Emergency Appliance Repair

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

If an appliance emergency arises in your house, unplug the appliance right away and then call Horizon Appliance Repair for local appliance repair. If there’s an electrical fire involving one of the large or small appliances inside your house, we recommend calling the town fire department even before attempting to put out the fire yourself.

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

HOW TO PREVENT ELECTRICAL FIRES

You can stop electrical fires before they start by following a couple of simple rules of appliance safety in a home. Don’t plug in a lot of devices into a single outlet—the wiring can get overloaded and then spark a fire, especially if there is clutter like clothes or paper nearby the outlet.

It’s possible to forget about the dangers of large appliances because they stay plugged in all the time, but they can present as much chance for a fire hazard as small electrical appliances like kitchen toasters and heaters. Large appliances like a dishwasher or washing machine shouldn’t be left to run overnight or while you’re not at home, and try not to keep a freezer or refrigerator in line of direct sunlight, in order to prevent overworking their cooling systems.

Check all of the outlets on a regular basis for extreme heat, burns, and crackling or buzzing sounds that might indicate electrical arcing. Be sure you have at least one working smoke detector on every floor of your home, and test the smoke detectors regularly to keep them in good working order.

WHAT TO NOT DO

If there’s an appliance repair emergency such as an electrical fire, it might be tempting to douse the flames with water, however water should not be used to fight an electrical appliance fire.

Water conducts electricity, and pouring water on or near a power source could give a severe electrical shock. It could even make the fire even worse. Water could conduct the electricity to additional areas of the room, running the chance of igniting more flammable items in the area.

HOW TO PUT OUT AN ELECTRICAL FIRE

The first thing you want to do is to unplug the electric device from the power source and call your fire department. Even if you think you might be able to extinguish the fire on your own, it is a good idea to have help if the flames do get out of hand.

For little fires, you might be able to use baking soda to extinguish the fire. Covering the smoldering or burning area with a layer of baking soda will sometimes block oxygen flow to the fire with very little risk of electrocution. Baking soda contains sodium bicarbonate, which is the chemical in regulation fire extinguishers. You might be able to smother a small fire using a heavy blanket as well, but only when the fire is small enough not to catch the heavy blanket on fire as well.

For big electrical fires, use a Type C fire extinguisher. You should always be sure you own at least one Type C extinguisher in your home. Extinguishers should also be inspected consistently to ensure they have not expired. If you have a working fire extinguisher in the home, just release the pin near the top, aim the hose at the source of the flames, and squeeze the handle. If the fire gets too big to fight by yourself or you are concerned the fire could block an exit, you should leave the home as fast as possible, shut the door , and wait for assistance from the fire department.

For the small appliance fires, call Horizon Appliance Repair once the flames are extinguished and we can diagnose the cause of the fire and repair the electrical appliance and restore it to working order.

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