Tag Archives: commercial appliance repair

How To Organize A Fridge, The Right Way

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How you organize your fridge goes a long way toward keeping your fridge looking clean and determining how efficiently the appliance functions and lasts. Are you wondering how to organize your fridge? Here is how to go about it the right way as given by refrigerator repair professionals:

Sort the shelves

If you are like other homeowners, you are fond of squeezing food in any available space in your appliance. This is wrong, and it’s time to change.

You should properly organize the shelves, which comes in handy in helping reduce waste as you know where everything is. There is no right or wrong way to organize your shelves—work with what works for you. If you aren’t sure about where to start, here is a guide:

Top shelf: This is the first shelf you see when you open the fridge door and is one of the warmer shelves in your appliance. You should avoid keeping any fresh meat here. Instead, designate it for leftovers, takeout, and any other stuff that you need to eat soon.

Middle shelf: Temperatures are most consistent in the middle of the refrigerator, making it the perfect place to store foods that you need to keep cold but have a lower risk of spoiling. Some of the excellent foods to keep here are: deli meats, eggs, sour cream, and soft cheese.

Bottom shelf: This is the coldest place in the refrigerator, so you should store items that spoil easily here. The best candidates are fish and meat.

It’s tempting to keep milk on the top shelf for easy access, but you shouldn’t as milk spoils easily. The best place to store it is near the bottom and back of the refrigerator.

If you are fond of forgetting items that you have tucked into the back of the fridge, stack them on a rotating organizer so that you can easily grab them and check their expiration dates.

Keep the drawers organized.

Drawers help you keep your fridge organized and hold specific humidity levels that come in handy at keeping the various foods properly preserved.

There are two main types of drawers: high and low humidity drawers.

The vegetables store best in high humidity drawers, and most fridges will have a vegetable drawer, often at the bottom. If the drawer isn’t labeled, look for one without a vent or close the vent yourself.

Some of the items you should store here are spinach, green onion, broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, and leafy greens.

The low humidity drawer is often labeled “crisper” and has air vents, and is the best place to store the fruits that break down easily. Some of the best fruits to store here are: pears, oranges, strawberries, kiwi, grapes, and raspberries.

If your drawer doesn’t have a humidity control or air vent, keep the drawer a little cracked to create more airflow.

Make use of the door.

The door is the refrigerator’s warmest zone, and you should store items that don’t easily get spoilt. They include: mustard, sesame oil, ketchup, salad dressing, mayo, and hot sauce.

The door is also an excellent place to store wine, juice, and beer beverages.

Valuable tips when storing items in the fridge

To have a great time with the items, you store in the fridge, you need to consider several tips. These tips include:

Use clear containers: To stick to a system and keep everything in its place, you should use a few shallow clear containers. To avoid confusion, label the containers depending on the food you have stored inside and its expiration date.

Keep the fridge clean: You want to ensure that your fridge is clean. Besides dusting it daily, you should make it a habit to remove everything at the end of the week and give it a good scrub. If possible, remove the shelves and drawers and let them soak in hot soapy water.

You should then wipe the entire interior taking care not to use abrasive cleaning products that can harm the plastic.

Once you are done, appliance repair Springfield recommend you replace the shelves and drawers, then store a box of baking soda in them to help fight the fridge odors.

8 Dishwasher Hacks Every Homeowner Should Know

While dishwashers have been around for a long time, most homeowners know only their basic workings. As you can guess, this means that they always achieve mediocre results with their appliances.

What they don’t know is that there are plenty of dishwasher hacks they can use to get cleaner dishes and maintain their appliances for a long time. Wondering which hacks are these? Here they are as given by dishwasher repair professionals:

You don’t need to rinse the dishes

To make the work easy for the dishwashers, some homeowners rinse their dishes. This is unnecessary.

If you have been taking good care of your dishwasher, the appliance shouldn’t have a problem wiping off the chunks of extra food that could potentially clog your drains.

A well-maintained dishwasher should generate enough water pressure and heat to wash off even food that might have dried and stuck on the dishes.

