A typical appliance repair emergency might be a leak or smoke or even flames coming from the home appliance.
In the event of an appliance emergency, unplug the appliance right away and call National City Appliance Repair for local appliance repair in National City. If there is an electrical fire resulting from one of the large or small appliances inside of your home, we recommend calling the local fire department before you attempt to eliminate the fire yourself.
An electrical fire from an appliance can be 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. Follow these simple guidelines to help keep your home safe from electrical appliance fires.
You are able to prevent electrical fires before they start by following a couple of simple rules of appliance safety in a home. Do not plug too many electrical devices into one outlet—the wiring might get overloaded and spark a fire, especially if there is clutter like clothes or paper close to the outlet.
It is possible to forget about the dangers of large home appliances because they stay plugged in all of the time, but they present as much of a fire hazard as smaller devices like toasters and space heaters. Larger appliances like a dishwasher or washing machine shouldn’t be left to run overnight or any time you are not at home, and try not to keep a refrigerator or freezer in line of direct sunlight, to prevent overworking their cooling systems inside.
Inspect all outlets on a regular basis for excessive heat, burns, and crackling or buzzing noises that could point to electrical arcing. Make sure you store at least one working smoke detector on each floor of your home, and test the smoke detectors regularly to keep them in working condition.
If there’s an appliance repair emergency such as an electrical fire, it could be tempting to douse the fire with water, but water shouldn’t be used on an electrical fire.
Water will conduct electricity, and dumping water on or near a power source can give a severe electrical shock. It could even make the fire stronger. Water might conduct electricity to additional parts of the room, running the risk of igniting other flammable objects in the area.
The immediate step you need to do is to unplug the appliance from the power outlet and call your fire department. Even if you think you are able to handle the fire by yourself, it is a good idea to have help if the fire does get out of control.
For minor fires, you could be able to pour on baking soda to smother the flames. Covering the smoking or burning spot with a layer of baking soda will sometimes prohibit oxygen flow to the fire with little chance of electrocution. Baking soda also includes sodium bicarbonate, which is the same substance used in regulation fire extinguishers. You also could be able to smother a smaller fire using a heavy blanket, but only when the fire is small enough to not catch the heavy blanket on fire too.
For larger electrical fires, you need a Type C fire extinguisher. You should be sure you own at least one Type C extinguisher in your home. Extinguishers need to be checked regularly to make sure they aren’t expired. If there is a operational extinguisher on hand, just release the pin near the top, point the hose at the flames, and press the handle. If the flames get too big to put out alone or you think the fire may block an exit, you should leave the home right away, close the door , and then wait for help from the local fire department.
For the small appliance fires, call National City Appliance Repair once the flames are under control and we will diagnose the reason for the fire and repair the electrical appliance and restore it to working order.
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