AIBU to think basic DIY and car skills are being lost?

I’m from the 1970s and have plenty of DIY, plumbing, sewing, carpentry skills and tools. I was taught none of this by my parents (though my dad taught me housepainting tips and tricks). DH is similarly handy and mostly self-taught, though his parents were more inclined to DIY.
Our DCs learned plenty about DIY etc and we involved them in helping fix things as they grew up.
Now they’re young adults and confident to fix things on their own. DS is far more confident at car maintenance than either of us ever were.
They still ask advice and borrow our tools while they’re building up their own toolkits at their homes, but they’re aware they aren’t the norm compared to their peers.

@Thechaseison71 I agree that basic maintenance should be taught. My DS had no clue how had to check levels and replace wiper blades on his car so I took him to Halfords and showed him how to find the right size using the charts. They’re not that difficult to understand.
My ex (his dad) used to do up cars for fun and stripped engines in his teens, even replaced a cylinder head gasket, which would mostly be a write off now if they go. But his own dad was a mechanic so it was fun for them to work on cars together. That would be beyond me.
But also worth noting that whilst I have the skills to work on my own car, it’s brand new and I can’t, so I do have to pay garages to do things I could do myself on another model.

I'd never buy a second hand washing machine. They cost about £300 new and have a 2 year warranty. Why would I pay £50 or £100 for an old one with no warranty, no customer service AND the effort of plumbing it in? I then use the washing machine until it no longer works (usually at least a decade). The newer the washing machine, the more reliable and more water and energy efficient it is so a second hand one is often a false economy and has more impact on the environment.

Kids are taught sewing in school - replacing a button is a very simple task that takes about two minutes to learn.

Not that I can recall, no. Anyway you can’t change the lights in my car, they’re impenetrable. If it’s services all the bulbs are changed to schedule anyway

when I had old bangers I used to take them to halfords they do simple stuff like that for £5

Unfortunately my OH is super handy. I say unfortunately because it means we can’t hire anyone to fix anything, which means most things stay unfixed for months. For cars he will typically defer to a garage for anything which he can’t fix in a few days but I can tell it pains him 😂

The thing is OP I can change a tyre. I can change a wiper blade. But now days it costs pittance to pay extra on top of the cost to get it done for you. Have you tried to look up which blades to get for modern cars recently? It’s easier to drive to somewhere like Halfords and pay for them to fit them when you purchase the item rather then try and wade through the booklet on cars, models and years to work out which to buy.

Most people are time poor which means paying for this type of convenience makes sense. I say that as someone who is fine doing a lot of diy.

Why though? It goes in for regular servicing and they do all of that.

My parents never taught me anything. I learn everything from YouTube

I actually love do practical things and would spend a lot more time doing them if I didn’t have such flipping high maintenance kids.

I’d love to spend my Sundays painting the house or cooking proper meals. But I can’t because I’m constantly breaking up fights or being asked to play or sorting their IT issues. In the past I think parents used to throw children out to play more or weren’t both working full time. There aren’t any kids her age close by for my daughter to play with - and I live in a small city close to a school, yet we’re surrounded mostly by pensioners.

As previous posters have mentioned, technical things like cars have changed. I had to change a battery in a nine year old car. I had to have the car manufacturer dealer recode the battery to the engine. Same with the light bulb ballast. It's coded to the VIN. Both of which a dealer will charge 150 pounds on top of actually changing the bloody thing.
Also the dynamics of families where parents may be in their late 40s or 50s could do DIY but so many children are now brought up by one parent which is generally the mother that those skills are not being passed down, which is almost irrelevant because they have to move into rented or shared accommodation where these skills are not needed until they have the ability to purchase house which maybe when they are in their thirties.

Also this idea of “learning” when you’re a kid.

I’m 45. I plumbed in a washing machine 13 years ago with the help of you tube

i cant remember a thing about it. I don’t “know” how to do it. But of course, if I needed to again I’d get back on you tube and give it another go.

why do you pretend you’ve got memories like elephants and remember everything you were shown at 17? It’s clearly bollocks. You either do it regularly or you look it up on the occasion you do so. Or you’re talking about things that are very obvious to work out. Or you really are a rare elephant

I’m a 70s child and pretty good with DIY but I wouldn’t tinker with a car. It’s all technology these days.

There was a class for this type of thing locally last month but I didn’t find out about it until after. I think everyone on the course was female. My husband can’t even hang a picture up. An ex taught me how to change the car oil and maintenance

I kind of get what you are saying and I get what the OP is also saying.

The world has moved on as basic car maintenance isn’t typically needed anymore except perhaps inflating tyres and filling washer fluid.

Technology is key and yes I agree with you in that some of the things you listed are now deemed to be essential.

I think in my 50s I sit in between both views. I pay for car maintenance now rather than do it myself. I think that the some of the items you listed are more useful. But I can still mend a button or item of clothing so I save money that way 😁

Well exactly. As DH always says earn as much money as you can doing what you're good at and then pay someone else to do the stuff they are good at.

I bet you’re fun to live with! I bought my electric toothbrush from Amazon and it came with a continental plug, and I have neither a continental socket, adapter nor a shaver socket to charge it up with. But I do know what they all look like. So used my diy skills to change the plug to a 3 pin to charge it up. Hence the purpose of my post. In the time it’s taken to reply to your pedantry I could have changed it again.

I actually kind of hate these threads. Take my dad, I mean he can do any of this manual labour you’re talking about. He can sew on buttons, plumb in a washing machine, lay a pavement, fit a bathroom. He used to be a plumber.

i can’t do any of that. You know what i can do?

chair a committee meeting
negotiate with bankers on behalf of my company for tens of millions in funding
deliver a company wide transformation

maybe less high level 😂 I can

use the gov website
understand my tax code
Understand basic investing to make money on savings
Send an email 🤨
download an app
chair a large professional meeting
do an excellent Cv and job interview
network At a formal event

my dad can do none of this

and you know what? Because I earn 5x more than he ever did, I pay someone to do the manual work he can do.

im not better, he’s not better. But I’m certainly not going to despair that women like me can’t sew a button. I see it as progress

A shaver plug is a shaver plug not a continental plug?

The world has moved on - most cars and white goods have internal computers, built in obsolence and it's usually cheaper to replace rather than fix - this is not a skills issue. Most of these skills are easily obtainable via YouTube videos. It's not difficult to paint and put up wallpaper or check tyre pressure. Why do you think they are crucial skills that must be taught to children when they are just as easily picked up in about 5 minutes as they are needed?

My 80 year old mum (ex racing driver and garage worker who did all her own DIY and car maintenance) was absolutely useless at working out the computerised seat settings in my 3 year old car. I'm not sure I'd take her advice on its mechanics.

How often is anyone plumbing in a washing machine anyway? I'm in my 50s, I've owned 3 washing machines in my entire life. Just get the guy who delivers it to connect the pipe.

I'd much rather the next generation was being taught skills that might help us solve climate change, food insecurity, transport and the economy than how to hang some wallpaper.

A lot of young people aren't just renters, they live in house shares with no space to own and store a load of tools. The washing machine or dish washer that they can't plumb, isn't theirs to plumb.

But yes, it would be good if everyone had basic sewing, cooking, personal finance and diy skills.

Which requires the corresponding socket to charge it. If I had one I wouldn’t have needed to change the plug. What was the point of your post?