10 Kitchen Hazards to Avoid this Holiday Season

Chances are, you will be spending more time than usual in the kitchen during this holiday season. With company visiting and additional food prep for holiday meals, the “hub of the home” will likely be the busiest part of the home.

Appliance Rescue Service in Dallas, Texas wants you to stay safe this holiday season. While we love being in the kitchen, we also know this room can be dangerous! Here are the top 10 kitchen hazards to avoid this holiday season:

1.   Burns

We’ve all done it. You either tried to grab a dish before it cooled from the oven, had hot oil splash on you from the cooktop, or maybe you just accidently touched the edge of the oven. Whatever the case may be, kitchen burns can be avoided. Use splash guards when cooking on the cooktop and always use oven mitts around the oven.

2.   Knife Injuries

Even the cook with the steadiest hand can make a mistake. Take your time to carefully chop fruits and veggies and always point the blade away from yourself.

3.   Unattended Cooktop

Kitchen fires are one of the most disastrous kitchen hazards. Keep all flammable materials away from the cooktop (particularly if you use a gas cooktop) and never leave the kitchen when the cooktop is on.

4.   Contamination

Food-borne pathogens can wreck havoc on the body and can be avoided. Wash hands often while cooking and never go from prepping raw meat to another task without fully cleaning and disinfecting the entire workspace. Cutting boards are a big culprit, and the minute you start seeing deep grooves in the board where bacteria can hide, throw them out.

5.   Kitchen Chemicals

Child safety locks are essential when storing chemicals – such as cleaning products – in the kitchen. Makes sure all access points are shut off from children and pets.

6.   Spills

A wet floor can be dangerous and cause slips and falls. If you spill something, clean it up immediately so that you don’t forget about it.

7.   Hot Peppers

Hot peppers can burn skin and the oils can get in your eyes and be very painful. Always wear gloves and safety goggles when preparing hot peppers like jalapeños.

8.   Overstocked Pantry

Beware of cabinets or even a refrigerator overflowing with food! Organize food so that there is no chance a jar or other heavy objects can fall out and land on someone’s foot.

9.   Falling

Falls can happen for a number of reasons, but a sudden fall in the kitchen can cause you to drop something breakable, bump a knife, or hit something on the cooktop. Take every precaution not to climb on anything unstable that can increase risk of falling.

10.                 Greasy Range Hood

Range hoods accumulate grease from cooking, and without proper range hood cleaning, that grease can start a fire when you least expect it. Look in your owner’s manual for proper cleaning instructions.

Want to have your oven, cooktop, or range inspected for issues? Have a Dallas appliance repair? Call Appliance Rescue Service – the best appliance repairman in the Metroplex - for a full inspection. 

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.

Luxury Appliance Repair Doesn't have to Cost a Fortune

Luxury, high-end appliances come with a higher up front cost, but you know you are buying a quality appliance that will last for years to come. If for some reason your high-end appliance needs repair, who do you call? Are you anxious to call the manufacturer for fear it will cost a fortune?

These are all valid questions and Appliance Rescue Service in Dallas, Texas can help!

Appliance Rescue services all appliances – even high-end repairs.

Luxury appliance repair takes extra training, as many of these appliances have European parts or proprietary components that are not typical of a standard appliance. And when you call someone to fix your investment, you want to know they are up to the task.   

At Appliance Rescue, our technicians are rigorously trained to handle all appliance brands including Sub-Zero, Wolf, Viking, Thermador, Bosch, Fisher-Paykel, Asko, Dacor, Gaggenau, and Miele. And we don’t just work on these appliances; we do the work right the first time.

There is no “up charge” for luxury appliances.

Just because you have luxury appliances doesn’t mean you should have to pay extra for repairs! Our technicians will diagnosis the issue and give you a full estimate for all repairs before performing any work. You’ll find our prices to be fair and honest – whether it’s a luxury appliance issue or not.

Our 90 day warranty is good for all appliance repairs.

All of our Dallas appliance repairs – refrigerators, ovens, cooktops, dishwashers, etc. – all qualify for our 90-day warranty. Sense there is still an issue with your high-end appliance? Call us immediately, and we’ll fix it free of charge. It’s as simple as that.

Should your high-end appliance need repair, you know you can trust the technicians at Appliance Rescue Service, proudly serving Dallas, Richardson, Plano, Garland, Wylie, Rowlett, Carrollton, Frisco, and the greater Dallas area.

Because high-end appliance repair should not cost a fortune.