How to Clean a Range Hood Filter

When you’re standing at a cooktop, you are usually looking down. But have you ever looked up?

It’s not pretty is it?

Our range hoods take a beating! Grease and grime from cooking gets stuck up in the range hood filter, and without proper cleaning, this grease can cause grease fires and render the range hood ineffective.

Follow these tips from Appliance Rescue for range hood filter cleaning:

1.   Remove Filter:

Look for the loops or hooks that are holding the range hood filter in place and carefully remove it.

2.   Fill Sink with Water:

Plug the sink and pour hot, boiling water into it. You’ll want to put enough in there to fully submerge your filter. Also, the hotter the water, the more effective. We do not recommend using your hot tap water, as it’s just not quite warm enough.

3.   Add Cleaning Agents:

Grab your favorite de-greasing dish soap and squirt a generous glob into the water. Next, add ¼ cup of baking soda. Use a long brush or spoon to mix it up until it’s nice and soapy.

4.   Add Filter:

Drop your filter into the water and let it soak for about 10 minutes – longer if it was extra soiled.

5.   Scrub Filter:

Use a non-abrasive sponge or brush to scrub the filter. Add additional dish soap to the sponge as needed until it is clean and de-greased.

6.   Rinse:

Once satisfied with the range hood filter cleaning, dry the filter and place it on a soft, lint-free cloth for drying.

7.   Reinstall:

You are now ready to install the filter.

Appliance Rescue recommends cleaning your range hood filter once a month to avoid grease buildup, increase longevity of the hood, and maximize effectiveness. Should you ever need help with range hood repair in Dallas, call Appliance Rescue Service in Dallas, Texas today.

Should I Self Clean my Oven Before the Holidays?

So here we are, in the busiest season of the year, and likely your busiest baking season.

When the temperatures cool down, we tend to go into comfort food mode, baking up delicious holiday treats and tasty roasted dishes. With company coming to town and holiday baking looming, you may be wondering whether or not it’s time to run that self clean option on your oven. Here are a few thoughts from Appliance Rescue on the matter!

No One Size Fits All Answer

Each oven operates differently, and it is difficult to say whether or not using the self cleaning function will bring your more joy or some unexpected headaches. When you use the self clean option, your oven temperatures rise to about 1000 degrees – which is very, very hot! In some cases, this can wreck havoc on components or cause more issues than good. Most of the time, the setting works great – but you just must be careful and do all you can to set yourself up for success. Refer to your oven's user manual for details on use and care.

Clean As You Go

One of the best tips we can offer is to avoid having too much caked on gunk, if and when you decide to run the self cleaning function. Use a soft cloth after each baking session (after the oven has cooled down of course!), to remove any residue from that pie that boiled over or baked sweet potatoes that you baked right on the rack. That way, if you do decide to use the self cleaning function, your oven will have less gunk to burn off and turn to ash - and less room for error.

Clean the Oven NOW!

Whether or not you use the self cleaning function, go ahead and give your oven a good cleaning now! You’ll feel good about getting holiday cleaning in early, and there will be no risk of residuals scents interfering with future baking. We’ve found that a paste of good old-fashioned baking soda and water, applied to the oven on a damp cloth, will work wonders for restoring that brilliant clean to your oven’s interior.

If you should need an oven repair in Dallas, be sure to call Appliance Rescue Service! We serve the entire Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex and our customer service is second to none. Call us anytime, and we will have a technician out to your home to quickly assess the issue and get your oven up and running again in no time. 

Appliance Rescue Tipline: Help! Something Melted in my Dishwasher!

As an appliance repair company in Dallas, we’ve heard this phrase before! And we don’t blame you.

We know you put all the plastic items perfectly organized on the top rack, but somehow during the cycle, that pesky plastic utensil slipped through the cracks and landed on your heating element in the bottom of your dishwasher.

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So now, you’re left with the pungent smell of burning plastic and no clue how to get it off without dishwasher damage. Follow these easy steps from Appliance Rescue to remove melted items from your dishwasher:

Step 1: Disconnect the Dishwasher

Locate the power cord (normally under the sink beside the dishwasher) and disconnect the unit from all power sources.

Step 2: Finish Unloading Dishes/Cool Dishwasher

Take all dishes out of the dishwasher for easier assess to the burning issue at the bottom of your dishwasher. While unloading, the dishwasher will cool. Do not attempt to remove the melted item before the dishwasher is completely cooled off.