Run a cycle with vinegar

If you have hard water and your dishwasher builds up mineral deposits, run a cycle with vinegar. The beauty of vinegar is natural, so you don’t have to worry about damaging your dishwasher. It’s also highly effective at getting rid of the musty smells, so you have a fresh-smelling appliance.

Once every few weeks, run a complete dishwasher cycle without any dishes or detergent. The vinegar will remove all the trapped particles, detergent residues, and minerals that might have built up in the appliance.

Load the dishes from the back to front

It’s definitely easier to pop a crack in the dishwasher and stick your dirty dishes there, but this isn’t the right way to go about it. This is because this leads to you having a problem keeping the dishes clean and unloading them.

For your dishes to be clean and easy to unload, pull the rack all the way out and load the dishwasher from the back to front.

Organize your flatware properly

If you don’t have a premium dishwasher with a horizontal silverware tray, place the forks and spoons pointing up and some pointing down. If your appliance doesn’t allow this, ensure that you don’t put all the forks together—mix them up with spoons.

When you mix them up, you allow the water to pass through each utensil more easily, so you have cleaner tines and spoon surfaces.

Arrange the plates facing inward

Most of the standard dishwasher models have sprayer arms that shoot water from the bottom center of the machine, stopping just a few inches short of the interior walls.

If you arrange the plates facing outward, the water jets might fail to reach the surfaces facing the wall, and you have unwashed dishes by the end of the cycle. To avoid this, arrange the plates facing inwards instead.

Put the bowls on the bottom rack, facing the center

Due to their shape, it’s tempting to place the bowls in the empty spots in the dishwasher, but don’t do this as they might damage the plates. They also might not get as clean as you want them.

To avoid this, place the bowls at the bottom rack, facing the center. When placing them, ensure there is a little overlap between them as much as possible. This is to ensure that the bowls receive the full force of the water stream and you don’t have smudgy spots.

Place the delicate items on the top rack.

The fragile items such as plastic storage containers, stemware, and glasses should go in the top rack, away from the jets. The reason for this is because the water pressure and temperature are a tad lower here. As a result, the items you place here are less likely to break or melt.

You can use the dishwasher to clean other items.

Besides the dishes, you can use the dishwasher to clean other items such as plastic kids’ toys, baseball caps, metal cabinet handles, and plastic combs. To ensure that these items get thoroughly clean, appliance repair Alexandria professionals recommend that you place them at their appropriate racks.

You also should run them on a separate cycle—don’t mix them with your dirty dishes. Before you put anything in the dishwasher, confirm that it’s dishwasher safe. You don’t want to damage it, do you?

How Can I Make My Refrigerator Work Better?

Have you noticed that your fridge is consuming a lot of energy? According to refrigerator repair professionals, the reason for this is that you aren’t taking good care of your fridge to work better.

How can I make my refrigerator work better? If you are asking this question, you should know that there are plenty of ways to make it possible. These ways include:

Clean the fridge

Like your air conditioner or furnace, the fridge works better and more efficiently when clean. Besides wiping the shelves, you also should clean the coils behind the appliance. As you can tell, this calls for you to pull the fridge from the wall and remove any dirt and grime that might be on the coils.

If you are new with the fridge, you will find the coils across the bottom front, behind the grille. Dust and vacuum the exposed coils. Also, vacuum the area where the fridge stays.

Give the fridge room to breathe.

The fridge emits some heat, and when you place it too close to the wall, it has a problem dispersing the heat, which can choke it and prevent it from working as well as it should.

For the fridge to function efficiently, ensure that there is at least 5 cm of space between the fridge and the walls. There also should be 5 cm of space around the appliance.

In the same way, you should give the fridge enough space to breathe by keeping it away from the wall, you also should keep it away from the heat sources such as the oven and radiators. You also should keep it away from direct sunlight sources.

Keep the fridge full.

You might feel that a full refrigerator consumes more energy than an empty one, but this isn’t the case. A full fridge has less air to keep cool, so it doesn’t work too hard to keep it cool.

When you load many items in the fridge, these items help each other cool, making the refrigerator’s work even easier.

