An example of something that isn't important enough to us to spend money on is our range. It was made in 1991, but both the oven and stove-top burners still work great. It's a gas stove and I love that. But over the years, the plastic insert on the control panel has melted. The oven vents out where the melted part is, so I suspect it's just a design flaw and not the fault of the previous owners. It's pretty ugly and very hard to clean around those cracks and melted places.
To replace just that part of the control panel is crazy expensive; I think it was around $80 when I looked into it a couple of years ago. We think that's too much to pay for a part that just sits there and looks pretty. We could buy a comparable brand new gas range for around $350, but there's nothing functionally wrong with the one we have, so there's no need to buy a new one.
So, here's how I solve the problem most days.
Guess what? If we bought a new range, or even just the new control panel part, that often-used pot would probably still be sitting right there, hiding the control panel anyway. Not to mention that the new part might just melt again. So what would be the point?
What about you? Would you think things through before making this kind of purchase, or would you replace the part (or the entire range) without a second though? Do you have a "price point" where your decision changes? For us, we'd probably buy the part if we could get it for $20 or less. As for buying a whole new stove, we don't plan to until this one quits working.
