Americans Are Stockpiling Thousands of Dollars’ Worth of Broken Items Rather Than Throwing Them Away, New Research Reveals
The average American family stashes away $1,121 worth of broken items rather than fixing or disposing of them, new research has revealed. In a study of 1,000 homes, adhesive repair putty brand Sugru Moldable Glue found that eco-conscious residents believed they lacked the necessary repair skills to fix damaged goods or felt too guilty to dispose of them.
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Survey results also showed that one in five Americans hang onto broken items for more than a year. Some of the items people tend to hoard include garden tools, electronics and family treasures.
Top broken items Americans hang onto:
Garden Tools 42%
Laptops 41%
Phones 40%
Family Treasures 39%
Tablets 37%
Watches 36%
Exercise Equipment 34%
Furniture 33%
TVs 32%
Kids’ Toys 31%
Christmas Decorations 30%
Picture Frames 30%
Ornaments 30%
Kitchen Appliances 28%
Kindles 26%
Crockery 26%
Laptops (41%), phones (40%) and tablets (37%) were prevalent in the list of broken things people refuse to throw out, along with exercise equipment (34%) and Christmas decorations (30%).
The study also revealed that more than half of Americans (58%) wanted to repair items as soon as they break, but many households across the country remain cluttered with damaged goods nonetheless. A quarter of respondents said they only sometimes got around to fixing broken things, whereas 46% believed many items were beyond repair.
A Sugru Moldable Glue spokesperson commented: “It’s so frustrating when stuff breaks and understandable when people fret about adding it to landfill. “Every house has this kind of cupboard of shame, with no clue how to tackle it.
“Making repair easier for people will be crucial in beating our throwaway culture and help people save money along the way.” For more information on how to repair broken items, head on over to Sugru.com for some essential repair tips and free Fixer’s Manifesto.
Sugru Moldable Glue by tesa is the world’s first multi-purpose moldable glue that remains flexible when set and sticks permanently to lots of materials like glass, ceramic, wood, metal, plastics and more. People use it around the world to fix, improve and hack their stuff to keep it going a little longer.
A visit website will inspire you to reimagine your home, garden, clothes and planet in a way that empowers your everyday creativity to beat the throwaway culture. The research was conducted by One Poll on behalf of Sugru Moldable Glue, in which 1000 US adults participated.