For a properly functioning fridge, keep it at least 2/3 full.

If you don’t have a lot of money to spend on supplies, you can fake the full look. You need to fill pitchers with tap water and place them in the excess spaces in the fridge. This creates a full factor that tricks the fridge to run efficiently. You also have plenty of chilled water to use during the hot, sweaty days.

You should note that while you should keep the fridge full, you should avoid overstocking it, as you will block efficient airflow, which can make the fridge overwork. And you don’t want this, do you?

Store the food properly.

Store the food using refrigerator safe containers. The best are glass containers as they absorb and retain cold better, so the refrigerator doesn’t keep working. You also should cover the foods and liquids to avoid overworking the compressor.

As you are organizing the food, take care not to block the air vents.

Keep the fridge closed.

In the middle of summer, you can be tempted to open the fridge door and let the cool air get into the kitchen, but this can be the worst mistake as the unit consumes a lot of energy that it shouldn’t have.

In the same way, you wouldn’t open your oven door to warm things up in winter, you shouldn’t keep the fridge door open to let the cold air to the rest of the house.

To keep the fridge in top condition all the time, keep the door closed at all times, unless you are getting something.

Many people open the door and spend up to a minute standing there deciding on what they want. Don’t do this as you will be wasting valuable energy.

Before you open the door, you should have decided what you want. Pick the item and close the door to reduce energy consumption.

Cool things before you put them in the fridge

After preparing the meals, don’t put them directly in the fridge. Commercial appliance repair Springfield professionals recommend you let the food cool first to prevent the fridge from overworking.

How To Fix An Ice Maker Not Making Ice

Virginia Refrigerators Repair

You have heard that making ice takes time, so you take your sweet time. You check your ice maker after a few minutes, and there is nothing. You come back after a few hours and still, nothing.

What could be wrong? You wonder.

A properly functioning ice maker should produce ice, so if yours isn’t, you have a problem you should address as soon as possible. To help you out, here are tips given by refrigerator ice maker repair experts on how to fix ice maker not making ice:

Check the water connections.

The failure of the appliance to make ice is most likely due to poor water connections. Since the connections vary depending on the refrigerator models, it’s hard to pinpoint where the connections are located, so check the instructions in your appliance’s user manual.

If you don’t have the hard copy manual, you can always download it online. Before you touch the connections, first confirm they are correctly in place and unobstructed.

Since you are inexperienced, avoid tinkering with connections in hard to reach areas as you can easily damage your appliance.

Check the power connections.

Sometimes you might get your pants in a bunch for nothing. You might think your appliance is faulty, but in a real sense, it’s simply switched off. Check the power connection to the ice maker. Is it switched off? If it is, switch it on.

Check the water supply line.

If you can see the arm swing into motion accompanied by a buzz, and yet the appliance isn’t making ice, it means the water valve is asking for water that isn’t arriving.

This often happens when the valve and the solenoid function properly, but the water supply isn’t.

Check your appliance’s water supply that will most likely be located behind or beneath the refrigerator. Find the shut-off valve behind the fridge or under the sink, turn it off, unscrew the copper line from the back of the fridge, put the copper line in a bucket, turn on the valve and see whether water pours out.

Confirm whether the filter has clogged up

Like a furnace and other appliances in your home, the ice maker will fail to make ice if the filters are clogged up. A dirty filter reduces the amount of water getting into the ice machine, reducing the ice maker’s chances of making ice.

If you find out the filter is clogged, clean it following the owner’s manual instructions.

Check the tap valve

The tap valve is a small device that connects the ice maker’s water supply tube to the water pipe. In some cases, the valve develops problems, so water fails to get to the ice maker.

If you do the inspection and find the valve malfunctioning, replace it together with the inlet valve. When undertaking the replacement, go for a valve that requires you to drill a ¼ inch hole instead of the self-piercing type.

You can purchase the connection kit and work yourself or hire a repair professional to do the work for you.

Take a look at the solenoid.

