£20 Repair or £300 New Appliance? You Choose…

The cost of appliances can be frightening, with the price of a washing machine varying from anywhere between £150 and £2,000. After spending a small fortune on household appliances it can be frustrating when they gain a fault.

However, at eSpares we don’t believe that a faulty appliance needs to prove costly. Nor do we think a fault should result in a new appliance being purchased; especially when there’s a good chance you’ll be able to carry out a repair for a fraction of the cost.

To further reiterate how having the confidence in your own DIY ability can save you money, we’ve taken some of the most common faults you’re likely to face and looked at the price of repairing, compared to the price of a new appliance.

Fridge:

Due to being used continuously on a daily basis, fridges can gain various defects which can hinder the performance and efficiency, such as a faulty motor.

If the motor within your fridge goes, you’ll be looking at anywhere between £450 and £770 to replace the whole appliance, which is a significant amount to be shelling out at any time. You also need to factor in the time of selecting a new fridge, making sure it’ll fit into the allocated space and delivery costs.

A cheaper alternative is to repair the fault yourself. A new fridge motor can cost anywhere between £30 and £110, depending on the make and model of fridge you have. As I’m sure you’ll all agree, this is a cheaper alternative and will also give you the satisfaction of knowing that you fixed the fault yourself.

Washing Machine:

The pressure we put our washing machine under can result in faults occurring, and one such common fault is a leak from the washing machine caused by a split door seal. Although this is only a minor fault, many of us will opt to dispose of the appliance and buy a new one.

It’s estimated that as many as 30% of washing machines which end up in landfill require a spare part which costs no more than £20 to get it back up and running.

Despite this, many opt to spend between £214 and £999 on a new washing machine without even considering the cheaper alternative of fixing it themselves. Before you opt to take a journey to purchase a new washing machine, consider the cheaper alternative of fixing the fault yourself.

Replacing a door seal on a washing machine is a relatively straightforward task as outlined in our “How to Replace an Indesit Washing Machine Door Seal” advice centre article. In addition, the cost of replacing the door seal can be anywhere between £16.99 and £50.75.

Even if you required a new door seal retainer clamp too, you’d be looking at no more than an extra £6.99, bringing the total cost still well under that of a new appliance.

Cooker:

Many of us do not realise how much we need our cookers until they stop working, by which time it is too late; and a common fault with cookers is that the elements stop heating up or that an element has failed.

The fan element in an electric cooker is relatively easy to fix, is relatively inexpensive and isn’t too time consuming – as we outline in our “How to Replace the Fan Element in an Electric Cooker” advice centre article.

The price of a new element for a cooker can vary from £15.99 through to £45.49; much cheaper than the £400 – £600 you’d be looking at paying for a brand new four-ring gas hob, double-oven cooker with a grill. You’d also have to factor in labour charges for the fitting of a new appliance.

These three examples above show how much you can save by taking the time to have a go at fixing it yourself, rather than automatically opting for a new appliance. For those who are looking to fix it themselves, at eSpares we have the parts, accessories and advice you’ll need to make the repair easy.

Tags: Cooker, Fridge, Household Appliances, Smelly Washing Machine, Washing Machine