Get it repaired!

Get it repaired!

Have you considered getting that toaster fixed instead of throwing it out?  Jane O’Loughlin investigates a new repair service.

In this consumer age it’s become more common to simply chuck something out and get a new one when it breaks – the idea of repairing it has almost become foreign.

But Te Aro Zero Waste wants to turn that around and encourage more people to consider repairing their broken item – whether it’s a toaster, ripped shirt or broken chair.

And to make this accessible, the team in Forrester Lane offers the tools and the advice to help newbies and pros alike to do the job for free.

Vikram Govindasamy, a Te Aro Zero Waste Coordinator, says there are two options for those looking to repair an item.

One option is to come in and DIY your repair, using the sewing machines, electronic and electrical repair equipment on hand. 

Another option is to attend a repair café, which is run every other month, or a Just Sew repair café, just for textiles, that runs every month.  During those times volunteers are on hand to help fix items, and pass on skills.  A range of things have been successfully repaired, Govindasamy says.

“One person bought in a cushion off their hallway seat that needed to be repadded. They used some of our offcut polystyrene insulation from our Well Homes team, bought some fabric from the Curtin Bank Fabric Corner, used our repair station and they made a brand new piece of furniture out of something that otherwise would have been thrown out.

“We've had a few people come in with broken laptop screens and they just didn't have the tools or the space to sit down and work on them. We gave them both and they were able to fix their laptops. We've had people come in with other small computer peripherals where they just needed a small part and we were able to get that from our scrap bins.

“And so to save them buying one brand new part just to fix one thing, we were able to reuse something from a broken laptop, put it into a semi-broken one and get it going. So yeah, kettles, keyboards, mice, Roombas, it could be really anything that people bring in.”

The service is a partnership between the Sustainability Trust and the Wellington City Council, and aims to reduce the amount of material going to landfill.

Te Aro Zero Waste team also hopes that the repair experience will also raise awareness of built-in obsolescence - designing products to become obsolete or break down after a set amount of time – and the role of the consumer in reducing waste.

People are encouraged to drop in to see what’s on offer in the shop, or to sit in the library and read a book.  The office is open Wednesday to Saturday, 10 a.m to 4 p.m.  The final Repair Café for the year is on 16 November, 1 pm to 4 pm.  More information