Garden Repair or replace calculator
The common guidance is the 50% rule: if a repair costs more than half of replacement, buy new. That is a decent start but it ignores age, which is usually the deciding factor — a $200 repair on a two-year-old machine is very different from the same repair on a twelve-year-old one.
How this is calculated
Repair share = repair ÷ replacement. Remaining life = typical lifespan − age. The verdict compares repair spread over remaining years against replacement spread over a full lifespan, and applies the 50% rule as a ceiling.
Source: Typical appliance lifespans follow National Association of Home Builders / manufacturer service-life data
Worth knowing: This is arithmetic, not a diagnosis. A cheap fix on an otherwise sound machine is almost always worth it, and a sealed-system or compressor failure often is not at any age. It also ignores efficiency: replacing a 15-year-old fridge or furnace can pay part of its own cost back in running savings, which the numbers here do not capture — run the running-cost calculator on both to see.
Common questions
What is the 50% rule?
If a repair costs more than half the price of replacing the item, replace it. It is a useful ceiling but a blunt one on its own — it treats a nearly-new machine and a worn-out one identically, which is why age belongs in the decision too.
Does a new appliance save on running costs?
Often meaningfully, particularly for anything that runs constantly or heats. A fridge from the mid-2000s can use two to three times the electricity of a current model. For a furnace or water heater the efficiency gap can be large enough to change the answer on its own.
Is an extended warranty worth it?
Usually not, on the arithmetic. They are priced to be profitable for the seller, and most failures happen either inside the manufacturer warranty or well after the extended one expires. Putting the same money aside is generally the better bet.
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