How long should household goods last?

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terrysgirl33

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This is a general question, brought on by the fact that DH and I are in our house 18 years and we have differences of opinion on how long we expect things to last! I've come across guidelines, but I'm also interested in peoples experiences.

So, how long do you expect the following items to last:
Couch and armchairs
Beds
Carpets
Paint (as in how often do you expect to re-paint)
Curtains
Cars

This is for things that need replacing due to wear and tear, not a change in fashion or unusually heavy use.
 
Beds (frames & head-boards) forever
Mattresses 6/7 years then dump
Bases for divan beds as for mattresses
Paint depends (smokers, open fires, pets, kids, frequent hooleys, etc)
Insulating curtains / blackout blinds near enough forever with dry-cleaning
Couches & arm chairs, depends on rug-rats and pets, over-sleepers, hooleys, etc
Cars, who knows. Decent diesels for long-distance work, forever, the latest whizz-bang life-style crap, a week at most
Marriage 4/5 months maybe.
 
So, how long do you expect the following items to last:

Couch and armchairs = If leather - 20 years, If fabric depends on animals/kids - 10 years
Beds = Frames - forever, mattresses - 10 years
Carpets = 20 years
Paint (as in how often do you expect to re-paint) = 15 years
Curtains = 20 years
Cars = 20 years before the maint/repair/running costs > newer 2nd hand car costs.
 
This is one of those how long is a piece of string questions, it all comes down to the quality of the item.

You can't expect a cheap nylon carpet with minimal backing to last as long as a pure wool carpet with heavy duty backing or the likes of sisal. A cheap softwood bed frame will never last as long as one made of oak even if the same jointing methods and fixtures are used, same goes for couches and armchairs.
 
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