The solenoid attaches to the water line at the back and bottom of the fridge then travels to the ice maker. Sometimes the solenoid gets defective or fails to receive power resulting in plenty of problems.

Inspect the solenoid, unplug the refrigerator, and then remove the sediment screen inside and flush it with water. While at it, take a look at the seals and confirm they are in perfect working condition.  If not in good shape, replace them.

Look out for a frozen line.

It’s common to have a frozen water line, especially if you live in icy areas. To fix the frozen line, unplug the fridge, then locate the shut-off valve, often located under the sink or behind the fridge.

You should then turn the valve to the closed or off position then fill the turkey baster with warm water. You can also defrost the line with a hairdryer or by letting the fridge sit unplugged for at least two hours.

If you do this and still the ice maker doesn’t make ice, ask an experienced commercial appliance repair Northern VA professional to inspect the appliance. It might be having a more serious problem.

Washer Repair: How To Use A Washing Machine

According to washer repair professionals, the primary reason homeowners damage their washing machines is due to improper use. Have you been having issues with your appliance? Here are washing machine dos and don’ts:

Do read the tags

It’s no secret washing machines have come a long way, but despite all the technological advancements, they can’t read tags and tell the right settings. It’s up to you to do it.

You should note that failure to read the tags results in color bleeding, fabric shrinking, and even damage to your priced attire.

 Don’t use extra detergent.

You might have the impression using extra laundry detergent will get the clothes cleaner, but this isn’t the case. You are better off washing your load twice in a row with a normal amount of detergent than use extra detergent.

If your clothes are too dirty, use the prewash setting that you can use to remove the extra dirt. The reason you shouldn’t use extra detergent is because extra soap won’t rinse away properly, so you will have your clothes still with soap by the time you are removing them from the washing machine.

Extra detergent also means water will remain in your clothes and wind up deposited on the interior of your washing machine, where it risks gunking up the appliance components.

Do balance the machine.

An unbalanced washing machine is not only noisy, but it also works harder, so you end up with a huge electricity bill at the end of the month. The overworking appliance also tends to have a shorter lifespan.

To solve this, balance your washing machine. Thankfully, the process is simple as it involves adjusting the machine on the bottom corners, which takes a few minutes, and you don’t need to involve a professional.

Don’t leave wet clothes inside.

When you are multitasking, it’s normal to forget you have clothes in your appliance, and they sit there for a long time. This is wrong as the clothes tend to grow mildew and smell, which is bad for you, your washing machine, and your clothes.

To avoid this, set a timer on your phone to know when the cleaning cycle is complete. Don’t let the clothes sit here for long. Switch them immediately to avoid a smelly, damaged load.

Do clean the washing machine.

Since you use the washing machine to clean the clothes, it remains clean, so you don’t need to clean it, right? Wrong. Like any other appliance, you should clean your washing machine regularly.

Set the machine to a hot cycle and add a cup of vinegar to it. This will sanitize it and remove the off-putting smells. You don’t need to involve a technician but if you aren’t handy, let them help you out.

Don’t overload the machine.

Cramming the entire load in one go won’t save water or energy. You also won’t complete your work fast. Clothes crammed in the washing machine don’t move around enough to get a proper clean, so you are forced to rewash them.

For best results, put just enough clothes in the washing machine.

In the same way, you shouldn’t overload the machine, you shouldn’t wash small loads using a large load cycle as the machine will consume a lot of water and energy. Use the right cycle for your load size.

Do empty your pockets.

Before you put the clothes in the washing machine, check whether there are tissues, coins, keys, or any other item in your pockets. Remember, even a small item such as a coin or metallic button can damage the washing machine. Items such as tissues can cover the entire load in white fluff, forcing you to repeat the cleaning.

Do let expert professionals handle complex faults.

Even with the best care, it’s common for the washing machine to develop problems. For example, the water pipe can get blocked. When such issues come about, unless you have the skills, let a certified and experienced commercial appliance repair Alexandria technician handle them.

You don’t want to attempt fixing the appliance and cause more problems than were initially there, do you? When hiring the repair technician, ensure they are experienced enough. They also should be insured so you are safe in the event of an accident.

