to think the throwaway society has gone too far

[areyoubeingacarrot]

I know I'm not AIBU but I'll ask anyway.

I have a blender and part of the blade housing has broken. No problem, I thought, and went online to find a replacement part. But no. After a total of around four hours of online research it seems that I can buy a replacement blender container (the glass bit that goes on the top), I can buy a replacement blade, I can buy a replacement rubber ring. But the actual full plastic part on which the blade is mounted (it's separate to the glass blender container) does not seem to be available.

I've contacted two parts companies to confirm that this is actually the case and I expect to hear back from them this week so I'll know for sure. If it's true that I can't replace that plastic part, then I have a perfectly good blender motor and glass container here which are no good to anyone. Fuck's sake.

It's a Tefal BL310 which is still on the market so - unless I'm mistaken, which is of course always possible - I can see exactly why our (grand)children are all going to die in a polluted climate-change hell

This is commonplace. Nothing is made to last. In fact, it appears in many cases that things are made to break so you buy a new one. It’s shameful and a result of money grabbing. Unfortunately money grabbing corporations and egotistical politicians aren’t compatible with saving the environment.

In our tip, they take small electricals like this and I don’t know what they do with them but they don’t end up in landfill. That’s the best I can think of. I often use it for similarly broken stuff.

Things are usually cheaper to replace than fix so why would people spend more getting something fixed.

You could have a look on eBay/Facebook on the off chance someone is selling the same model and use it for spares?

I agree that a lot of things that I’m years gone by would have been repaired get thrown away now. It’s astonishing when you see articles detailing exactly how much waste we produce. But, in the case of the suggestion I’ve just given you, a lot of people don’t have the storage space for solutions like that.

I always look second hand before buying new for most things (I figure generally if it’s good enough to sell it’s fit for purpose) although that’s partly because of financial not completely altruistic reasons. I love a bargain.

Email Tefal customer service and ask them for a part number. Then search for that on something like Ereplacementparts

If you are lucky they will just send you one.

Keep looking. Our lawnmower hit a hidden rock and smashed a part that holds the blade. Replacement parts aren't available but other brands sold similar parts. I took the exact measurements and found one at a different brand parts retailer. It's still going strong 10 years on.

Contact Tefal. If you get no joy, speak to them on twitter and other social media saying basically what you have said here. But state expressly that you have no desire for a new replacement product as they may send you one which of course, defeats the purpose of this.

It's called planned obsolescence. My ghd straighteners just broke this week, just out of warranty. I looked online at repair shops, older models are repairable but ghd deliberately don't make replacement parts for newer models so they cannot be repaired. I emailed them and got some standard response saying sorry, we are 'green' though you can ask us to send you a label and you can post it back and we'll dispose of it responsibly. Sure I believe that. Anyway they know full well. 001 would bother to do that and not just chuck it in the bin. Infuriated me!

YANBU but this is the kind of society we have constructed and it won't be easily changed.

Built in obsolescence. It’s shocking.

Around us there are repair cafes where people who know what they are doing will fix small appliances and similar- I’d try taking it along and see what they suggest

Could you make a rough mend yourself with sugru or similar, maybe?

Just to say that Kenwood do provide that bit as I had to replace mine ( not helpful to OP but not all manufacturers are the same and wanted to flag that unless the actual processor goes, I think I can replace pretty much everything else). And my food processor was bought in 2007.

My DM recently took her lawnmower to be serviced and was told it costs more to service than to buy a new one. The mower centre stopped servicing as customers were leaving them to be serviced and never coming back to collect them. I always try and fix things if I can to save waste or wasting money. Not always possible though

I agree op. Plus the parts which you do manage to find you then need 400 pairs of hands to change the bloody part.

Things are usually cheaper to replace than fix so why would people spend more getting something fixed.

I agree @RebootYourEngine and I've regretfully had to take that decision in the past, but that's not the situation here. It's a blender made up of three main parts (you take them apart every time you want to wash it). There aren't any repair costs involved, you wouldn't even need a screwdriver to sort it out.

Of course the amount of my time I've put into trying to sort it out is worth way more than the replacement cost of a £50 blender but it's the principle of the thing. One tiny plastic part has broken and it doesn't seem to be replaceable. While they sell replacement lids and rubber rings and all kinds of bits and pieces. Grrr!

Great suggestions re part numbers and so forth, the part number is actually on the part but it doesn't seem to be available. The glue is also a great idea but the way the part has broken means that it wouldn't hold if glued (it's under pressure from the spinning blender mechanism, one hard frozen blueberry and I reckon that would be it! )

I may or may not splash it all over social media. The problem is that, although I care (enough to spend hours of my time trying to sort this out), I feel like I've not got any more energy to put into this. At least not right now. I won't be buying a replacement fucking blender though, it would just mean that my smoothie days are done.

I'll probably have more energy again tomorrow! I just feel a bit hopeless with it all at times. See also Brexit, Trump, Windrush etc.

Some companies are better than others. As someone else said kenwood models haven’t changed much in 40 years so they are easy to get parts for. I got our Dyson which is out of warranty serviced by them last week and they replaced 3 parts free of charge which shocked me.

Just to say that Kenwood do provide that bit as I had to replace mine ( not helpful to OP but not all manufacturers are the same)

Yes! That's part of my frustration, there are quite a few different versions of that part available, but not for my fucking blender!

A month or so ago I ordered one that was meant to fit but it didn't, and had to go back.

I should have just contacted Tefal in the first place but usually I'm able to sort these things myself fairly easily so I've ended up wasting a lot of time.

OK I'm done venting now

www.epieces.fr then pièces détachées tefal might help. They found the replacement part for my moulinex.

We have an old but still working Miele vacuum cleaner that I wanted to get serviced so I could pass it on to DD1 and her boyfriend.

When I eventually found a company who could do it the cost was so high that for about £30 more we can get a brand new one. It doesn't even need fixing, just a clean and service.

I've found some YouTube videos so I'll try doing it myself but I'm fairly confident that I'll fuck it up.

I also have a pair of barely worn Birkenstocks that have a broken buckle. Unfortunately I bought them last year in a sale so I can't return them but Jesus, trying to find someone to mend them is hard going. We have a local cobbler who could probably do it but his opening hours seem advisory and he's always shut when I'm in town!

@CanoeDoYouThinkYouAre Do Timpsons still fix shoes or are they all keys and door numbers now? I haven't been in one in forever but our local town does have two.

I did try Timpsons but he wouldn't do it unfortunately.

Thanks for the suggestions @Madamfrog and others. It turns out that this particular part is indeed not available. Two separate (and very helpful) dealers have done some running around for me and it appears to be confirmed.

They can get me all the other replacement parts but not this one small piece of plastic that I need.

I could trawl eBay and Gumtree and wherever else and see if I could find another blender for parts but the amount of time and money that would cost is just ridiculous. It would probably cost about 2 to 3 quid if you could buy it separately - most of the other bits do.

RIP blender.