9+ Convenient Tricks to Keep Your Refrigerator Maintained
The refrigerator in your kitchen runs all around the clock. Not to mention, your refrigerator is safe storage for leftover cooked food, fruits, vegetables, beverages, dairy products, and more. Now, a breakdown in your refrigerator can force you to bring everything out of the appliance.
All those food items and drinks will go spoiled and sour within a few hours, especially if it’s summer. It’s inevitable for any home appliance to struggle with technical or mechanical issues. However, some handy maintenance tricks every day for a few minutes can save you from such a disaster.
Apart from keeping your refrigerator in optimum condition, you can extend your appliance’s lifespan. In addition, these maintenance tips can save you electricity costs through efficient and optimised power consumption. Let’s check out how to maintain your refrigerator without additional expenses.
How to Maintain Your Refrigerator’s Health and Power Consumption? According to Refrigerator Repair Services experts, the average longevity of a refrigerator can vary from 10 to 18 years. Well, the overall lifespan of a refrigerator can depend on the build and type of the appliance and how great you can maintain it.
If you consider only stocking and re-stocking food items and drinks in your refrigerator, then we think that you strongly require a variation. After all, your refrigerator is one of the most hardworking appliances in your house. So, it’s important to keep your fridge in top-notch condition.
On the other hand, you will need a few minutes to ensure your refrigerator’s efficiency and enhance power saving. Here are some proven maintenance tricks for your refrigerator. Indeed, we think that they are a perfect fit for your refrigerator’s maintenance regime.
- Inspect Door Seals Cold air from your refrigerator can easily escape if the door gasket or seal is loose. So, check whether your refrigerator’s door gasket is tight and if there’s any food debris stuck. Your fridge has to work harder and use more energy than required if the gasket at the door doesn’t seal well.
You can clean the gasket with a mixture of water, baking soda, and a toothbrush. In case you still notice that cold air from the fridge keeps seeping out, then chances are that the seal has worn out. Therefore, you should replace the door seal immediately.
- Clean the Refrigerator Coils Dust, debris, pet hair, and much more can easily be accumulated on your refrigerator’s external coil. Generally, you can find these coils at the rear or bottom end of the refrigerator. In addition, you might have to remove some screws to access the coil and clean it.
Hence, position your refrigerator so you can easily access the coil for cleaning. Additionally, ensure you grab debris such as cereal pieces, grapes, dog treats, and more from the floor where the fridge generally stands. You can use a vacuum cleaner or a brush to clean the refrigerator coil.
Even you can purchase a dedicated coil-cleaning kit for the task. However, consider cleaning your refrigerator coils twice a year. You can extend the frequency if you have pets.
- Set the Right Temperature Your refrigerator has 2 different sections, and their temperatures should be different. For instance, the refrigerator compartment should be between 3 to 4 degrees Celsius or 37 to 38 degrees Fahrenheit. Whereas the freezer compartment should be at 0 degrees Fahrenheit or below that.
Hence, test your refrigerator and freezer compartments’ temperatures. If the interior temperature feels a bit colder or warmer, adjust the temperature using the thermostat. Generally, most refrigerators come with a scale-based system. You should keep it to the normal or medium level.
For the best results, follow your refrigerator’s instruction manual.
- Keep the Refrigerator’s Door Closed It won’t be a complete care package for your refrigerator if you forget to shut your refrigerator’s door. Since it’s important to check your fridge’s gasket for wear and tear, you can’t let the cold air get out of the appliance.
Your refrigerator has to work harder than required because it will sense that the surrounding is not getting cold enough. Consequently, your fridge will consume more energy than ever, and you will encounter a surge in the electricity utility bill.
So, keep your refrigerator door shut when you get food or stock your appliance. Moreover, ensure your refrigerator door snaps tightly and there’s no seam. Don’t forget to occasionally check the fridge door gasket to minimise the chances of cold air getting out of the appliance.
- Clean the Refrigerator’s Interior Besides taking care of your refrigerator’s exterior and condenser coils, pay attention to the interior cleanliness of your appliance. No doubt, your refrigerator has shelves, walls, and doors that can be a breeding ground for microorganisms if you’re not careful enough.
Whenever you spill anything in the refrigerator, its shelves, or anything else, clean it right away. However, turn off the refrigerator when you want to clean your fridge’s interior.
On top of that, your refrigerator should not have any expired products or anything with mould on it. Hence, thoroughly inspect your refrigerator’s storage and sort them accordingly.
- Replace Filters Most homeowners don’t know that refrigerator water dispensers and ice makers use filters. Now, those filters require changing after a certain period. Thus, your refrigerator’s water dispenser and ice maker can work efficiently.
However, changing a fridge’s filter can be tricky. Consider your appliance’s user guide to replace the filter. Additionally, check your refrigerator’s filters every three months.
- Cover Food Items Inside your Refrigerator and Arrange them Properly Try to store food items in airtight containers for best results. Thus, you can enjoy fresh food for the longest duration possible. Otherwise, you can use any plastic containers with securely fitted tops.
Another advantage of this trick is the moisture content can’t escape your food. You can save the refrigerator from an obnoxious smell. Apart from covering, ensure that you arrange food containers properly. Stack them to store additional food items and remove them whenever needed.
- Keep Your Fridge Full This might sound weird, but your refrigerator should have enough thermal mass to operate efficiently. Keep both your fridge and freezer compartments full. This will help the appliance cool better.
However, overcrowding your refrigerator might throw a negative impact. For example, you should not block controls and vents inside your fridge while stacking food items.
- Defrost the Freezer For single-door refrigerators, too much ice accumulation can be a serious problem. Therefore, consider defrosting your refrigerator once in a few days. Otherwise, your appliance may waste energy.
However, defrosting your refrigerator might take a couple of hours. So, take your time and read the necessary instructions before proceeding with this maintenance tip. Additionally, weekends will be the best time to empty your refrigerator’s ice accumulation and defrost the appliance.
Few More Maintenance Head-Ups Examine whether your refrigerator is properly levelled or not. Otherwise, your fridge door might only snap partially. Moreover, always cool down your cooked food before placing them inside the refrigerator. Keep checking the light so you don’t have to struggle in the dark while looking for a particular container.
So, try these maintenance tricks to keep your refrigerator functional and efficient. However, quickly spoiled food, water on the floor, strange clicking noises, warmer food, etc., indicate something wrong with your refrigerator. Contact professional intervention if the issue persists.