Ways A Commercial Appliance Repair Professional Can Help You

As a business owner, you need to be able to easily source commercial appliance repair professionals when you need them. Unlike with appliances in your home where you can delay a day or two before you fix them, you need to fix the appliances in your commercial business as soon as possible to keep your customers happy and reduce losses.

How commercial repair professionals help your business

Depending on your business, repair professionals can help your business in different ways. Some of these ways include:

Bars and pubs

To serve your customers properly, you need glasses, and when you don’t have clean glasses for the customers to use, you have no business. You also need fridges, ice coolers, and freezers working at all times for you to serve refreshing beverages.

If you have a problem with any of the appliances, you should contact a repair professional as soon as possible to fix the problem.

Restaurants

As a business owner in the food industry, you are reliant on your appliances running in top condition at all times. If your fridge or freezer has broken down, you have wasted stock. If the dishwasher is not working, the staff are forced to clean the dishes manually, which can stretch them too far, and when the ovens aren’t working, they can decimate your menu.

A commercial repair professional will visit your establishment, inspect your appliance, and fix the prevailing problems.

Dry cleaners

When your washing machines and tumble dryers are malfunctioning, no work can be done, and when you decide to work with them, you risk tearing at your customer’s clothing. The repair professionals will help you diagnose the washing machines, tumble dryers and washer dryers and fix the problems they are having.

What should you consider when hiring the repair professional?

You know the repair technician is vital for your business, but what should you consider when hiring for you to hire the right one?

Certifications and licenses

You don’t want a quack to work on your appliances, do you? To ensure you are working with a professional who abides by the federal and state laws, ensure you hire a certified professional.

You should note that some contractors will try to fake the certifications, so take your time to ascertain the certifications are genuine. You also should ensure the contractor is licensed to work in your local area. Avoid working with an unlicensed technician as they might not be qualified to provide the services.

Customer service

How do the contractors treat you? Do they make you feel special? When you call them, do they respond to your calls fast? And when you leave a voice message, how soon do they reach back? These are some of the things you should look out for to determine whether you will have a smooth ride with the technician.

If you are like other business owners, you hate hiring a new contractor for every problem that crops up—you want to use the same technician for all appliance problems so that you will be working with them for a long time.

Due to this, you want to work with a technician with a likable personality.

Professionalism

Some contractors have the impression they are tradesmen, so they don’t put a lot of effort into maintaining professionalism when they are dealing with their clients. So when you contact them and ask them when they will come to repair your appliance, they give a vague answer such as, they will arrive anywhere between 10 A.M and 4 P.M.

Others will show up much later than agreed and don’t even come with the proper tools, so they waste time trying to complete the work with the wrong tools. You don’t want this.

You want to work with a professional company that treats its customers with respect. You can tell this from the conversations you have with the company before you begin working with them. You want a technician who talks professionally and gives clear timeframes of when and how they will accomplish the work.

Repair cost

Before you decide to work with a given company, get quotations from different companies. While at it, avoid extremely cheap companies as they will provide you with a cheap service. At the same time, avoid an appliance repair Alexandria company charging you exorbitant prices as it will most likely be ripping you off. Take time to find a company that gives you an excellent service at an affordable price.

Does a Refrigerator Need To Be Level? Refrigerator Repair Experts Answer

Virginia Refrigerators Repair

When you install a new refrigerator, the first thing you should do before you slide it into position is to ensure it’s leveled. If you are wondering why does a refrigerator need to be level, for one, you should know a leveled refrigerator looks great. A leveled unit also functions better.

Luckily, if your unit isn’t leveled, you can easily do it. Here is how to go about it as given by refrigerator repair experts:

Locate the legs

The most effective way of leveling the fridge is by adjusting the legs. The access points for the legs vary depending on the manufacturer, where some are easy to access without removing the panels, while others require you to remove the panels.

Find out the type of refrigerator you have and do the necessary. Once you reach the legs, inspect them for screws and bolts, and if present, you need to adjust them. You can rotate some of the legs freely while others will require you to use a wrench or screwdriver.

