Ignition Lighting?

Gas powered appliances depend on some sort of ignition process in order to work.

Often times these igniters can get covered with soot and buildup.

If your appliance isn't working, you might just need to clean the igniter. Regardless, once a months its a good idea to check on the igniter to see if it needs cleaning.

A Gas Stove MUST

Gas stoves tend to live longer than their electrical counterparts by a couple years. However, they only do if you do this one thing to them:

CLEAN THEM!

Debris and spills build up can prevent the gas from burning the right way, and create more wear and tear on the stove.

When cleaning, make sure the gas is off and you take all the proper safety precautions.

Warning signs of a clogged dryer vent

Each year there are 2,900 house fires caused by a dryer that has been improperly maintained which resulted in 31 injuries and 5 deaths. There is a great need to make sure that your dryer vent is clean, because it is life threatening if it's not. You should clean your vent out at least once a year, and clean out the lint trap every time you use the dryer. Here is a quick list of some signs that you need your vents cleaned out:

• The top of your dryer is hot when in use
• clothes take a long time to dry
• There is a burning or musty smell when dryer is in use
• Your clothes smell burned or musty
• Your clothes are unusually hot after being dried
• You can see lint coming out of the vent from outside
• Excessive amounts of lint are caught in the lint trap
• The room is hot when the dryer is in use
• Dryer just stops working
• The exhaust termination ( the flap where the airflow goes outside) doesn't open when dryer is on
• For gas dryers there's a carbon monoxide leak

If your dryer vent is clogged it should not be delayed. Give us a call today at 208-385-9074

The Month of Smells, Week 5: Dryer

Since they handle water, dryers can get smelly too! Luckily there's some easy tricks to prevent put a stop to this:

General deodorizing

Pull out your lint screen and clean it. After that, get your vaccuumm and put the hose attachment down the lint trap to get any further lint. After that, vaccuum behind and around your dryer. You may also want to go to your exterior vent and clean that out - ensure there's no clogs. If you're feeling particularly thrifty, you can open up your dryer and vaccuum the drum, but this is typically for professionals only.

After that wipe down the inside with a disinfectant like white vinegar.

Burning rubber

If you smell burning rubber, it means your dryer is broken. Continuing to use it will just break it further and increases the risk of a fire. Give us a call and we'll fix it for you.

Smell of gas

If your dryer is gas powered and you smell gas, you should shut your gas off immediately and check for leaks.

Crumb Tray

Toasters are an appliance that may not be used a whole lot. You might even keep it in your pantry when you're not using it. Because of this, you might not think to clean it very often. Cleaning your toaster is important, and ensures that it doesn't burn anything or catch anything on fire.

The first thing you want to do is unplug your toaster. The last thing you want to do is have it accidentally turn on!

After that, you should see a tab of some sort. This tab rather opens up the bottom of your toaster or slides it out. This is called the crumb tray. Throw all the crumbs away and wipe it down if necessary!