if we have a problem with landfill sites?

Question

why do they make washing machines that usually break down after a year and computer which break down after a couple of years. I remember the old twintub machines people had them for 20 years before they broke down. We are supposed to be more enviromentally friendly arn,t we

Answer 1

People who produce these things want to sell lots, they do not normally think of the environment, they think of money. If they sell us stuff that uses less power, less water, or whatever else you can think of, it is because they want us to buy it, and they really want our money.

Answer 2

I couldn't agree more with you and Stgoodric.

Several years ago I went to buy a new battery for my electric tools as the old rechargables were completely depleted, only to discover that Black and Decker had redesigned their tools with completely different batteries and no longer sold the old ones...and I had only bought the original set two years before! I was forced to buy a whole new set of tools. I wasn't a happy camper.

Once upon a time, when a majority of Americans lived in rural areas where they were forced to deal with their trash themselves, things were not designed to break so easily, and could be easily be repaired...otherwise, the farmhouse would be littered with broken goods. Nowadays, most people live in cities with trash service, where we can simply put something out at the curb every week and completely forget about it. Out of sight out of mind lets us forget which crappy company we bought the item from in the first place, meaning we'll probably purchase from them again.

Many items back then even had a truly "lifetime" guarantee to not break. For instance, my grandfather had a hammer he bought in the 1920's which had a lifetime guarantee on it. When it finally broke in the early 1980's, he simply took it to the hardware store, and they gave him a new one free. A lifetime guarantee these days tends to mean, "The lifetime of the item", and usually goes no further than a year or two unless you pay extra money to the company to insure the item.

Today, I use a lot of things that my grandfather had, from gardening and carpentry tools, all the way down to his oil lamp that was made in the 1930's, because they also work better than the crap that we can buy today (using the oil lamp outside at night seems to not attract as many insects as electric lighting). Even my great-aunts electric mixer, built in the 1960's, has been more reliable than any bread-maker I've bought in recent years (which seem to break after about a year of use). So, lately I've been going around garage sales, looking for "grandma and grandpa's tools".

Answer 3

I couldn't agree more with you. There ought to be standards to which consumer products are produced so that those of us who do not just want "the next trendy gizmo" on our washer/ TV / Fridge Freezer etc can live contentedly for years with a purchase that makes a major environmental impact. With those standards there ought to be penalties against the profits of companies who do not maintain high standards of manufacture.

Products now are designed with built in obsolesce and manufacturers sadly are in this game just to maximise profits. Discontinuance of spares is another annoying behaviour that manufacturers get up to - or if they don't actually discontinue the spare part, they make it so expensive that it is economically unviable repair your appliance.

Answer 4

Have to disagree with you. My washing machine and dryer are 20 years old. My computer is 3 years old.

But to answer your question, recycle the mechanical parts of your washing machine. Pay to have it sent to a metal recycler

Answer 5

I think the introduction of the WEEE directive electrical items are going to be made to last longer. If the producer is going to have to pay fro their products to be disposed of, they are not going to want to pay too much. Hopefully then they will put more effort into making long lasting products!!!!

Answer 6

Because they can sell more that way.