this post was submitted on 01 Aug 2026
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The products covered by the obligation to repair currently include:

  • washing machines and washer-dryers
  • dishwashers
  • refrigerators
  • electronic displays
  • welding equipment
  • servers and data storage products
  • mobile phones, cordless phones and tablets
  • tumble dryers 
  • e-bikes and e-scooters batteries (from 18 February 2027)
  • local space heaters
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[–] Wizard_Pope@lemmy.world 13 points 1 day ago (3 children)

A eater kettle does not have that much stuff inside that it should be tamlre proof for fuck's sake. It can use normal screws like phillips, hex or torx.

[–] GoatSynagogue@lemmy.world 2 points 15 hours ago

Maybe electric kettles are different where you live, but they are extremely dangerous because of the amount of power needed to heat water to 100% quickly. Iirc some countries don’t even have them because their house can’t provide enough power.

[–] Pika@sh.itjust.works 7 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) (2 children)

if its an electric kettle, I have to disagree. Those have the equivalent of a stovetop going through them when in use, and have a degree of water protection required. I heavily disagree with easy to access and remove screws on those. I still think they should be consumer repairable but, I think buying a set of P screwdrivers or whatever style they choose is a more than secure enough method of protecting people who don't realize what they are doing.

Being said, many things that do have tamper or non-standard screws I think shouldn't like the iphones, but I think appliances that have a burner element or a higher power draw should remain one of them.

[–] GoatSynagogue@lemmy.world 0 points 15 hours ago

Phones absolutely should have screws like they have though, as flathead and philips head, especially at that size, are way too prone to burring.

They’re not even really “non standard” screws at this point. Anyone can buy a screwdriver set for a few bucks to disassemble an iPhone.

[–] Wizard_Pope@lemmy.world 0 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Yeah but if you're opening high power stuff while it's plugged in thats on you. I get tamper protection on power supplies and stuff where you could get shocked by a capacitor. But a big heater not plugged in is harmless

[–] Pika@sh.itjust.works 4 points 23 hours ago* (last edited 23 hours ago) (1 children)

Even if it's unplugged first, I strongly disagree with the insinuation that since it's unplugged it's harmless. This is a device that uses the same amount of power draw as a stove top and has water contact as part of it's daily use. If someone who doesn't know what they're doing decides they want to access it, and does it incorrectly, it has the capability of burning your house down.

Having a standard screw on it like a Phillips or a regular screwdriver significantly lowers the barrier of entry in allowing someone who doesn't know what they're doing to work on the equipment, which is why I think it's fair that a component that has that capability has a something like a hex or a p bit. Those are both something that are not hard to obtain, but also something that you likely won't find just randomly laying around in your house unless you already regularly work on devices or equipment.

[–] Wizard_Pope@lemmy.world 1 points 23 hours ago (1 children)

Sorry but as long as it's unplugged it's literally just a bunch of wire. Wire by itself even a heating coil has no way of burning your house down while unplugged.

[–] Pika@sh.itjust.works 2 points 23 hours ago* (last edited 23 hours ago)

I think you may have misread or misinterpreted the comment. Probably my fault for not making it clear, the "harmless" nature is removed when its plugged back in again, not during the repair. It's a different point of the repair process.

[–] Bluewing@lemmy.world -1 points 1 day ago (1 children)

But unless you understand the electrical components and the rules and codes in their use for consumer safety, maybe, just maybe, it should be a little bit difficult to gain access to if your 10 years old.

Go buy some bloody tools and quit your whinging.

[–] Wizard_Pope@lemmy.world 7 points 1 day ago

Yeah sure I'm gonna buy stupid triangle screwdrivers so my nonexistent 10yo cannot open the heater.

If the said 10yo knows where the tools are it does not matter what kind of screws there are. It just makes me have to buy stupid tools I will only ever use for one appliance.