Does anyone fix stuff any more?
Discussion
Just browsing eBay, and the amount of stuff listed as 'spares/repair' is in many ways very depressing. Be it laptops, cars, garden machinery, watches, whatever, it seems the obvious thing is to throw it away and buy another one. In many cases the parts are still available, and the knowledge required to fix it isnt that complicated, its a shame that nobody can be bothered to sort it. For the mechanically minded you can get some cheap things, but the products are worth so little afterwards if you costed your time it wouldnt be worth making a job from it.
As a society we need to get better at fixing the things we have, rather than just buying new stuff because we cant be bothered to fix something which was great until one part of it broke.
As a society we need to get better at fixing the things we have, rather than just buying new stuff because we cant be bothered to fix something which was great until one part of it broke.
I guess the problem is new things are just so cheap, I mean why pay a £150 repair on a 5 year old telly when a new one that's even better is only £500? Add to that the hassle of getting it to the repairers, living without it while the parts are delivered and you can see the mentality.
Plus, I guess everyone appreciates the fact that pretty much most things are now built down to a price and even if you do fix something you're waiting for the next cheap part to fail.
I agree with your sentiment but while our internet based buying habits are based around cheapest=best I can't see much changing.
One other point to make is people do just like buying new stuff these days I suppose, we're a nation of consumerists! In defence of that however is technology is moving so rapidly these days it's not hard for any technology you buy into being if not obsolete, then surpassed within 18 months. That might be the manufacturers drip feeding technology to facilitate our consumerism but that's another thread for another day perhaps....
Plus, I guess everyone appreciates the fact that pretty much most things are now built down to a price and even if you do fix something you're waiting for the next cheap part to fail.
I agree with your sentiment but while our internet based buying habits are based around cheapest=best I can't see much changing.
One other point to make is people do just like buying new stuff these days I suppose, we're a nation of consumerists! In defence of that however is technology is moving so rapidly these days it's not hard for any technology you buy into being if not obsolete, then surpassed within 18 months. That might be the manufacturers drip feeding technology to facilitate our consumerism but that's another thread for another day perhaps....
Condi said:
In many cases the parts are still available, and the knowledge required to fix it isnt that complicated, its a shame that nobody can be bothered to sort it.
More than that, for most things there is a youtube video showing how to do it. Half the things I fix in my house are done after a bit of youtube research, even if it's just to confirm what I think.I'm terrible for not wanting to ditch stuff though, even at work when it's not my money I just can't chuck a perfectly working piece of kit without having a go at fixing it first. Most people just look at me like I'm mad though.
Condi said:
As a society we need to get better at fixing the things we have, rather than just buying new stuff because we cant be bothered to fix something which was great until one part of it broke.
I disagree."As a society", we have become extremely good at manufacturing things in huge numbers at tiny cost via economies of scale. This is far better for most people, as goods are far more generally available. The flip side to that coin is that almost nothing is worth repairing individually. "We" should try to get better at chucking things out and fully recycling them, using those same economies of scale, so that it all evens out in the end.
I fix stuff for a living and come from a family of fixers, my Dad tells a tale of his Dad who took a watch apart to fix for a friend. On putting it back together he couldn't find out where a spring went, but wound it up and gave him it back. It ran fine for many years....
Check out the Ebay generator thread for what can be achieved.
Check out the Ebay generator thread for what can be achieved.
This all having been said, I suspect a lot of things are more reliable than they once were, taken on aggregate. For instance my grandad was forever fixing the hoover with new belts etc (he was still using a number fro the 60s in the 90s lol!). I have to wash the tyson's filter occasionally.
Likewise, he used to work as a television repairman, the tubes would go etc. However I have a 42" LCD TV which I'd like to replace but can't justify as there is absolutely nothing wrong with it! Thats about 8 years old too.
Likewise, he used to work as a television repairman, the tubes would go etc. However I have a 42" LCD TV which I'd like to replace but can't justify as there is absolutely nothing wrong with it! Thats about 8 years old too.
Yes, and no.
a) I spent a couple of hours today working my way through a diagnostic procedure in order to fix a minor electrical niggle on my car. Pulled a couple of components out of my big box of things I'll never need, installed them in place of the faulty ones. Job done.
b) I spent another couple of hours stripping down an old breadmaker to figure out why it has stopped beeping. Realised that the time spent + the effort and cost involved in finding the right replacement part end up being around the same price as a new breadmaker to replace this 20-year old that doesn't owe me anything any more.
a) I spent a couple of hours today working my way through a diagnostic procedure in order to fix a minor electrical niggle on my car. Pulled a couple of components out of my big box of things I'll never need, installed them in place of the faulty ones. Job done.
b) I spent another couple of hours stripping down an old breadmaker to figure out why it has stopped beeping. Realised that the time spent + the effort and cost involved in finding the right replacement part end up being around the same price as a new breadmaker to replace this 20-year old that doesn't owe me anything any more.
