September 26, 2007

appliance lifespans

Last week our dishwasher started acting up. It is draining all-crazy-like into the sink. I'm guessing there is a clog in the line. We tried to solve it ourselves to no avail. I would normally call a repair person, but honestly, this is the 3rd time in 6 years we'd be making that call. The dishwasher wasn't top of the line, so the repair costs are about to surpass the original purchase price! Is it un-green of me to replace the machine?

Lucky stars! The Green Guide posted an article which outlines the life span of major appliances and when it is actually greener to buy new rather than repair. Lots of factors weigh on the advice, such as energy efficiency. A must read if you're as conflicted about an appliance as me!

4 comments:

Gift of Green said...

Hi MGG - I had a little debate about our dying (now dead) dishwasher on GoG a few months (that long ago?) back. We were going to replace it, but inertia has set in and we haven't yet. We don't really miss it, but I think the general consensus was that it is more energy-efficient to use a dishwasher than hand wash.

Anonymous said...

Dear MGG,
You introduced me to the FreeCycle program that is widespread now throughout the country. I think you can feel good about replacing your dishwasher and offer it up to the freecycle group. You may find that someone in your area can make the repairs and sell or give it away. Sometimes people will take items such as this for parts or recylcing metals. Ask your appliance retailer what they do with the old one...you may find that they recycle for cash as well.

Anonymous said...

You can go to Repairclinic.com and get free advice about how to fix your broken appliances. We fixed our dishwasher by using their site to figure out what was wrong and then ordering the right part using their diagrams and emailing one of their experts. We saved a bunch of money and fixed it ourselves! And we didn't have to dispose of another "dead" appliance!

Anonymous said...

Hi MGG!

I think going green when replacing kitchen appliances does save you energy and money in the long run...if appliance is old, then it may be using up more water than the newer versions, and wasting more energy too.

Let me know what you end up doing.