Your Sirena won't switch on

Two parts, no more, and a two-minute test tells them apart. But first, unplug it: everything that follows is done with the machine disconnected.

The free thirty seconds

Test the socket with another appliance. If that doesn't work either, you have solved it without spending anything. Try a different socket too, in another room: sockets controlled by a wall switch catch people out more often than you'd think.

1. The power cord

This is the part that fails first, and always in the same place: where it enters the body of the machine. Every time you pull the machine the cord bends there, and after a few years of bending in the same spot the copper strands inside break, one at a time, while the sheath outside looks untouched.

The sign is unmistakable: the machine comes on if you hold the cord in a particular position, or it cuts in and out as you move it. If that is happening, there is no doubt about it: a conductor has broken.

Two important things. Don't tape it and don't repair it: a conductor that makes and breaks contact heats up at the point of the break, and that is how fires start. And change it even if it "still works for now if I hold it crooked".

It is replaced by removing the rear cover only, and there is a video showing every step.

2. The main board

If the cord is sound, the socket is good, and the machine stays completely silent — no hum, no click when you press the switch — the problem is on the board.

The board is also reached through the rear cover, without opening the motor, which is why you'll find it in the catalogue with its own video. It is the only electrical component worth changing yourself.

When you should stop instead

If switching it on trips the RCD in the house, or you can smell burning, do not order parts. There is an earth fault there, and it needs to be seen by someone who can measure it. Write to us and we'll tell you how to proceed.

If you can't work out which of the two

Photograph the cord where it enters the machine and send it to us on WhatsApp. In most cases it shows up in the photo.