A Decision To Maintain Or Replace Is Not An Easy One - Even In These Uncertain Economic Times. August 25, 2009
Posted by Generally Speaking in : just thinking , trackbackI have of late found myself, in discussions with friends, making frequent references to a “rough economy” plus took a glimpse at how perhaps it is time for a seachange in our ways of thinking as consumers. Since that time, I have started to discern signs that this might not be as easy a transformation as I had hoped. I wrote what I wrote previously and then dwelled on it some more and came to the realization that our Western economic system and out natural inclinations are against us in any such endeavour.
I imagine a cynic will claim that I should have realized that from the beginning yet I am every now and then just too guilty of being an optimist. I genuinely hoped that with the need to tighten our belts that we would all start to find ways to do without the shimmering and new and be contented (at least for the shorter term) with what we already possess. I was of the belief that now would be an ideal time for any real revival of the belief of maintenance over replacement, but then again, maybe not.
Really, you know it is a hard sell when even one’s own government is against you - albeit unintentionally. I have always had a problem with the fact that with many consumer electronics so often it really is less costly to replace something rather than maintaining what you already have. A while ago I needed to replace the installed battery in my electric beard trimmer. The short of it is that any estimate I got on it would see me paying at least as much to replace permanent battery as it would cost for the latest model of that brand of trimmer. I ended up going and buying the new model and recycling the old one - but only because they could not guarantee a very long lifespan on the old one if I got the battery replaced. that was dissapointing. Another example of this is with DVD players and CD players; If your player should up and stop working, then you might find that the cost of repairs may be as little as a few dollars (say for something like just a faulty disc loading mechanism), which is great, or it might set you back just about as much as a new player would (if we are talking about more internal issues). Really,who would not want to go and purchase a new player for the similar expenditure, especially if it should happen to come with additional bells and whistles and a shiny new warranty to boot? I have in addition championed the preservation of your trusted household appliances whenever possible, yet when I start hearing folks protest that they could get a brand new appliance for just a little more than the cost of a few necessary appliance replacement parts, I am not stunned that they could choose to go the replacement route. I have read complaints on sundry household appliance websites from individuals who have found to their disappointment that the cost of the rival crock pot parts (such as a replacement lid or liner) that they require would probably end up costing them almost half the cost of their initial crockpot. Ouch. When the factor of cost is a wash in the equation then most people will go for the new if for no other reason than we lack discipline on such matters, even when we know the benefits to the environment of following the mantra of ‘reduce, reuse, recycle’. I guess it is just a rather fuzzy concept in the back of our brains for the majority of us. Now we have this latest endeavor by the US Federal Government to kick start consumer spending by introducing its recent ‘cash for clunkers’ program which is encouraging Americans to get rid of their older car for a brand new one. Now it may well be that the majority of the trade ins are in fact near the end of their days of utility, but I would not be surprised to learn that a number of still good cars got traded-in along the way. Not astonished at all. In any case, at some point in the imminent future I actually do expect this debate to take on a whole new feeling of urgency, however only time will tell…
A choice to retain or replace isn’t an easy one - even in these challenging fiscal times.
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