Emergency Appliance Repair

An 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 immediately and call Hall Appliance Repair for local appliance repair in CITY. If there is an electrical fire involving one of the large or small appliances inside your home, we recommend calling the city fire department even before you attempt to eliminate the fire yourself.

An electrical fire from an appliance is very scary and very dangerous, but there are a few steps to be prepared in case of an emergency. If one of your appliances goes up in flames, it is very important to not panic and to remain calm. Follow our easy guidelines to keep your house safe from electrical fires.

HOW TO PREVENT ELECTRICAL FIRES

You can stop electrical fires before they start by following a few simple rules of appliance safety in a home. Do not plug in too many electrical devices into a single outlet—the wiring can become overloaded and then spark a fire, especially when there is clutter like paper or clothes near the outlet.

It can be easy to forget about the dangers of larger household appliances since they remain plugged in all the time, but they present as much of a fire hazard as smaller devices like toasters and space heaters. Large appliances like a dishwasher or washing machine shouldn’t be left running overnight or any time you’re not at home, and try not to keep a refrigerator or freezer in direct sunlight, to prevent possibly overworking their cooling systems inside.

Examine all of the outlets on a regular basis for excessive heat, burns, and crackling or buzzing sounds that could indicate electrical arcing. Be sure you have at least one smoke detector on each story of your house, and test the smoke detectors often to keep them in good working order.

WHAT TO NOT DO

If there is an appliance repair emergency involving an electrical fire, it can be tempting to put out the flames with water, however water shouldn’t be used to put out an electrical appliance fire.

Water conducts electricity, and dumping water on or near a power source can cause a dangerous electrical shock. It might even make the fire even worse. Water could conduct the electricity to other parts of the room, increasing the risk of igniting other flammable items nearby.

HOW TO PUT OUT AN ELECTRICAL FIRE

The immediate thing you need to do is unplug the appliance from the power source and call your fire department. Even if you think you might be able to take care of the fire yourself, it’s important to have backup if the fire does get out of control.

For small fires, you might be able to use baking soda to extinguish the flames. Covering the fuming or burning spot with some baking soda can prevent oxygen flow to the flames with minimal chance of electrocution. Baking soda also includes sodium bicarbonate, which is the same chemical in standard fire extinguishers. You also could be able to smother a small fire using a heavy blanket as well, but only when the flames are small enough not to catch the blanket on fire too.

For big electrical fires, use a Type C fire extinguisher. You should make sure you have at least one Type C or multi-use extinguisher in your house. Extinguishers should also be inspected consistently to ensure they are not expired. If there is a operational fire extinguisher in the home, just pull the pin near the top, aim the nozzle at the flames, and press the handle. If the fire gets too big to fight by yourself or you think the fire might block an exit, leave the house as fast as possible, shut the door behind you, and then wait for help from the local fire department.

For the small appliance fires, call Hall Appliance Repair once the flames are under control and we can diagnose the cause of the fire and repair the appliance and return it to working order.

OTHER RESOURCES:

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