Rotate the legs

To rotate the legs, look along the top and bottom. You will see a slot near the top or a screw or bolt near the bottom. Using a flat head screwdriver or an adjustable wrench or pliers, turn the leg clockwise to raise the fridge and counterclockwise to lower it.

For easy time, level the refrigerator from left to right. To ensure the fridge is level, place the level on top of the fridge behind the door and adjust the legs accordingly.

Adjust the rollers

If you adjust the legs and still the refrigerator isn’t leveled, you should now adjust the rollers. Begin with removing the grille over the legs using your hands. If unsure how to go about it, consult the owner’s manual.

Each roller has a screw-on it that requires you to use pliers or a wrench to adjust it. You should turn the screw clockwise to raise the legs or counterclockwise to lower them.

After adjusting, measure the refrigerator tilt with a level. Place the level at the top of the fridge behind the door, and if the rollers are properly adjusted, the level will be flat from left to right.

As you are leveling the fridge, never tilt it back, prop or jack it unless the manufacturer advises you to do it. This is because even small appliances are heavy enough to cause serious injuries when they tip over or fall. Also, don’t attempt to lay the fridge on its back or side.

Other ways to keep your refrigerator functioning optimally

Other than keeping the refrigerator leveled, there are plenty of other things you can do to keep your fridge functioning optimally. Some of these things include:

Keep the appliance clean: Most homeowners only clean the outside of the refrigerator, which often isn’t enough to keep the fridge working properly. At least once a week, remove all the food in the refrigerator and clean the insides.

While at it, inspect the seals and ensure they are in good shape. Remember, if they are faulty, cold air will escape making it harder for the unit to keep its cool. So replace them if necessary.

If the seals aren’t damaged, clean them with warm soapy water that will stop debris and food spills from blocking them.

Give the fridge enough space: There is no way a stressed refrigerator will function optimally, so ensure your appliance has enough breathing space. The unit should have enough space on the top, back, and sides. This way, the unit will have enough space to expel heat.

Don’t overload the appliance: It’s common for homeowners to pack the fridge with as many products as it can take. This often happens after they have visited the grocery store. You should note that when you store too many items in the refrigerator, you prevent air from circulating as well as it should, and the air conditioner works harder than it should preserve the food.

Overloading the appliance also leads to excessive wear and tear as given by appliance repair Northern VA experts. To keep your appliance in top shape and prevent it from getting damaged, only stock what the unit can take.

Appliance Repair: Washing Machine Maintenance Tips

For your expensive washing machine to last longer and function optimally, you need to take good care of it. According to appliance repair professionals, you should have a daily, weekly, and monthly washing machine maintenance routine to keep the appliance in top shape the entire year-round:

Daily maintenance of the washing machine

Once you are done using the machine, take some time to wipe the drum. This comes in handy at preventing the machine from getting smelly. You also should check the detergent compartment and confirm whether there are still any detergent residues left.

If there are any left, wipe them away with a clean dish rag. By so doing, you prevent mold from building up. If you want to have an ultra-clean appliance, clean it with a hose taking care not to damage it with excessive water pressure.

Once the clothes are clean, immediately remove them from the washing machine and transfer them to the dryer or hang them on the clothing line to dry. You shouldn’t leave them in the washing machine as they will get moldy and musty.

When you aren’t cleaning, leave the washing machine door open. This will allow the air to circulate inside the machine reducing the chances of mold or awful smells from developing.

Weekly washing machine maintenance

At least once a week, inspect the washing machine for signs of leakages. Ensure that the rubber seal of the washing machine hose is still working perfectly at sealing the connection of the hose and the water source.

If you notice the connection beginning to deteriorate, consider replacing it.

Pay attention to the detergent compartment water slots. These are the slots where the water comes out. Ensure that there are no hard minerals or residues left that might clog the slots. Pay close attention to them and clean them if necessary.

Monthly washing machine maintenance tips

Here you should pay attention to the belt of the washing machine and pay attention to any signs of wear and tear. If the machine is wearing out faster than it should, the chances are that you are using the wrong laundry cycle.