Condi said:
Just browsing eBay, and the amount of stuff listed as 'spares/repair' is in many ways very depressing. Be it laptops, cars, garden machinery, watches, whatever, it seems the obvious thing is to throw it away and buy another one.
I guess the ability eBay offers to sell stuff that's broken is quite new - effectively the sellers are recycling, they're not chucking it away.It happens because new stuff is cheap and labour rates are high. It's simple economics unfortunately.
The tonnage of electrical items that end up in landfill every year makes a mockery of the supermarket carrier bag save the planet b
ks. And while I'm on, what happened to biodegradable bags?
The tonnage of electrical items that end up in landfill every year makes a mockery of the supermarket carrier bag save the planet b
ks. And while I'm on, what happened to biodegradable bags?Sheepshanks said:
Condi said:
Just browsing eBay, and the amount of stuff listed as 'spares/repair' is in many ways very depressing. Be it laptops, cars, garden machinery, watches, whatever, it seems the obvious thing is to throw it away and buy another one.
I guess the ability eBay offers to sell stuff that's broken is quite new - effectively the sellers are recycling, they're not chucking it away.Condi said:
Just browsing eBay, and the amount of stuff listed as 'spares/repair' is in many ways very depressing. Be it laptops, cars, garden machinery, watches, whatever, it seems the obvious thing is to throw it away and buy another one. In many cases the parts are still available, and the knowledge required to fix it isnt that complicated, its a shame that nobody can be bothered to sort it. For the mechanically minded you can get some cheap things, but the products are worth so little afterwards if you costed your time it wouldnt be worth making a job from it.
As a society we need to get better at fixing the things we have, rather than just buying new stuff because we cant be bothered to fix something which was great until one part of it broke.
Don't see what is wrong. They're actually giving it to people like you. Well, I say you, but clearly you prefer to whine about people getting rid of stuff rather than fixing stuff people are not binning. As a society we need to get better at fixing the things we have, rather than just buying new stuff because we cant be bothered to fix something which was great until one part of it broke.
Anyway, I have a spare 2.1 sub that no longer works. Am wondering how to scavenge the parts. Could I power the sub from something else? I'm not good with a soldering iron.
Hoofy said:
Anyway, I have a spare 2.1 sub that no longer works. Am wondering how to scavenge the parts. Could I power the sub from something else? I'm not good with a soldering iron.
I have a spare 2.1 sub that still works (and the other two speakers). Nothing wrong with them but I treated myself to a soundbar on Black Friday. I've no idea what to do with them, I'm guessing they would cost as much to post as buying a new set. marshalla said:
Yes, and no.
a) I spent a couple of hours today working my way through a diagnostic procedure in order to fix a minor electrical niggle on my car. Pulled a couple of components out of my big box of things I'll never need, installed them in place of the faulty ones. Job done.
b) I spent another couple of hours stripping down an old breadmaker to figure out why it has stopped beeping. Realised that the time spent + the effort and cost involved in finding the right replacement part end up being around the same price as a new breadmaker to replace this 20-year old that doesn't owe me anything any more.
Should have scrapped the vehicle and got a new bread maker thrown into the deal of a cheap lease car. Winwin.a) I spent a couple of hours today working my way through a diagnostic procedure in order to fix a minor electrical niggle on my car. Pulled a couple of components out of my big box of things I'll never need, installed them in place of the faulty ones. Job done.
b) I spent another couple of hours stripping down an old breadmaker to figure out why it has stopped beeping. Realised that the time spent + the effort and cost involved in finding the right replacement part end up being around the same price as a new breadmaker to replace this 20-year old that doesn't owe me anything any more.
CAPP0 said:
Hoofy said:
Anyway, I have a spare 2.1 sub that no longer works. Am wondering how to scavenge the parts. Could I power the sub from something else? I'm not good with a soldering iron.
I have a spare 2.1 sub that still works (and the other two speakers). Nothing wrong with them but I treated myself to a soundbar on Black Friday. I've no idea what to do with them, I'm guessing they would cost as much to post as buying a new set. You could use it in your shed or something for some decent sound.
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