Emergency Appliance Repair

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

If an appliance emergency arises, unplug the appliance right away and call Marion Appliance Repair for local appliance repair. If there is an electrical fire resulting from one of the large or small appliances in your home, we recommend calling the city fire department before attempting to put out the fire by yourself.

An electrical fire is scary and extremely dangerous, but there are a couple of steps to be prepared in case of an emergency. If an appliance is in flames, it is important not to panic. Follow our simple guidelines below to help keep your home safe from electrical appliance fires.

PREVENTING ELECTRICAL FIRES

You can prevent electrical fires from ever starting by following a few basic rules of appliance safety. Do not plug in more than two electrical devices into one outlet—the wiring can become overloaded and then spark a fire, especially if there is clutter like clothes or paper nearby the electrical outlet.

It can be easy to forget about the apparent dangers of larger appliances because they are plugged in all the time, but they can present as much chance for a fire hazard as small electrical devices like toasters and heaters. Large appliances like a washing machine or dishwasher shouldn’t be left to run overnight or while you’re away from home, and don’t keep a refrigerator or freezer in line of direct sunlight, in order to prevent possibly overworking their cooling systems.

Check all outlets on a regular basis for extreme heat, signs of burns, and crackling or buzzing noises that might point to electrical arcing. Make sure you have at least one working smoke detector on every floor of your home, and test them quarterly to keep them in working order.

WHAT NOT TO DO

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

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

HOW TO EXTINGUISH AN ELECTRICAL FIRE

The first thing you need to do is to unplug the device from the power source and call the fire department. Even if you think you are able to take care of the fire on your own, it’s a good idea to have help if the flames do get out of hand.

For little fires, you may be able to pour on baking soda to smother the fire. Covering the smoking or burning spot with a layer of baking soda can prohibit oxygen flow to the flames with little chance of electrocution. Baking soda contains sodium bicarbonate, which is the substance used in regulation fire extinguishers. You also might be able to smother a small fire using a heavy blanket, but only when the flames are small enough to not catch the blanket on fire too.

For larger electrical fires, you need a Type C fire extinguisher. You should make sure you have at least one Type C or multi-use extinguisher in your home. Extinguishers need to be inspected often to make sure they aren’t expired. If there is a operational extinguisher on hand, just pull the pin near the top, point the nozzle at the source of the fire, and squeeze the handle. If the fire gets too dangerous to put out by yourself or you are concerned the fire may block an exit, you should leave the home right away, shut the door , and wait for help from the local fire department.

For the smaller appliance fires, call Marion Appliance Repair once the flames are extinguished and we will diagnose the cause of the fire and repair the electrical appliance and return it to its original condition.

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Appliance Safety
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