Take time to go back to the manual and confirm the cycle you should be using. You also should use the washing machine wisely by avoiding running small laundry cycles.

Are there worn out or damaged parts that should be replaced? Whether they are belts or bearings, replace them if they need to. While at it, tighten up screws or parts that might have gotten loose.

If you live in a hard water region, limescale can build up, leading to plenty of problems such as limescale building up on the heating element resulting in the component being less effective.

To prevent this, descale the washing machine at least once a month. If the water in your area isn’t hard, you should still descale your appliance, but you should do it every three to six months.

Proper washing machine use

How you use the machine goes a long way towards keeping it in top shape. One of the things you shouldn’t do is to overload the machine. When you overload it, you throw the machine off balance which leads to plenty of problems.

If you are new to using the machine, consult the owner’s manual for instructions on the proper loading sizes.

Keep the machine level: Washing machines always vibrate when working, and when they aren’t level with all the four legs, they rock back and forth and even vibrate strongly than they should.

To prevent this, ensure that the machine is level at all times. You also should keep it as close to the floor as possible to reduce the vibration.

Use the right amount of detergent: Most people pay attention to the information given on the packaging, but you shouldn’t. The best way out is to follow the owner’s manual and follow the instructions given by the washing machine manufacturer.

According to commercial appliance repair Springfield, when you do this way, you don’t use more detergent than you should hence putting your appliance at the risk of clogging up.

Refrigerator Repair: Refrigerator Noises And What They Mean

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The refrigerator isn’t quiet, but it shouldn’t make noises that interrupt conversations or prevent you from sleeping. If your appliance produces unfamiliar or annoying noise that is accompanied by other issues such as food not cooling correctly, you have a cause for concern.

Unless you have the skills, let an experienced refrigerator repair professional inspect the fridge, find the source of the noise, and fix it. Some of the noises that the refrigerator can produce include:

Rattling

Rattling sounds mean something is loose. The most common culprit is the plumbing pipes at the back that provide water to the water dispenser and ice maker.

Rattling noises are common when you have recently repaired your fridge but failed to properly secure the plumbing line before reassembling the fridge.

Rattling noises aren’t alarming, and you have nothing to worry about, but if the refrigerator is bouncing around, you can easily damage the fridge leading to a leak. So to prevent this from happening, fix the rattling noises as soon as you notice them.

Are the rattling noises coming from the bottom of the fridge? The chances are that the drain pan is moving around as the refrigerator is running. You should adjust the drain pan so that it stops moving.

Dripping noises

Dripping noises are common in refrigerators, but sometimes they get out of hand, which is a sign of trouble. So you should always have your ear out for any sign of trouble.

Normal dripping noises come from the exterior of the fridge after you have turned off the compressor. The sounds also come about from the freezer compartment as you put water into the ice maker.

If you notice dripping sounds inside the refrigerator compartment, you have a reason to be worried. This is because the sounds mean you might be leaking into the defrost system.

Normally, the system melts frost and whisks it away quietly. When there are dripping noises, something is wrong, and you should ask a professional to give it a look.

Squealing noises

A normal functioning refrigerator shouldn’t sound like a bird, or small critter is trapped inside. Is your appliance making chirping or squealing sounds?

The chances are that the evaporator is malfunctioning. If you have the skills, you can try accessing the evaporator by removing the contents in the freezer and looking at the inside panel at the back of the freezer.

While at it, check whether the blades are operating smoothly by simply spinning them. You also should inspect the evaporator wires for signs of wear and tear.

If the fan blade isn’t moving freely and the wires are damaged or showing signs of corrosion, consider replacing them.

Popping noises

Popping noises are no cause for concern as they often result from the plastic parts of the fridge as they contract and expand due to the rising and falling of the temperature.

You will notice the noises often during the defrosting cycle, especially in new refrigerators, as they acclimate to the new humidity and temperature levels in the new house.

If your fridge is new, you have nothing to worry about as the noises fade with time.

However,  if you hear a loud pop, you have a problem you should address immediately. A loud pop will happen when the refrigerator light bulb explodes or goes out.