Step 3: Remove Melted Item

The best way to do this is to grab some ice from the freezer, put it in a Ziploc bag, and place the ice on the melted object. The ice will help the plastic harden, which helps make it easier to remove. Gently pry the plastic item away from the heating coil, carefully avoiding any damage to the coil or pulling hard enough to disrupt the brackets holding it in place.

Step 4: Remove Plastic Residue

Grab some acetone-based nail polish remover and put some on a clean cloth. Apply the cloth of nail polish remover to the melted plastic residue for at least 5 minutes, then begin scrubbing until all plastic is removed.

Step 5: Clean the Heating Element

Put a little dish soap and warm water on a sponge and gently clean the heating element to remove any remaining plastic or nail polish remover. Rinse and repeat until you are satisfied.

If you are still concerned about ruining the heating element, you can always call the experts at Appliance Rescue Service in Dallas, Texas! Our team will take care of your appliance repairs in no time, with fast, courteous service that doesn’t cost a fortune.

4 Tips to Get your Garbage Disposal Ready for the Holidays!

As a company who focuses on appliance repairs, we know how easy it is to overlook the hidden appliance in your kitchen: the garbage disposal.

The holiday season is the biggest food prep season of them all, and with it comes a lot of garbage disposal usage. Get your disposal ready for the holidays with these simple tips from Appliance Rescue Service in Dallas, Texas:

1.   Scour the Disposal for Any Caked on Grime:

Sometimes after extended use, grime and debris can get stuck to the insides of the disposal, rendering it less effective. Try dropping 3-4 ice cubes in your disposal and running it. The shards of ice will have an abrasive effect on the inside of your disposal, removing debris you would otherwise miss.

2.   Be Mindful of What DOESN’T Go in a Disposal:

There are certain food waste items that just don’t belong in the disposal, and if washed down, could cause Dallas garage disposal repair. Keep oil, grease, potato skins, coffee grounds, bones, fruit pits, and any non-food items/trash out of your disposal.

3.   Clean and Deodorize:

After using your disposal, sometimes you might smell some unpleasant odors coming up from the drain. Consider putting fruit peels – such as orange or lemon peels – in the drain and running the disposal. This will naturally deodorize the space. You can also pour vinegar and baking soda into the disposal, run it, and then wash down with cold water.

4.   Use the Disposal Regularly:

While over use can cause issues, so can under use! Use your garbage disposal on a regular basis leading up to the holidays to avoid rust or corrosion to parts, which can lead to garbage disposal replacement.

Should you run into any unwanted garbage disposal issues during the holidays, be sure to call the experts at Appliance Rescue Service! Our team will have you up and running again in no time, so that you can focus on all the things that are important during this busy season – not appliance repairs.

Tips & Tricks: Dishwasher Not Draining

Here’s an appliance issue that just about everyone can relate to: your dishwasher is not draining properly.

It’s a common appliance headache and one that our technicians at Appliance Rescue Service fix on a routine basis. When your dishwasher isn’t draining, it is important to get the situation under control asap as to avoid hand washing piles of dishes or having unwanted smells in the kitchen. Before calling the experts at Appliance Rescue, try these tips and tricks to see if they fix the issue:

1.   Clean the Drain Basket

When something isn’t draining – whether it’s a sink, shower, or dishwasher – one would assume there is a clog somewhere and there is no better place to start than with the drain basket. Look near the base of the spray arms or off to the side of the dishwasher, locate the drain basket, and clean it out. While a little gross, removing the sludge and food debris from the drain basket may be the key to your issue.

2.   Run an Empty Load

Sometimes all it takes is an empty run cycle to push any clogs through and solve the problem. You will quickly know after the wash cycle whether or not this worked to solve your dishwasher drain issue.

3.   Inspect the Garbage Disposal Hose

Many dishwashers are tied to the garbage disposal, so when a clog happens in the garbage disposal, the problem manifests itself in the dishwasher. To check this issue, disconnect the garbage disposal, and then disconnect the disposal hose. Use a long object to push any debris out of the hose (a screwdriver works well), reconnect, and then run another empty dishwasher cycle to see if the issue is fixed.

4.   Look for a Drain Hose Kink

Check your owner’s manual to see where the drain hose is located, but most commonly, it’s located below the door hinges on the front of the dishwasher.  Remove the panel cover and you should see the hose right there. Look for any kinks or visual issues.

Still having dishwasher drain issues? We hope these tips helped to solve the issue, but if not, it might signify a more serious problem with your unit. Call Appliance Rescue Service in Dallas, Texas today to get the problem solved quickly and professionally. 

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