You know that old, vintage-looking kitchen appliance buried deep in the back of your cabinets?
Well, you may have written it off ages ago, but as one viral Reddit thread shows, that retro toaster, waffle maker, or other gadget may work just as well as something you'd buy new.
"Doesn't look like much but it's been cranking out perfect pots of rice for 30 years this month," one Redditor wrote in the r/BuyItForLife subreddit.
The photo shows an old rice cooker that's allegedly been working well for 30 full years — that's pretty impressive. And as the subsequent thread explains, if that rice (or whatever other meal or snack your ancient appliance cooks for you) tastes just as good, we'd all be better off hanging onto these handy tools for as long as we can.
Yes, kitchen appliances — even major ones — can last decades, and we should make a point of using them over their lifespan. Not only does this reduce the environmental impact on our planet and save limited landfill space, but it's much easier on our wallets (a benefit that's only gotten more important as inflation continues to be an issue).
The big reason for this is summed up by the Environmental Protection Agency, which estimates that of the 2.2 million tons of small appliance waste in 2018, around 5.6% was recycled. Meanwhile, nearly 76% ended up in a landfill.
And with American households producing nearly 300 million tons of trash per year — or about 5 pounds of trash per person per day — it's always a great idea to eliminate as much waste as possible.
It's clear that other Reddit users enjoy this retro appliance idea.
One shared a very similar experience: "I have a Black + Decker rice cooker that's similarly designed that's been doing the same since 2003. Still going strong."
Another knew the rice cooker's brand before even seeing the photo.
"With only a preview, I was able to make an educated guess that it's a Tiger or a National rice cooker because they just last so dang long!" they wrote.
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