I saw an ad from Manitoba Hydro the other day that made me go, “Wait, what??”
“If your second fridge or freezer is over 15 years old and working, it’s time to retire it.”
My fridge is over 25 years old, it works perfectly and I wouldn’t part with it.
It was second-hand when I got it and has never given me a single problem - don’t even have to defrost it.
But Hydro wants to pay $50 for working fridges, saying their program will keep appliances out of landfills (still scratching my head over that one.)
Appliances rolling off today’s assembly lines are, in a word, junk that won’t live to 10. Some don’t even see their fifth birthday.
That’s not just my opinion.
A few years ago, CBC’s Marketplace program did an investigation into why modern washers, dryers, fridges and stoves are so prone to early failure.
One of the reasons is they come loaded with extra features, many of them electronic.
Phil, who’s been in the appliance repair biz for more than 35 years, says that’s the rub.
“Since they introduced electronics into products, the quality has gone down and that’s why products don’t last the way they used to.”
The more digital features, the more expensive the repairs. Parts are harder to come by. So are service technicians. It appears that everybody in the industry wants you to ditch your nearly-new appliance and buy newer, sending your relatively youthful machine to the dump.
Meanwhile, my GE keeps on trucking in all its analog glory.
It has no ice dispenser built into the door. It isn’t a “smart” fridge that can talk to Russian spies or remind me we’re low on milk.
But it knows its core competencies: keep some stuff cold and other stuff frozen. And it does them superbly.
Like Jeff the repairman said on Marketplace, “You’re better off buying an older-style machine without all the bells and whistles. Don’t get caught up with stuff you’ll never use."
So, Manitoba Hydro is paying $50 for old fridges that still work, eh? If they’re smart, they’ll turn around and sell them on Kijiji for $100.
Now that’s how you keep appliances out of landfills.
