As we’ve touched on in the past, there’s nothing worse than having an otherwise regularly functioning kitchen appliance that’s broken down when you need it most. Whether you’re seeking to cook the best Thanksgiving meal possible or you’re merely refrigerating some produce that you recently purchased for that clean juice cleanse, everyone has a good reason to keep their kitchen appliances in fully functioning condition.
While these aren’t quite universally owned household items, the vast majority of Americans at least own basic kitchen appliances like a refrigerator, an oven, or a stove, and many also own a dishwasher or a separate freezer. While kitchen appliances and other types of appliances add a lot of convenience to our hectic and crazy lives, they can also be costly to repair or even outright replace. In order to successfully and properly care for your kitchen appliances, it is important to be familiar with several common myths and misunderstands about appliance repair – particularly, kitchen appliance repair.
At Profix Appliance Service, we believe that our customers and readers should be well informed when it comes to the nuances of fixing a broken kitchen appliance, and that’s why today’s post is going to touch on 10 typical myths about kitchen appliance repair. Continue reading below to learn some useful things that you may not have known about kitchen appliance repair myths!
Myth #1: Appliances That Aren’t In Use Don’t Use Any Power
While it is logical to think that appliances that are in standby mode use no power whatsoever, the reality is that ‘sleeping’ appliances consume a significant amount of power even when they’re not in use – a microwave, for example, can use up to six watts an hour! Even a landline telephone (yes, they still exist) can use up to five watts of energy per hour, or more. So, are you looking to cut down on your mysteriously high power bill? The solution is simple – pull the plug on your appliances, don’t just shut them off.
Myth #2: Baking Soda Is The Best Way To Absorb Odor
While baking soda is indeed a tried and true way to absorb all the unwanted stench of your forgotten Chinese food leftovers at the back of your refrigerator, it turns out that activated charcoal is actually better at absorbing odor than baking soda. If you’re looking to maintain a professional and clean kitchen, then you’ll want activated charcoal to keep molds and bad toxins away from your kitchen, thus keeping your food fresh for longer periods of time.
Activated charcoal is even useful beyond absorbing the odors in your fridge! Place a small bag of activated charcoal on your kitchen countertop or your kitchen cabinets to neutralize any lingering odors from cooking. Additionally, activated charcoal works great to get rid of stinky pet related odors.
Myth #3: If There’s Water In The Bottom Of Your Dishwasher, That’s a Bad Sign
Actually, it’s a good thing if there’s leftover water at the bottom of your dishwasher! Well, a little water pooling up is a good thing if you ran a load of dishes (if water mysteriously appears in your dishwasher without running it, you might have kitchen ghosts).
How is excess water in your dishwasher a good thing? Well, by leaving a little water behind inside of the dishwasher, its seals will be properly moistened to prevent any possible cracks from occurring. Cracks, naturally, can lead to bigger headaches like major leaks, so keep an eye out on the water level in your dishwasher, and don’t freak out if you see a little water collect at the bottom.
Myth #4: The Radiation That Microwaves Emit Automatically Harms You
Out of all the kitchen appliance myths out there, this is probably one of the most popular. After all, most of us probably remember getting yelled at by our mother for standing too close to the microwave while it is running, watching your mediocre leftover macaroni and cheese meal come back to life.
While microwaves do use radiation to cook, the radiation is more or less only harmful to humans if you experience direct contact with the microwave radiation. This means that you’d have to literally get inside the microwave, close the door, and then run it. Unless you have a shrink ray, we’re not sure how you would accomplish this, and even if you did have a shrink ray, we still wouldn’t recommend climbing inside a microwave. Just make sure that the seals on your microwave door are properly intact and you’ll be good to continue safely heating up food.
Myth #5: You Only Need to Clean the Inside of Your Fridge
Okay, we’re not saying that you should neglect the cleanliness of the inside of your refrigerator, especially if you’re a leftover food enthusiast. That being said, routinely cleaning the outside of your refrigerator is arguably more vital to the longevity and performance of your fridge. How’s that?
That’s because of the condenser coils that are conveniently located on the outside of your fridge. Back in the day, it was a little bit easier to maintain your fridge and clean the coils on the outside because they were primarily located on the top of the fridge, making dusting a breeze. These days, most condenser coils are located underneath the fridge. Luckily, there are special refrigerator brushes that are specifically designed to clean the dust off of coils, and it only needs to be done a few times a year. Get to dusting!
Myth #6: Using the Self-Cleaning Cycle on the Oven Is Sufficient
The self-cleaning cycle might be good enough to touch up the cleanliness of your oven here and there, but it shouldn’t be solely relied on. For optimal oven maintenance, clean the vent filter regularly, or even replace it about once a year. Also, cleaning the vent hood filter above the range on your stove will help prevent a constant buildup of grease from the area around the range and the range’s cooktop, which will make the range easier to clean altogether.
Myth #7: You Don’t Need To Turn On Your Stovetop Ventilation Until There’s Smoke
If you want to risk burning down your kitchen in some stovetop fire, then yes, wait until there’s smoke in your stovetop area. In all seriousness, Profix Appliance Repair service recommends running your air ventilation mechanism about 5 to 10 minutes before you start cooking to create an airflow and leave it running 5 minutes after you’re done cooking for the best air-clearing results.
Contact Profix Appliance Service For More Information
If you have any confusion about what’s true and what’s not when it comes to fixing your kitchen appliances, then you should contact the experts today! Our friendly team is knowledgeable and experienced so we can troubleshoot even the most complex issues. To keep your kitchen in top running condition, trust our authorized appliance service in the Los Angeles area. Click here to learn more!