A typical appliance repair emergency might be a leak or smoke or even a fire coming from the home appliance.
In the event of an appliance emergency, unplug the appliance right away and then call First-Class Duluth Appliance Repair for local appliance repair in Duluth. If there is an electrical fire resulting from one of the large or small appliances inside your house, we recommend calling the town fire department before attempting to eliminate the fire on your own.
An electrical fire from an appliance can be very scary and extremely dangerous, but there are a couple of ways to be prepared in case of an emergency. If one of your appliances is in flames, it is very important not to panic. Follow our easy guidelines to keep your house safe from electrical fires.
PREVENTING ELECTRICAL FIRES
Homeowners can stop electrical fires from starting by following some basic rules of appliance safety. Be careful not to plug in a lot of devices into a single electrical outlet—the wiring can get overloaded and spark a fire, especially when there’s clutter like clothes or paper close to the electrical outlet.
It can be easy to forget about the apparent dangers of larger household appliances since they stay plugged in all of the time, but they still present as much of a fire hazard as smaller appliances like toasters and heaters. Large appliances like a dishwasher or washing machine should not be left running overnight or any time you are not at home, and don’t place a refrigerator or freezer in line of direct sunlight, to prevent possibly overworking the cooling systems inside.
Inspect all of the outlets regularly for extreme heat, burns, and crackling or buzzing sounds that could indicate electrical arcing. Make sure you store at least one working smoke detector on each floor of your house, and test the smoke detectors regularly to keep them in good working condition.
WHAT NOT TO DO
If there’s an appliance repair emergency such as an electrical fire, it can be tempting to douse the fire with water, but water should never be used to put out an electrical appliance fire.
Water conducts electricity, and dumping water on a power source can give a harmful electrical shock. It might even make the fire even worse. Water could conduct the electricity to additional areas of the room, increasing the chance of igniting more flammable objects nearby.
HOW TO EXTINGUISH AN ELECTRICAL FIRE
The first thing you should do is to unplug the device from the power source and call your local fire department. Even if you think you are able to take care of the fire on your own, it is important to have help if the fire does get out of hand.
For little fires, you could be able to pour on baking soda to smother the fire. Covering the smoking or burning spot with baking soda will sometimes prevent oxygen flow to the flames with minimal risk of electrocution. Baking soda also includes sodium bicarbonate, which is the substance used in regulation fire extinguishers. You might be able to extinguish a small fire with a heavy blanket as well, but only if the flames are small enough not to catch the blanket on fire too.
For larger electrical appliance fires, use a Type C fire extinguisher. You should always make sure you have at least one Type C or multi-use fire extinguisher in your house. Extinguishers should also be checked often to be sure they have not expired. If there’s a working extinguisher on hand, just pull the pin near the top, point the nozzle at the source of the flames, and press the handle. If the fire gets too dangerous to put out alone or you are concerned the fire may block an exit, leave the house as fast as possible, shut the door behind you, and wait for help from the local fire department.
For the small appliance fires, call First-Class Duluth Appliance Repair once the fire is extinguished and we will diagnose the cause of the fire and repair the appliance and restore it to its original condition.
OTHER RESOURCES:
Appliance Repair Cost
Appliance Repair Tips
Appliance Safety
Repair or Replace Appliances
Refrigerator Parts