If the noise is due to a bulb explosion and you recently replaced it, you were using the wrong bulb. It’s also possible that the light socket has started to short circuit.

If you didn’t recently replace the bulb, the light socket is the problem.  To prevent the problem from coming about in the future, replace the light socket. Of course, replace it with one that is designed for the type of your house.

Banging noises

You will hear banging sounds as ice falls from the ice maker into the bucket. You should note that you will have similar noises when something inside the fridge falls over.

You shouldn’t be worried about banging sounds, but if the thumping or knocking is consistent and extremely loud, you have a reason for concern.

Ask an experienced commercial appliance repair Alexandria professional to inspect the source of the problem and fix it.

Appliance Repair: 7 Ways To Keep Your Refrigerator Functioning Efficiently

appliance repiar

Refrigerators work hard to keep the food cold and safe. Unfortunately, many kitchen owners don’t do much to love them back. According to appliance repair professionals, this results in the appliances breaking down more often.

They also consume a lot of energy. Do you want your refrigerator to run efficiently? Put these tips into action:

Keep it away from hot appliances

It’s common to have ovens, dishwashers, and other heat-producing appliances at home. The heat produced by these appliances makes the refrigerator work harder to maintain its cool temperature. As you might guess, this leads to a high electricity bill.

To prevent the appliance from working too hard, put the fridge as far away from the heat-producing devices as much as possible. If you have a large kitchen, put the refrigerator at a designated area.

Fill it up

Some clueless homeowners have the notion that the refrigerator functions better with fewer items, but this isn’t the case. You should note that the more stuff the fridge has, the more efficient it runs.

If you don’t have a lot of food to store in the fridge, fill pitchers with tap water and place them in the excess spaces in the refrigerator.

Replace the rubber seal on the door

Also known as a gasket, the rubber seal protects the fridge from unwanted warm air from getting into the refrigerator. The opening and closing of the door wear out the gaskets, and it’s only a matter of time before you have to replace them.

When the rubber seal wears out completely, warm air from the outside enters the fridge, which triggers it to work even harder, which translates to high energy bills at the end of the month.

To keep warm air from entering the fridge, replace the worn-out rubber seals.

Clean it up

In addition to cleaning the insides of the appliance, you also should pay attention to the outside and especially the back of the unit. Pull the refrigerator away from the wall and get rid of dirt and grime from the coils.

If you have a modern appliance, the coils will be behind the grille. Dust and vacuum the exposed coils. You also should clean the area where the refrigerator stays. The beauty of cleaning the fridge is that you don’t need to hire a professional to help you out. You can easily do it by yourself.

Keep the fridge closed

The longer you keep the fridge open, the more the hot air gets in which triggers the refrigerator to work too hard than it should. For you to prevent a lot of hot air from getting into the fridge, keep it closed most of the time.

Most people spend a lot of time on the fridge door when they can’t remember what they are looking for. For you to reduce the amount of time you keep the door open, know what you are precisely looking for.

This way, you will be sticking your hand straight into what you want and close the fridge door.

Cool off the leftovers

If you have leftover food, don’t put it straight into the fridge while still hot. This is because it can dramatically increase the refrigerator temperature, making the compressor work too hard to cool the refrigerator.

A simple act as letting the food cool down first can go a long way at taking the strain off the fridge. By cooling the food, you reduce the amount of heat you add to the interior of the appliance; hence it doesn’t work hard to cool the food.

To prevent residual heat from escaping from the appliance, store the food in protective wrapping or Tupperware before placing it in the refrigerator.

Keep the refrigerator organised

Keeping the fridge organized makes it easy for people to find things they are looking for; hence you spend less time on the door.

If your fridge is overstocked, get rid of the excess items. Have you placed large bread items, serving dishes, and food boxes on the top shelf? Remove them from there.

Refrigerator repair Springfield professionals report that large objects at the top of the fridge trap heat inside the unit, forcing the compressor to work harder than it should, which translates to a high energy bill.

To reduce your cooling costs, get rid of these items.