Is New Always Good?

Sometimes we have to question modernity! The conservationist in me worries that resources are being depleted because we have developed into a replacement society.

This raises many issues, one of them being the consumer ethic where consumers of product create cash flow and therefore jobs.

Some five years ago, we renovated our kitchen and the ‘best new thing’ was one of those taps (faucet in other countries) that have one lever to operate mixing hot and cold water as is necessary.

The plumber told me that the unit had a five year warranty but for the warranty to be valid the filters had to remain in place.

Ok, sweet and all that!

Now that’s all very well but we use tank water and so the water pressure is not great and the filters significantly diminished the pressure in the outlet.

I have no problem with turning old, conventional taps on and off and I’m even adept at controlling the mixture of hot and cold water.

Anyway this flash new lever-action tap began to leak! Here we go, even a three-thumbed drip-fixer like me can put a washer in a conventional tap, but this new-fangled thing has a warranty so ‘don’t touch it – call the plumber’!

During my 72 years on this Earth, I have never been able to claim on a warranty! This time we are out of the warranty by three months! But the plumber is coming because a repair may not me possible and a new mixer may be required (depending on what the plumber assesses) – so if the thing needs replacing, we have two costs – the unit and the plumber (plus transport as we are 25min out of town). I can assure you ordinary, conventional taps last a good deal longer than five and a bit years!

So no doubt we are stuck with the system as it is and will need to replace the thing every five years or so! Well at least we are contributing to the economy!