A first-person, immersive day in the life of an appliance repairman

An appliance repairman’s day (with a P30C appearance): a ‘space-capsule’ sleep device the customer took apart and broke, shorted and burned; a 1600W heater drawing 7A and a 2000W kettle drawing 9A looked at for free, no charge; a PANDA CD-850 combo player that won’t read discs fixed by cleaning and oiling the laser assembly; a Worx handheld vacuum with aged cells gets brand-new cells straight in (IR checked, 3.376V), insulating rings on, spot-welded with the AWithZ P30C ‘can reach 30kW, turn the power down a bit’, round welds, day done

Job one: a ‘space-capsule’ sleep device with a dodgy switch, the customer took it apart himself and broke it, plugged it in, shorted and burned, blackened in the middle. Job two, a heater, plugged in and switched on, 1600W 7A, so clean inside; check whether the heating tubes are worth repairing, all three tubes are fine, just swap the part, fix it, it burned black. A Worx electric kettle, 2000W 9A, a shame to throw out for a minor fault, have a look, could be left unrepaired — no charge at all, no parts fee, no inspection fee, ‘I like taking money, no free looks either’ (joking). A bread maker; a PANDA CD-850 CD/DVD combo that won’t read discs, laser assembly serviced, cleaned, oiled and polished, reassembled, plays a VCD fine, repair done. A handheld vacuum (Worx) runs for a short time after a full charge, aged battery, replace outright: brand-new cells checked for IR / voltage, 3.376V, insulating rings on; AWithZ (P30C) powered on, it can reach 30 kilowatts, turn the power down a bit, check it’s solid, fine, round welds; the clips are all broken; repair complete, day done. Comments: a Taiyuan appliance craftsman; spray some WD40 (creator: fast response, some just need charging); could fix a UFO; can you fix one that won’t heat up; can you fix industrial boards; ‘lots of people say the AWithZ is no good’ (0 likes); want to learn (come on then).

Outcome

Steps6 steps · click a frame to jump

1. 
   1. Space-capsule sleep device: customer broke it, shorted and burned

   Can this be fixed, it looks like space gear; dodgy switch, taken apart and broken; plugged in, shorted and burned, blackened in the middle.

   00:02 – 00:23
2. 
   2. Heater 1600W 7A; heating tubes fine, swap the part

   Switched on, 1600 watts, 7 amps; so clean; check whether the heating tubes are worth repairing, all three fine, just fit the part; fix it; it burned black.

   00:46 – 01:17
3. 
   3. Worx kettle 2000W 9A; a free look, no charge

   2000 watts, 9 amps; a shame to throw out for a minor fault; have a look, can be left unrepaired, no charge at all; off you go; no free looks either (joking).

   01:23 – 01:41
4. 
   4. PANDA CD-850 won’t read discs: laser assembly cleaned, oiled and polished, fixed

   A bread maker; a PANDA CD combo that won’t read discs; laser assembly serviced, cleaned, oiled and polished; reassembled, VCD plays, repair done.

   01:41 – 03:05
5. 
   5. Handheld vacuum with aged cells re-celled with new ones, IR checked, insulating rings on

   Short runtime after a full charge, aged battery, replace outright; brand-new cells IR-checked (3.376V); insulating rings on.

   03:05 – 03:20
6. 
   6. P30C on (can reach 30kW), power turned down, spot-welded, round welds; day done

   AWithZ powered on, can reach 30 kilowatts, turn the power down a bit; check it’s solid, fine, round welds; the clips are all broken; repair complete, day done.

   03:20 – 03:59

Bill of materials

Measured on camera

Creator’s tips

• If a CD player won’t read discs, clean, oil and polish the laser assembly first 02:35
• Welding small cells on a high-power machine, turn the power down and go by round-looking welds 03:20
• Check the IR of new cells before fitting, and put insulating rings on 03:06

Pitfalls

• The customer took it apart himself, causing a short that burned it out 00:02
• The vacuum’s clips were all broken 03:31

Li-ion safety

• Unplug before inspecting 00:02

Quotes