How to search for repair solutions
Before searching
A better search result is usually obtained by searching for the brand or model number of your device.
Tip: You can't find a model number on your device? Then enter the brand, model and any other features into a search engine and search on images. Compare the images found with your product. With a bit of luck you will see a model number next to the pictures.
Searching for manuals
User manuals
The user manual for many products can be found online. They show you how to solve very simple problems. For example, how to descale a coffee machine or clean the filter of a hoover. User manuals can normally be found on the manufacturer's website.
Service manuals
The 'holy grail' of repair information is the manufacturer's service manual. It usually contains the names of all components, electrical diagrams, disassembly guidelines, common faults and reliable repair advice.
Some manufacturers simply put service manuals on their websites. However, you often have to search hard to find them. Other manufacturers refuse to make these manuals public.
Tip: Can't find a service manual on the manufacturer's website? Then you can use a search engine to find leaked versions of these manuals.
Tip: manualslib.com (ENG/FR) is a database with masses of manuals for electrical appliances. Most are user manuals, but there are also service manuals. You can also find a lot of service manuals on the ElektroTanya search page. For laptops, Future proof: Tim’s laptop service manuals is a good source.
Disassembly manuals
If you can't find a service manual, look for a disassembly manual. These show how a product is put together, what parts are in it and how you can take it apart.
Tip: You can find plenty of disassembly videos on Youtube. But they are often very long. Not useful if you have little time or bandwidth. Therefore you should first look for disassembly manuals with pictures and text, like the ones you find at iFixit or jestineyong.com.
Tip: Google for ‘disassembly’ or ‘teardown’.
Manuals for spare parts
On websites where you can buy spare parts for household appliances, you will sometimes find manuals for replacing a part and other useful information.
Some examples of such websites are:
- https://www.fiyo.co.uk/repair-advice;
- www.espares.co.uk/advice (in English);
- fixpart.be/nl (in Dutch, German, French…);
- www.spareka.fr/comment-reparer (in French).
Discussion forums
Online discussion forums also contain information that can help you with a repair. However, not all information is equally reliable. So always be careful and critical. Specialised forums are usually more reliable than others.
Interesting and useful websites
We have listed a number of websites where you can generally find high-quality and useful information.
Source of this information
The information shared in this article is based on the information shared by Restarters. For the original article, please check https://wiki.restarters.net/How_to_search.