An appliance repair emergency might be a leak or smoke or even flames coming from the home appliance.
If an appliance emergency happens, unplug the appliance immediately and call Gold Appliance Repair for local appliance repair in Pearland. If there is an electrical fire from one of the appliances inside your house, we recommend calling the town fire department before attempting to eliminate the fire on your own.
An electrical fire is very scary and extremely dangerous, but there are a few steps to be prepared in the event of an emergency. If an appliance is in flames, it is important to not panic and to remain calm. Follow our simple guidelines to help keep your house safe from electrical appliance fires.
HOW TO PREVENT ELECTRICAL FIRES
Homeowners can stop electrical fires from starting by following a few simple guidelines for appliance safety in a home. Do not plug in too many electrical devices into a single outlet—the wiring can get overloaded and spark a fire, especially if there is debris like clothes or paper close to the outlet.
Sometimes we forget about the dangers of large home appliances since they stay plugged in all the time, but they still present as much of a fire hazard as small appliances like toasters and space heaters. Larger appliances like a dishwasher or washing machine should not be left to run overnight or while you are not at home, and do not keep a refrigerator or freezer in direct sunlight, to prevent possibly overworking the cooling systems.
Check all outlets on a regular basis for extreme heat, signs of burns, and crackling or buzzing sounds that could indicate electrical arcing. Be sure you store at least one smoke detector on each story of your house, and test them often to keep them in working order.
WHAT TO NOT DO
If there’s an appliance repair emergency involving an electrical fire, it can be tempting to douse the fire with water, however water shouldn’t be used to douse an electrical appliance fire.
Water conducts electricity, and throwing water on or near a power source could cause a severe electrical shock. It could even make the fire stronger. Water can conduct the electricity to additional areas of the room, running the risk of igniting more flammable objects nearby.
HOW TO PUT OUT AN ELECTRICAL FIRE
The immediate step you need to do is to unplug the electric appliance from the power source and call the local fire department. Even if you might be able to extinguish the fire on your own, it’s important to have backup if the fire does get out of control.
For minor fires, you might be able to pour on baking soda to extinguish the flames. Covering the smoking or burning spot with a layer of baking soda can block oxygen flow to the flames with minimal risk of electrocution. Baking soda includes sodium bicarbonate, which is the substance in standard fire extinguishers. You also may be able to smother a small fire using 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, you need a Type C fire extinguisher. You should always be sure you have at least one Type C or multi-use extinguisher in your home. Extinguishers need to be inspected regularly to be sure they aren’t expired. If you have a operational extinguisher on hand, just pull the pin at the top, point the nozzle at the source of the fire, and press the handle. If the fire gets too big to fight alone or you think the fire may block an exit, leave the house right away, close the door behind you, and wait for assistance from the fire department.
For the smaller appliance fires, call Gold Appliance Repair once the flames are under control and we can identify the cause of the fire and repair the appliance and restore it to its original condition.
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