How you can get started on your repair not replace journey
October 15, 2020 | Repair, Re-use & Recycle | No comments
Once again, International Repair Day will be highlighting the importance of repairing instead of replacing this October. It celebrates the efforts of repair communities, individuals and businesses, making repair possible when we need it the most. It was set up by our friends at The Restart Project, in conjunction with the launch of the Open Repair Alliance.
The theme for 2022 is ‘Repair Everywhere’, with a focus on encouraging novices to try out new fixing techniques and share their efforts on social media, as well as urging fixers to show their favourite repairs too. This way, we can all learn through each other’s fixing journeys and advice by coming together as a repair community on social media!
Of course, the ultimate goal of International Repair Day is to make the general public more repair-friendly and confident with carrying out our own fixes. So without further ado, here is how you can all get involved in International Repair Day and take steps in your own DIY journey!
Put your mind to something
One reason repairing is super important is that it can help you focus your mind on a specific task at hand. Modern life can be quite hectic sometimes, so it can be extremely therapeutic to sit and channel all your mental energy into one fixing project. Once you’re done, you’ll feel a great sense of achievement, and your brain will be grateful for the chance to focus on one clear DIY task for a while!
Tackle a repair on your to-do list
Every household suffers from niggly faults, be it a dripping tap you’ve been ignoring or the darkness in your fridge due to a faulty bulb. International Repair Day is the perfect opportunity to start fixing with these small faults before you work your way up to larger repairs. You’ll build confidence and soon be ready to tackle anything! Here are 6 quick fixes around the home to get you started.
Learn something new
So now you’ve plucked up the courage, here’s how to get started on the big stuff. If you’re still new to repairing, no problem! It may seem daunting at first but there is plenty of help out there to get you started. Here are just a few of the resources available to help you repair not replace:
Household appliances – eSpares has hundreds and hundreds of how-to videos on our Advice Centre as well as all the tools and accessories to help you diagnose and fix your appliances with ease.
Electrical gadgets – The Restart Project is a fantastic movement that holds regular Repair Parties that help people fix everything from toasters to laptops!
Clothing – Love Your Clothes is a great website with videos and tips on how to fix zips, mend hems and take care of your clothing.
Car – Cars.com and doityourself.com have some great videos and expert guidance on all the car fixes you can actually do yourself.
Let’s get social
As the theme for this year’s International Repair Day is “Repair Everywhere”, why not get involved with that theme in particular? Take to social media to share any fixes you might have carried out, and check out what repairs others are carrying out too! Our own eSpares social media channels such as Facebook, Instagram and TikTok are great places to start!
Introduce repair to the next generation
If we’re all going to be trying our hands at home repairs, why not put our skills to the test and teach our kids some life skills too? Teaching kids about repairing is great for their development as they can gain skills such as problem-solving or decision making and learn the value of items. Check out our tips to get you started.
Learn about recycling
And we don’t just mean your cardboard! E-waste is a huge problem right now and is having a massive impact on our environment. So, if your appliances or electricals really are beyond repair, learn about how you can recycle them responsibly without harming our environment. Here are some great tips on how to tackle e-waste.
Clear out your ‘everything’ drawer (you know the one)
Speaking of e-waste, we bet there’s a whole load of old phones, cables, chargers and more hanging around in ‘that’ drawer! Make the most of your spare time by having a long-awaited clear-out and either send them to be fixed so they can go to a good home or recycle them.
Support the Right to Repair movement
The Right to Repair movement is a campaign to encourage manufacturers to make the products we own repairable. Campaigners believe products should be made to last longer and if broken, have the spare parts and information available to fix them. Read up on the successes of the movement and join the fight for repairable items.
Shout about it!
Last but certainly not least, share your success! Any fix, no matter how big or small, is a great achievement so it’s time to reap in some glory. Share your stories on your social media, repair community pages and tell your friends and family. As well as some hero worship, you might encourage others to join you too.
All in all, there are plenty of ways you can get involved and active on International Repair Day. A fixing-friendly life is one to be celebrated, after all, and the benefits are undeniable. Our blog post on how buying less and repairing more makes for an easier life is here to tell you more… if you still need any convincing!
