Appliances aren’t cheap, so you want them to last as long as possible. In order to make sure you’re getting the most out of them, you should do some maintenance now and again. If you don’t have the know-how or the time, Chesterfield Service offers appliance maintenance year round. Most of these maintenance tips aren’t difficult to do, but they’re easy to forget. With the holiday season right around the corner, now is a great time to do a little extra cleaning before you have guests visit and start using these appliances more to accommodate the extra people in your home.

Staying up to date with appliance maintenance can keep your appliances working properly so they don’t unexpectedly break down at an inconvenient time. The appliance repair team at Chesterfield Service has an abundance of home appliance maintenance tips to help keep all of your systems running smoothly.

Appliance Maintenance Tips

Chesterfield Service is your go-to home services repair, installation, and maintenance partner. We can improve the performance of your HVAC system, plumbing, electrical, fireplaces, and home appliances. As experts, we encourage all of our clients in Chesterfield, MO, and beyond to practice these regular appliance maintenance tips throughout the year.

Refrigerator Maintenance Tips

• Clean the refrigerator door gasket. Clean the rubber around the door of your refrigerator regularly to prevent the seal of wearing out.
• Change the water filter in your refrigerator or freezer every three to six months if your refrigerator has an ice maker.
• Prevent odors in your fridge by putting in a box of baking soda and changing it on a regular basis. Be sure to give the shelves in your fridge a regular cleaning too.
• Pull the refrigerator away from the wall and vacuum behind the fridge and under it to prevent dust and debris from accumulating around the coils.

Dishwasher Maintenance Tips

• Take out the racks in your dishwasher and remove the filter. Clean out the filter in the sink.
• Keep your dishwasher smelling fresh by running a rinse cycle with one cup of vinegar or lemi-shine in the dishwasher. Make sure there are no other dishes inside when you do this.
• It’s a smart idea to regularly clean the racks in your dishwasher too.

Oven, Range, and Stove Maintenance Tips

• Never do the self clean function in the oven as it can cause it to break.
• Clean up any stove spills around your burners. If you have a stove with coil burners, watch out for red spots as this could indicate a short in the burner.
• Every few months, clean the vent hood over your stove to prevent the build-up of grease. Clean the filter on the vent hood as well as the fan blades.

Garbage Disposal Maintenance Tips

• Periodically drop a ice cubes into the garbage disposal. This will help sharpen the blades.
• Lift up the lips of the splash guard and clean it with a toothbrush. This will also help with the garbage disposal odors. Remember: put most food waste in the trash to prevent overloading your garbage disposal.

Washing Machine and Dryer Maintenance Tips

• Hoses for washing machines tend to last around 5 years. Inspect your washing machine’s host on a regular basis to watch out for cracks that could cause leaks.
• Clean your washing machine regularly to keep it running properly. Run an empty cycle with bleach and water, let it drain, and then run another cycle with vinegar and water.
• Make sure you not only empty the lint trap on your dryer regularly but also clean the filter as well. Take it out and scrub it with some laundry detergent and a stiff kitchen brush in your sink.

Microwave Maintenance Tips

• Never run your microwave without any food in it. This could be a fire hazard.
• Put water in a microwave-safe bowl and run the microwave for a few minutes. The steam from the water will make it easier to wipe down the walls of the microwave.