I grew up in the 70's and 80's with a Dad who would replace a worn plug-in on the toaster, who installed a new timer on the dishwasher or replaced a piece in the back of the dryer to keep it going for another 10 years. When we bought our first home in 1996 I had the same intentions. When our dishwasher stopped working just a couple months after moving in, we had our first taste of "Well, it's going to cost just as much to fix it as it would to buy a new one...." and in the end, he was right. It was the start of realizing our video games, our dishwashers, our computers and coffee makers were all seemingly made to work 2 years and then go to the trash. What a waste!Some things are easy replacements... filters for our water purifiers? Easy. You know you need part number ukf8001axx, you get it and go on. A new carafe for the coffee maker? No problem. But something as simple as the prongs on our dishwasher racks start to rust and break off? After looking into the cost of new racks I'm again, frustrated at our 'throw away' society. Purchasing two new racks is going to cost, literally, as much as a new dishwasher!
As I sip my coffee (from the third coffee maker in 5 years because the first two broke within 2 years each!) I ponder and wonder... is there any hope we'll ever go back to fixing things for an affordable price instead of filling up the landfills? I think... probably not.
