# Inside the Real Repair Shop 7 URL : https://fixitworkshop.co.uk/2022/04/18/inside-the-real-repair-shop-7/ "So, this month, I thought I’d consider the case against repair. Have I gone quite mad?" Outlining some reasons as to why repair isn't always feasible - i.e. [[barriers to repair]]. > It’s no coincidence that popular TV series The Repair Shop majors on pre-1980 cherished items. Older items, made from quality materials, conceived before manufacturers built-in precise planned mechanical and electronic obsolescence, usually stand a chance of being repaired by crafts people, as that’s how they might have been made in the first place. > > You see, a child’s toy or home printer manufactured today, on a sophisticated plastic moulding machine with sealed-in electronics will be almost impossible to repair without destroying the outer casing first. [[No way to open the product]]. > And even if you could get to the faulty battery or printed circuit board, it would be virtually impossible to repair at a reasonable cost, assuming the spares were available. > But take a modern washing machine, and parts prices are often not economic to buy, especially when you factor-in an engineer’s time for the repair Its often easier and cheaper to replace the whole thing anyway with next day delivery, just a click away on your phone with interest free credit. And that’s a mighty tempting prospect when the family’s washing is piling up on the floor. [[Spare parts too expensive]]. And [[artificial cheapness of new products]], due to 'externalities', labour exploitation, etc. > […]repair is now the reserve of the reasonably well-healed. […] To bring it back to life, it will need care, parts, experience and (usually lots of) time. All things that must cost money. > Repair is definitely a discretionary purchase now and if you’re a bit brassic, and your microwave oven goes kaput, are you going to spend £100 getting your old machine repaired? No, you’ll do the sensible thing and buy a new one from Amazon for £40 delivered next day, as you need to feed your family. Artificial cheapness again. > New appliances are sometimes more efficient and perform better. > Take a domestic fridge. Modern ones could use as much as half the energy than those made 30 years ago, and offer more features as standard. > Technology never stops marching on, and we can all benefit from replacing some creaking appliances with something up to date sometimes. > It’s usually more environmentally beneficial to keep something running as long as possible by spreading the manufacturing and shipping impact over a long functional life. And I don’t know about you, but I dislike the thought that someone else has already booked the death day for something I own! > I mean, just by looking at carbon-offsetting alone, consider this: Replacing a domestic kettle every three years, which has been shipped from China, made with complicated materials and electronics with no hope of repair, is not as environmentally kind as a simpler one that lasts for 9 years. Sadly, those kettles just don’t exist any more and if they did, I suspect that they would be far too expensive to be a mass-market product > But I can leave you with a simple piece of advice; look after your things, buy quality items if you can and consider second-hand at all times to make the Pound (or insert your chosen currency here) in your pocket go further, all very sensible in these uncertain times. Care.