Repair or replace...?

In view of the experience I had today replacing a water heater (rather than repairing it), I thought this old post, lost in draft limbo from 2 years ago, offered a countervailing perspective.

from July 2011:

The kitchen range in the cottage is getting it's age on. I'm not sure how old it is, but the best cook in the house told me there will be no more baking done in that oven until it's either repaired or replaced. No idea why it was me being told that, but I got motivated. Seems the door hinges were so old and rusty

 that we couldn't get the oven door opened to insert cakes, cookies, pies, etc. and once it was opened and the cakes cookies and pies were inserted, the door didn't close properly to allow for proper cooking temperature inside. A real energy waster. And the handle was about to fall off from it being so hard to open.

So we started shopping for ovens. Not fun. After several weeks and several trips to appliance outlets we had nearly settled on a replacement. But then we stumbled upon the website of the manufacturer of the existing range, and they supply parts. So a quick phone call resulted in the ordering of new hinges at about 1% the cost of a new range.

I hate throwing things like ranges into the scrap bin. So much technology and development, so much mileage left on most of the product, if I can simply replace a part or two and get another several years of productive use, I think this is a good thing.

 

 
  
Update 5-15-2013: The oven is still going strong, and a whole lotta bakin' been goin' on.