Emergency Appliance Repair

A typical appliance repair emergency might be a leak or smoke or even flames coming from the household appliance.

If an appliance emergency occurs, unplug the appliance right away and call EZ Appliance Repair for local appliance repair in Missouri. If there’s an electrical fire from one of the large or small appliances inside of your house, we advise calling the town fire department before you attempt to eliminate the fire on your own.

An electrical fire can be scary and extremely dangerous, but there are a couple of steps to be prepared in case of an emergency. If an electrical appliance goes up in flames, it’s very important to not panic and remain calm. Follow our easy guidelines below to keep your home safe from electrical fires.

PREVENTING ELECTRICAL FIRES

Homeowners are able to stop electrical fires from starting by following some basic rules of appliance safety in a home. Don’t plug more than two electrical devices into one outlet—the wiring can get overloaded and then spark a fire, especially when there’s clutter like clothes or paper nearby the electrical outlet.

Sometimes we forget about the apparent dangers of large residential appliances since they remain plugged in all of 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 are not at home, and don’t keep a refrigerator or freezer in direct sunlight, in order to prevent overworking the cooling systems.

Inspect all of the outlets on a regular basis for extreme heat, burn marks, and buzzing or crackling noises that might point to electrical arcing. Be sure you store at least one smoke detector on each story of your house, and test the smoke detectors regularly to keep them in good working condition.

WHAT NOT TO DO

If there is an appliance repair emergency such as an electrical fire, it can be tempting to douse the flames with water, but water shouldn’t be used to douse an electrical appliance fire.

Water can conduct electricity, and throwing water on a power source could cause a dangerous electrical shock. It could even make the fire stronger. Water could conduct electricity to additional locations of the room, increasing the risk of igniting other flammable objects nearby.

HOW TO EXTINGUISH AN ELECTRICAL FIRE

The first thing you want to do is to unplug the electric device from the power outlet and call the local fire department. Even if you think you can take care of the fire on your own, it’s important to have backup if the fire does get out of control.

For minor fires, you may be able to use baking soda to douse the fire. Covering the fuming or burning area with some baking soda can block oxygen flow to the fire with minimal risk of electrocution. Baking soda also contains sodium bicarbonate, which is the same chemical used in regulation fire extinguishers. You also could be able to smother a small fire using a heavy blanket, but only when the fire is small enough not to catch the blanket on fire too.

For large electrical fires, you need a Type C fire extinguisher. You should be sure you own at least one Type C or multi-use extinguisher in your house. Extinguishers should also be inspected often to be sure they have not expired. If you have a operational fire extinguisher on hand, just release the pin near the top, aim the nozzle at the source of the fire, and squeeze the handle. If the flames get too big to fight by yourself or you are concerned 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 EZ Appliance Repair once the flames are extinguished and we can diagnose the reason for the fire and repair the appliance and restore it to working order.

OTHER RESOURCES:

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