Emergency Appliance Repair

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

If an appliance emergency happens, unplug the appliance right away and then call Jacobs Appliance Repair for local appliance repair in CITY. If there’s an electrical fire happening with one of the appliances inside your home, we recommend calling the local fire department before attempting to put out the fire yourself.

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

PREVENTING ELECTRICAL FIRES

You are able to stop electrical fires from ever starting by following some simple guidelines for appliance safety in a home. Don’t plug a lot of electrical devices into a single electrical outlet—the wiring can become overloaded and then spark a fire, especially when there is debris like paper or clothes close to the outlet.

It can be easy to forget about the apparent dangers of larger residential appliances since they are plugged in all of the time, but they can present as much chance for a fire hazard as small electrical appliances like kitchen toasters and heaters. Larger appliances like a washing machine or dishwasher should not be left running overnight or while you’re away from home, and try not to place a freezer or refrigerator in line of direct sunlight, in order to prevent possibly overworking the cooling systems.

Inspect all outlets on a regular basis for extreme heat, burns, and buzzing or crackling noises that might indicate electrical arcing. Be sure you keep at least one smoke detector on every story of your house, and test the smoke detectors regularly to keep them in good working condition.

WHAT TO NOT DO

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

Water will conduct electricity, and dumping water on or near a power source could give a dangerous electrical shock. It might even make the fire worse. Water could conduct electricity to other parts of the room, increasing the chance of igniting more flammable items in the area.

HOW TO EXTINGUISH AN ELECTRICAL FIRE

The first thing you want to do is unplug the electric appliance from the power source and call the local fire department. Even if you think you might be able to take care of the fire on your own, it’s a good idea to have backup if the fire does get out of hand.

For little fires, you might be able to use baking soda to smother the fire. Covering the smoldering or burning area with some baking soda will sometimes prevent oxygen flow to the fire with minimal chance of electrocution. Baking soda also includes sodium bicarbonate, which is the same substance in standard fire extinguishers. You also could be able to extinguish a small fire with a heavy blanket as well, but only if the flames are small enough to not catch the heavy blanket on fire too.

For large electrical fires, use a Type C fire extinguisher. You should always be sure you have at least one Type C extinguisher in your home. Extinguishers need to be inspected consistently to be sure they are not expired. If you have a operational fire extinguisher on hand, pull the pin near the top, aim the nozzle at the source of the fire, and press the handle. If the flames get too big to put out alone or you are concerned the fire may block an exit, you should leave the home right away, close the door behind you, and wait for help from the fire department.

For the small appliance fires, call Jacobs Appliance Repair once the flames are extinguished and we can identify the reason for the fire and repair the appliance and return it to its original condition.

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