Published by Programme B
In the average Canadian home, household appliances like water coolers, dishwashers, freezers, and fridges account for about 13.6% of the total energy used. This means that you should purchase energy-efficient home appliances. Also, maintaining them is crucial so that they don’t end up using more energy than they should.
Until one of your household appliances breaks down, you won’t realize how much you relied on it. You see, it is easy to forget about the things that you use regularly. Your laundry machine, fridge, or dishwasher are some of those appliances that you might be taking for granted. You might be under the false impression that they will keep working, but in reality, now and then they need your help. To ward off appliance repair for as long as you can, you can perform preventative maintenance regularly. This will prevent upsetting your appliances and extend their lifetime.
kelownaproappliance.ca shares some of the maintenance tips for your most vital home appliances so that they last longer.
- Oven and Stove Maintenance
You do not have to do too much maintenance on your oven & stove. You just have to keep it clean.
If you have an electric stovetop, you have to clean it to avoid dirt and food build-up which will prevent it from overworking. For glass stovetops, twice weekly cleaning is required. For burner models, use warm water and mild soap. Also, you have to clean the removable parts of the burner. As for gas stoves, the grills have to be cleaned using soapy water. This will prevent the ports from getting clogged and improve the efficiency of the stove.
Next, you have to make sure that the seal around the oven door is tight or your oven might lose up to 20% of its heat. If the door seal is malfunctioning, you might have to replace it.
For range hoods, you need to clean or replace the range hood filters or the downdraft vent filters. Also, keep the drip pans clean. If there have been any spills, clean quickly and immediately.
In case you have a self-cleaning oven, it would be best not to use any kind of oven cleaner but make sure that the stovetop is cleaned so that the gas burners are not being blocked.
- Refrigerator Maintenance
Even though refrigerators take a lot of space in the kitchen, they only take up a small piece of the homeowner’s mind. Most people expect them to just keep working. But, that’s not the case. There are quite a few things that you have to regularly maintain for your refrigerator to work efficiently for a long time.
First, cleaning the condenser coils so that all the dirt, dust, or pet hair is removed. You can either use a vacuum or clean them using warm water and soap. Make sure to dry them with a sponge or towel. If the coils are caked with dirt, it will take much longer for your food to chill and your refrigerator will also use a lot of electricity.
Second, the door seal has to be checked and ensured that it is tight. If there’s any leak, it will make your refrigerator inefficient.
Next, check the water filters and clean them. This is to ensure that your refrigerator doesn’t have any contaminants.
When you are checking or cleaning your refrigerator, make sure to unplug it first.
- Dishwasher Maintenance
If you are blessed to have a dishwasher, make sure to take care of it. First, you have to clean the filter at the bottom of the dishwasher regularly. The filter is generally found underneath the bottom sprayer, and it catches large bits of food or other dirt from getting lodged in the drain hose. To ensure that it doesn’t get clogged, you have to clean it periodically.
Never overload the dishwasher. If you stuff it with a lot of dishes, water might not get to all the dishes that need to be cleaned and you will have to run it again or wash the dishes by hand.
Then, if any glass breaks inside of the dishwasher, make sure to clean it up and get every last piece. Even tiny pieces can cut through a seal, and water may enter into the motor.
- Clothes Washer & Dryer Maintenance
When you are washing clothes using high-efficiency machines, make sure that you don’t use a lot of laundry detergent. Too much detergent might leave behind a film on the inner surface of your washer, and this might become a hotbed for mold. Also, pull the washer away from the wall and check all the hoses for regular wear and tear. You wouldn’t want a leak!
Ensure that your washer is firmly planted on the floor so that excessive vibrations do not occur. Too much vibration may loosen connections and cause water leaks. Also, you wouldn’t want to witness all that noise!
You might already know this, but you must clean out the lint filter, and this ought to be done after every cycle. The drying time is severely reduced if the lint filter is clogged, and it can even become a huge fire hazard.
On top of all this, you need to deep clean your dryer, and it should be done every few months. This is because lint might build up in a lot of places, other than the lint filter. Also, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to check the exhaust duct of the dryer for trapped lint. If you find any, clean it out.
To sum up, while every appliance will eventually need repair or replacement and you have to call the professionals, handling the machines with care and keeping the parts clean can extend their lifespan. This will result in fewer repair calls and less frequent buying of household appliances.