Emergency Appliance Repair

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

In the event of an appliance emergency, unplug the appliance immediately and then call Cain Appliance Repair for local appliance repair. If there’s an electrical fire happening with one of the appliances inside of your house, we advise calling the fire department even before you try to extinguish the fire on your own.

An electrical fire from an appliance is very scary and extremely dangerous, but there are a few ways to be prepared in the event of an emergency. If one of your appliances goes up in flames, it is very important to not panic and remain calm. Follow our easy guidelines below to help keep your house safe from electrical appliance fires.

HOW TO PREVENT ELECTRICAL FIRES

Homeowners are able to prevent electrical fires before they start by following a few basic guidelines for appliance safety in a home. Don’t plug a lot of devices into one electrical outlet—the wiring might get overloaded and then spark a fire, especially if there is debris like clothes or paper close to the outlet.

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

Examine all of the outlets regularly for extreme heat, signs of burns, and crackling or buzzing sounds that could indicate electrical arcing. Be sure you have at least one working smoke detector on each floor of your home, and test them quarterly to keep them in good working order.

WHAT TO NOT DO

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

Water conducts electricity, and throwing water on or near a power source can give a severe electrical shock. It might even make the fire worse. Water can conduct electricity to additional parts of the room, running the risk of igniting other flammable objects in the area.

HOW TO EXTINGUISH AN ELECTRICAL FIRE

The first step you want to do is to unplug the electric appliance from the power source and call your local fire department. Even if you can put out the fire by yourself, it is a good idea to have help if the flames do get out of hand.

For small fires, you may be able to pour on baking soda to extinguish the fire. Covering the fuming or burning area with some baking soda can block oxygen flow to the fire with very little risk of electrocution. Baking soda includes sodium bicarbonate, which is the same chemical used in standard fire extinguishers. You also may be able to put out a smaller fire using a heavy blanket, but only if the fire is small enough to not catch the blanket on fire too.

For big electrical appliance fires, you need a Type C fire extinguisher. You should always be sure you own at least one Type C extinguisher in your house. Extinguishers should also be inspected regularly to ensure they have not expired. If you have a working extinguisher in the home, pull the pin near the top, point the hose at the fire, and press the handle. If the fire gets too big to fight by yourself or you think the fire might block an exit, leave the house as fast as possible, close the door , and wait for help from the local fire department.

For the small appliance fires, call Cain Appliance Repair once the fire is under control and we can diagnose the cause of the fire and repair the appliance and return it to working order.

OTHER RESOURCES:

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