From repair cafes to YouTube videos, how you could save HUNDREDS of pounds fixing broken belongings 

GOT a stash of old and broken stuff ready to take to the tip?

Look closely before it goes, as sometimes there’s an easy fix that could extend its life so you don’t have to pay to replace it.

It might be something you can do yourself, but if not, there’s lots of help available, such as local repair cafes. 

Harriet Cooke reveals how four people successfully fixed up items destined for the trash.

YOUTUBE

The internet is an amazing resource of “how to” videos of how to repair items, particularly on Youtube – although take care when handling electricals.

Jo Smedley, 48, from Grimsby, was determined to rescue her 40-year-old Kenwood Chef food mixer after it started to smoke.

She managed to save herself £300 by not replacing it.

“I do a lot of baking at Christmas using our old Kenwood, which is amazingly strong and robust,” she says.

“But last year it started to smoke really badly and we had to stop using it.

“I looked around for other equivalent machines and found they were over £300 – but I didn’t think they’d be as good.

“So, I started hunting the internet for “fixes”. I have no electrical skills but I read numerous posts and watched YouTube videos showing how to fix it.”

Jo discovered that the issue was caused by something called “carbon brushes”, which were all the way inside the machine.

She had to take out the entire motor assembly and put it back together with new brushes.

“I bought the carbon brushes for £5 on eBay and set to work. 

“I followed the video and put it all back together, then found there were three screws left over, so I took it apart again, watched the video backwards step by step, and found where the pesky screws were meant to go, and then turned it on and worked.

“It’s now running better than it has in years, saving me well over £300.”

Jo, owner of Red Herring Games, has since used her newfound skills to mend her dishwasher and washing machine.

“The how-to videos on YouTube are amazing and save you so much money.”

CHEAP FIXES

Mum-of-one Vicky Collins, 49, from High Wycombe in Bucks, has found super cheap ways of fixing her children’s toys to extend their life, and it’s saved her around £100 on buying new ones. 

She says: “My three-year-old son has a red rocket that he plays with all the time and the door fell off, which was a real shame for him.

“I ordered some red Sugru, which is a kind of mouldable, rubbery glue that’s great for repairing broken plastic things, and it holds the door in place really well where the hinge had snapped. 

“It doesn’t matter to him that the glue is slightly the wrong shade of red.” 

Sugru costs around £10 from Amazon.

Vicky, who runs the extra tuition firm totaltutoring.org.uk, also transformed a secondhand play kitchen from Ikea using a Magic Eraser, which costs around £3 from supermarkets. 

She explains: “I bought a £20 Ikea toy kitchen from Facebook Marketplace, which a child had scribbled all over with a Biro. 

“I used a Magic Eraser to take away all the pen marks and it looked like a new one, which was a good saving as they normally cost around £85.

“Magic Erasers are great for removing scuff marks and stains from hard surfaces like walls or furniture.”

Chris Young, 50, from Penge, also found an easy fix when his dishwasher stopped working due to tiny holes in the tray at the bottom.

The charity worker, who coordinates the Real Bread Campaign, says: “The manufacturer quoted me £400 for a new one, but I bought J-B Weld SteelStik for about £8 and filled the holes. 

“That was about five to six months ago and the machine is still working.”

REPAIR CAFE

If you’re not hands-on, another solution is to find a local repair cafe.

There are more than 140 in the UK.

Professional organiser Janine McDonald, 54, who runs Clear The Clutter Now, visited her local branch in Boothstown, near Manchester, with her 14-year-old Dyson DC24.

“The motor had gone and it would have cost more than £100 to send it to Dyson to fix.

“I fixed part of it by watching YouTube but it still wasn’t right, so I took it to my local repair cafe. 

“They told me what part I needed to order from eBay and then they fitted it for me. Now it works perfectly. 

“The part only cost £20, so they saved me £80.”

She also took a quilted coat there after the zi got stuck, and they managed to fix it for free.

“There’s a lovely community feel at the cafe and you can get coffee and a drink for £1.”

Ebony Cropper, expert at the advice service Money Wellness, says: “Some repair cafes even have their own collection of tools and equipment, like sewing machines, screwdrivers or soldering irons, that you can borrow if you want to restore more things at home. 

“And a few also have 3D printers, which can be used to make new components where old ones are beyond repair.

Find your local one at repaircafe.org.

REPAIR MAN

Lifestyle coach Caroline Lamont, 48, from West London, saved herself around £500 by getting a repairman to fix two appliances instead of replacing them.

Caroline rents out a flat in Tooting, South London, and the maintenance team from the estate agents wanted to replace the hob as the ignition was broken, and the dishwasher as it also wasn’t working.

“They quoted me £200 for a new hob, and £400 for the dishwasher,” she says.

“It seemed like a ridiculous amount of money as both appliances were only about six or seven years old, and I also found out the previous tenant hadn’t even used the dishwasher, so it only had three years of use.

“I went online and found a repair guy who charged me £95 plus VAT to fix both, and they work perfectly.”

To find a repair service, use reputable online directories like Checkatrade or TrustATrader.