Nothing is pleasant about walking into your kitchen at 6:30 am to find your stocking feet in a puddle of water. My refrigerator had stopped working and the entire ice cube pan had begun to defrost and spill onto the floor. Fortunately, the food items were still frozen and/or cold enough to be safe, so I moved them to our second fridge. Now to diagnose the problem. Our 15 year old refrigerator had never given us an ounce of trouble before and I was not ready to give up on her so easily. DIY appliance repair was in the cards for this problem so it was time to call a pro.
I have really never had any appliance trouble so I did not have my own “guy” to call. I had to rely on the word of mouth referrals from friends I had heard about in the past. I called Dave’s Appliance Repair in Horsham. I got prompt, friendly service with professional technicians. Just the kind of folks, we HIP Chicks want to trust in our homes. These guys fixed my fridge up right and gave me some sound advice about refrigerator care and replacement.
For a longer lasting fridge, here is what you need to do for good maintenance and what you need to know before you consider buying your next appliance:
• Clean/vacuum the grill along the front of your fridge at least every 3-4 months (not years, you know who you are)
• Move the fridge out from the wall and vacuum behind it, too
• Vacuum as much of the back and underside of the unit as possible -clean, dust free condenser coils don’t have to work as hard and last longer
• Don’t set your temperature setting too high – it makes the unit work harder
• Don’t store items on top or against the side of the fridge -this limits ventilation around the unit
• Shop for units without many computer boards – these are costly to repair
• Units with more mechanical than computerized parts need less repairs
• Computer boards are very susceptible to damage from power surges – good to know if you lose power easily or often
• You may pay more for units with mechanical parts but they last longer and have fewer problems
Well my old girl is running smoothly and keeping her cool. My “guy” says she has another 5 years in her. If only I could get that much out of my car, she’s 12. A girl can wish can’t she.
