Repair and reuse
I’ve complained before about the poor quality of modern appliances, and the difficulty of getting them repaired, and on occasions I’ve deliberately chosen items because I know that spare parts were available. When I bought a Dyson vacuum cleaner several years ago, it was partly for the performance (which is great), and partly because they promised to be easy to repair.
We had to put that to the test recently, when our trusty Dyson cut out and failed to power on again. We investigated the many inspection hatches for any blockages, and washed the reusable filter, but it wouldn’t turn on again. Luckily, we have a vacuum repair centre fairly close to us, and they are authorised Dyson distributors. The guy in the shop asked what had happened, and was confident they’d be able to fix it. A day later, our purple and green friend had a new power cable (which had developed a break inside the body of the machine), a few other worn parts were replaced, and it had a general service. The result is that our Dyson is working again, and we only had to pay a reasonable charge for the repair, rather than the full cost of a new one. There’s also one less hunk of garish plastic in landfill.
I wish more manufacturers put thought in to making their products easy to repair, and provided a supply of easily obtainable spare parts.
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The other week, a small bit of plastic on my parents' vacuum broke, and when they tried to get it repaired, were told that that model wasn't being manufactured any more, and were sent a brand new one.
5/5 for customer service, 0/5 for good design and efficient use of resources.
by Clair @ 16/06/2008 7:47 pm • Permalink •
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Dyson certainly does it right. In the US, Oreck is another company that makes that makes excellent and easily-maintainable vacuum cleaners. We own one -- it came with a 20-year warranty, which is unheard of these days for any product.
Many (most) manufacturers appear to put thought into making products that are utterly infeasible to repair, thereby encouraging the consumer to discard and replace. The Story of Stuff is an interesting look at the lifecycle of manufactured goods, distilled into a 20-minute video. Far from academic discourse, but thought-provoking nonetheless if you haven't yet seen it.
by Stephen Tudor @ 17/06/2008 3:46 am • Permalink •
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I've always repaired when I can, I started my working life as a mechanic, when we mended cars rather than just replaced parts. The oldest thing I've fixed is an 1820s Long Case clock given to my wife's Great-great-great Grandparents on the occasion of their wedding. About 25 years ago my Mother-in-Law was going to throw it out as it hadn't worked for years, apart from the odd broken catgut suspending the weights, it hasn't missed a beat since I fixed it.
by Jonathan Briggs @ 18/06/2008 9:04 pm • Permalink •
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Clair: Yes, that kind of thing is much too common.
Stephen Tudor: Somebody else pointed me to the Story of Stuff a while ago, and it is very good.
Jonathan Briggs: That's the way to do it if you have the skills and can get the parts.
by bsag @ 22/06/2008 3:19 pm • Permalink •
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We had a coffee pot that stopped working. My wife wanted to chuck it and buy a new one (about USD 50.00) but I said -- over her objections -- "Let me see if I can fix it first." It appeared that a small bit of what looked like pressed paper insulation at the power attachment point had gotten wet and allowed a short. I called the company to ask about ordering a replacement part, and the nice woman said, "I can just send you one at no charge." We were back in business about a week later, at the cost of a little time for labor, and a phone call. My guess is that way too many people wouldn't bother even trying what turned out to be such a simple repair.
by Dave A @ 24/06/2008 9:15 pm • Permalink •
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