Is it better to repair or replace an appliance?

As we go into depth to answer your question, you'll find that there are two major factors to consider before deciding whether replacing or repairing your appliance is better. From old parts being hard to find to taking advantage of new tech, we'll cover all these factors so you can make a educated decision.

Before we get into these two major factors, let's start with the old-school basics. The easiest way to decide whether it's better to replace or repair your appliance is to follow the old "50% rule". This basically means that if the cost to repair your appliance is 50% of the cost to install a new one, then it's probably worth it just to get a new one installed. Earlier this year, we made a post asking "Is it worth it to repair your appliance?" and the answer was absolutely, depending on whether the cost is logical considering how old your appliance is. But today we're going to go deeper with a much for informative answer. Because there are these two major factors that many people often don't consider - (#1) It is easy to find replacement parts for your old appliance? And (#2) How badly do you want to take advantage of new technology?

One advantage of repairing your appliance is that you'll most likely save money compared to replacing it, but this money you save could be temporary if your appliance is so old that it might break down again. That's why the benefit of just replacing your old appliance by installing a new one is that it probably won't break down for a long time and if it does you'll have a warranty. Some of our clients who can afford it get a new washer and dryer every time the warranties expire. This is because newer appliances are often also more energy efficient, so you save money there too.

But back to those two major factors: How easy is it to find replacement parts for your appliance? If you're considering just getting a Waco washer repair service even though your washing machine is over 10 years old, you may be waiting a while depending on how hard it is to order the proper replacement part to fix it. We have the best method of ordering all the parts we need and finish most repairs on the same day, but if your parts are nearly impossible to find it may be quicker and more reasonable to just get a new washing machine installed because then you'll also have a warranty.

Now to the next major factor: How badly do you want to take advantage of new technology? If your dryer is over 20 years old it may not be worth it to fix, especially because a brand new one will have all the latest features like anti-wrinkling spin cycles and energy efficiency. Most new dryers also tend to damage clothing less, and take less time to dry than older ones. So the benefits of replacement add up more and more the older your broken appliance is. This is true because home appliances like fridges, dishwashers and dryers are always improving. Unlike solar panels which are almost always worth repairing no matter how old they are because the technology rarely increases the amount of energy they convert, appliances are developing exponentially. For example many fridges manufactured in 2023 come with touch-screen displays and ice-machines. Now, while we're not experts at repairing solar panels like some folks, we can certainly repair all your home appliances, even if they're 30 years old. You might save money if we repair it, but is it worth it?

We hope we supplied enough info for you to make the best decision. But if you're still unsure and you live in the Waco area, our experts can answer your questions over the phone! Call (254) 275-6499.