with the appliance, here; you buy your own and wire it up yourself, or the installers do it for most people I guess. So when this hurried connection made in an awkward place turns out to have been poor and breaks after a few years; "the dishwasher is broken" and a repair shop charges half…
It is tough calculus to choose a repair even if you do it all yourself. Say a 400 appliance. Its old so worth say 200 now. You need a 75 dollar part. There is some large chance the part you buy isnt quite the right variant you need or you screw up then install and then you just lost another 75 dollars and still no working appliance!
Anything built in the last few years is simply going to be less reliable on average.
That being said, the main reasons I replace what could be repaired are:
* a chance to upgrade something I bought 15 years ago
* cost of replacement parts is too high = most appliances fall in this category, very frustrating
* anything involving woodworking, it has never interested me but in hindsight I could've fixed quite a few things that just needed a new foot or bracket or even a whole drawer
Things I've replaced that were repairable:
Umbrellas, clocks, electric can opener, game consoles, IKEA bookshelfs and other furniture, carpets, hoses, electric tiller (part prices grrr), handheld vacs (part availability grrrr), a ton of kid toys that just needed a breadboard or piezo or light
Tldr Not as much as you'd think after 20 years of marriage, kids, and upward mobility, take care of your things!
Earlier quoted context omitted.
USA, where almost everything else does come with a power cord.
seems strange - do you know why this is? in the UK i'm pretty sure they come with a cable, though i've just realised that i've never actually bought one! washing machines definitely do.
I've seen two people replace dishwashers because the power cord wasn't connected well and failed. They don't include a power cord with the appliance, here; you buy your own and wire it up yourself, or the installers do it for most people I guess. So when this hurried connection made in an awkward place turns out to have been poor and breaks after a few years; "the dishwasher is broken" and a repair shop charges half…
I had a dishwasher installed by a "professional" that used an ordinary wire nut to connect the copper dishwasher wire to aluminum wire in my house. Which later resulted in smoke billowing from my dishwasher. Fortunately caught it before anything else was damaged. Then rewired the cable properly.
Instead of disposable plastic razors (Schick, Gilette, etc.) I recommend getting a safety razor and a big pack of blades (I use Merkur). You will save yourself thousands of dollars over the course of a lifetime - and avoid generating a ton of waste. Maintenance is pretty much just cleaning the razor with vinegar every few weeks. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Safety_razor If you have the time/desire for it, a straight…
Certain vacuum cleaners. There are still vacuum cleaner repair shops in many cities. But they're often hard to find because they don't have the money to advertise or a web site. If you're a DIY person, look at Dyson. People on HN like to complain about Dyson vaca because they're expensive. But they're also a good example of right-to-repair. Mine recently had a problem and I found out that almost every part of it can…
Instead of disposable plastic razors (Schick, Gilette, etc.) I recommend getting a safety razor and a big pack of blades (I use Merkur). You will save yourself thousands of dollars over the course of a lifetime - and avoid generating a ton of waste. Maintenance is pretty much just cleaning the razor with vinegar every few weeks. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Safety_razor If you have the time/desire for it, a straight…
I bought a bulk pack of 3000 blades for about $30 from eBay. I got those when my kid was 6 and now he's old enough to be using them. It's a staggering saving.
I have had to replace my handle once though, they don't seem to be made that well, the outer shiny layer bubbled and peeled.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
USA, where almost everything else does come with a power cord.
seems strange - do you know why this is? in the UK i'm pretty sure they come with a cable, though i've just realised that i've never actually bought one! washing machines definitely do.
When I bought my house, the (nimrod) flippers didn't hook up the stove, they just pushed it into place. Never having installed an electric stove, they didn't know you order the plug separately. As it turned out, the connection was so old that I had to special order a plug.