A good refrigerator doesn’t come cheap; therefore, you should take good care of it. According to refrigerator repair professionals, there are plenty of ways in which you can keep your refrigerator running as good as new. These ways include:

Clean the coils

While you might not be seeing the coils from the outside of the fridge, you need to keep them free of debris, dust, and pet hair for the refrigerator to function smoothly and efficiently.

The coils are located at the bottom of the fridge or at the back. For you to access them, you have to remove the grill. This calls for you to snap off the plate and remove a few screws.

A vacuum cleaner is enough to give the coils a clean look. You only need to ensure that that the cleaner has an attachment or stiff brush. For you to give the coils a clean look, you only need to run the brush or vacuum over and under the coils and remove as much dust from it as much as possible.

When cleaning the coils, also remember to clean the condenser fan.

Set the right temperature

Just like your heating or cooling systems, you need to set the right temperature for the fridge to work efficiently. When you set a high temperature, the food in the fridge might rot. At the same time, if you set a temperature that is too low, you might end up damaging the food.

The ideal temperature setting is one between 37 and 40 degrees Fahrenheit. When it comes to the freezer, you should set it at 5 degrees Fahrenheit for optimal freezing temperatures.

When you maintain these temperatures you ensure that the fridge is working efficiently. The temperatures also ensure that the food tastes good.

Change the filters

Did you know that refrigerators have filters that need to be changed? You need to keep an eye on them and if dirty or damaged, replace them. When you keep the filters clean and in good condition, you keep the icemaker and water dispenser clean. This ensures that the components run efficiently.

Many people tend to forget replacing the filters in their refrigerators. A great way of remembering to do it is to replace them when you are replacing those of the heating and cooling systems.

When buying the new filters, ensure that they are of high quality. This way you are sure they will provide you with excellent services and at the same time last for a long time.

Keep the fridge door closed all the time

You might have grown up in a family where the mother used to tell you to keep the refrigerator door closed all the time, right? Turns out she was right. For your fridge to function as good as new you need to keep the fridge door closed all the time.

When you keep the door open, you make the fridge work harder than it should, hence it consumes more energy than it should. You should minimize the amount of time you keep the door open by thinking about the items in the fridge beforehand so that when you go to the fridge, you retrieve them all at once.

After getting what you want, keep the door closed tightly.

Keep the fridge full

For the refrigerator to cool the food better, you need to keep it full all the time. While it’s good to keep it full, appliance repair Alexandria professionals warn against filling it too much to the extent that you block the vents and controls.

When you fill the unit too much, you make it hard for the air to circulate which makes the fridge work harder than it should.

If you have a dishwasher in your home or place of work there are a number of things you should know about it. Here are some of these things as given by dishwasher repair professionals:

Be cautious of the type of water you have

Your home has hard or soft water.  The nature of the water not only determines how clean the dishes get, it also determines the amount of detergent that you use. If you have hard water, you tend to use more water and vice versa. You also tend to use a lot of detergents.

On the other hand, if you have soft water, you don’t need to use a lot of detergents to keep the dishes clean. For you to avoid wasting your detergent and using too much detergent that ends up etching your dishes and glasses, you should determine the nature of the water in your home.

If you don’t know how to test it, ask a professional to help you out.

Ensure that the water getting into the dishwasher has the right temperature

For the water to easily break up the food particles that are left on the dishes, it should be between 120 degrees and 140 degrees Fahrenheit. If the temperature is lower than this, it will take longer for the dishwasher to clean the dishes. In some cases, you will find that the dishwasher doesn’t clean the dishes as well as it’s supposed to.

For you to help the dishwasher have an easy time keeping the water at the right temperature, you should run hot water at your sink for a short time before you start the dishwasher cycle.

Load the dishwasher properly

There is no way the dishes will be clean if you don’t load the dishwasher properly. You even end up damaging the unit if you don’t load it the way it’s supposed to.

One of the mistakes people make is putting the wrong ware on the wrong rack. You should note that some things are dishwasher-safe when they are on the gentler top rack while others require rigorous cleaning from the bottom rack.

For proper cleaning, place cups, bowls, glasses, and big utensils on the top rack. Pans, pots, and plates should go to the bottom rack.

When placing the dishes, take care that you don’t overfill it with too many dishes as they won’t get as clean as they are supposed to.

Every dishwasher has a little grid on top of the silverware basket that is meant to hold the silverware in place. Always make use of it so that the dishes have enough space for the water and suds to move freely between, thus ensuring that everything gets squeaky clean.

Use the right detergent

The detergent that you use determines the results that you get. It also determines how clean the dishes get. For ideal results, use biodegradable, eco-friendly, non-toxic brands.

When cleaning, avoid using a lot of detergents as using a lot of it leads to many soap suds that cause an overflow of condensation and water. A lot of detergents have also been shown to affect the dishwasher pipes leading to leakages.

Commercial appliance repair Fairfax professionals also show that using too much detergent speeds up the process of etching. This is the formation of a cloudy film on the glassware that is often difficult to remove.

Keep the dishwasher clean

While the dishwasher is meant to clean the dishes, you should remember to also keep it clean. At least once a week, clean both the insides and outsides of the unit with your favorite cleaning products.