Emergency Appliance Repair

An appliance repair emergency might be a leak or smoke or even a fire coming from the appliance.

In the event of an appliance emergency, unplug the appliance immediately and then call Esteem Appliance Repair for local appliance repair. If there’s an electrical fire resulting from one of the appliances in your house, we advise calling the city fire department before you try to extinguish the fire on your own.

An electrical fire can be scary and very dangerous, but there are a couple of ways to be prepared in the event of an emergency. If an appliance goes up in flames, it’s very important to not panic. Follow our simple guidelines below to help keep your house safe from electrical appliance fires.

HOW TO PREVENT ELECTRICAL FIRES

Homeowners are able to stop electrical fires before they start by following a couple of simple guidelines for appliance safety in a home. Do not plug too many devices into one electrical outlet—the wiring might get overloaded and spark a fire, especially if there’s clutter like clothes or paper close to the electrical outlet.

It’s possible to forget about the apparent dangers of larger household appliances since they stay plugged in all of the time, but they can present as much of a fire hazard as smaller electrical appliances like kitchen toasters and space heaters. Larger appliances like a washing machine or dishwasher should not be left running overnight or while you’re not at home, and don’t keep a freezer or refrigerator in line of direct sunlight, to prevent overworking the cooling systems.

Examine all of the outlets on a regular basis for excessive heat, signs of burns, and buzzing or crackling noises that could point to electrical arcing. Make sure you have at least one working smoke detector on each story of your home, and test them often to keep them in working condition.

WHAT NOT TO DO

If there’s an appliance repair emergency such as an electrical fire, it might be tempting to put out the fire with water, but water should never be used on an electrical appliance fire.

Water can conduct electricity, and dumping water on a power source might cause a severe electrical shock. It could even make the fire worse. Water might conduct the electricity to other locations of the room, increasing the chance of igniting more flammable items in the room.

HOW TO EXTINGUISH AN ELECTRICAL FIRE

The immediate step you need to do is to unplug the appliance from the power source and call the local fire department. Even if you think you can take care of the fire on your own, it is important to have backup if the flames do get out of hand.

For small fires, you might be able to pour on baking soda to extinguish the flames. Covering the smoldering or burning spot with some baking soda can prohibit oxygen flow to the fire with minimal risk of electrocution. Baking soda also contains sodium bicarbonate, which is the same chemical in regulation fire extinguishers. You also might be able to put out a small fire with a heavy blanket, but only when the fire is small enough not to catch the blanket on fire too.

For large electrical fires, use a Type C fire extinguisher. You should always be sure you own at least one Type C or multi-use fire extinguisher in your home. Extinguishers need to be checked often to be sure they have not expired. If there is a working extinguisher on hand, just pull the pin at the top, point the hose at the fire, and press the handle. If the fire gets too big to put out alone or you are concerned the fire may block an exit, leave the home as fast as possible, shut the door , and then wait for assistance from the fire department.

For the smaller appliance fires, call Esteem Appliance Repair once the fire is extinguished and we will identify the cause of the fire and repair the electrical appliance and return it to its original condition.

OTHER RESOURCES:

Appliance Repair Cost
Appliance Repair Tips
Appliance Safety
Repair or Replace Appliances
Refrigerator Parts