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Home Appliance News Survey – 7 September 2006

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It’s a short week and I’m still not convinced the summer is “officially over”, so blogging is going to be light today with some links to useful resources:

  • A site called Kensington Bungalow is writing a diary about renovating their house. Today’s entry is called DIY Appliance Repair.
  • eCoupons is providing appliance coupons good through September 9 for items from Best Buy.
  • A site I’ve just discovered, Apartment Therapy: Los Angeles, has a nice piece about Sears Appliance Outlets. While the article is focused on Southern California, you can find a Sears Appliance Outlet by entering your zip code, unchecking All Sears Stores and checking Sears Appliance Outlet Stores: Discontinued or slightly blemished appliances at reduced prices near the bottom of the page.
  • Savvy Saver has a piece this week entitled You too can be an appliance repair person!. Even better is their dishwasher – specific article Repair or replace?

That’s it for now.

Garbage Disposals — Keep in Shape with Proper Care, Love and Feeding

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In-Sink-Erator 444 Disposer 444 Garbage Disposer - Kitchen Sink DisposalAs the summer comes to an end and used exercise equipment appears more frequently on EBAY and Craigslist, there are other things that require calesthenics to keep in proper shape. Kitchen appliances. This will be the first in a series of easy maintenance tips designed to extend the life of your essential appliances.

Rosie Romero of the Arizona Republic writes:

The two most common types of garbage disposers are continuous feed and batch feed.

Continuous feed is the most popular. To operate, you just push the food down, then turn on the disposer while running water.

The batch feed is not as popular, but it’s great for homes with small children. The stopper must be on and locked in place before the disposer will turn on. This eliminates curious fingers from being hurt if the disposer is turned on accidentally.

The majority of disposers have 1/3 to 1 horsepower and last about 10 years.

A chamber of stainless steel (which is stronger than other materials and corrosion-resistant) with a 3/4-hp motor works well for most homeowners. (see pictured In-Sink-Erator)
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Expect to pay $70 to $250 for a new unit. The more expensive models have higher horsepower, meaning they can chop through more materials, even small bones, and some can reduce noise. Also consider a disposer with an auto-reverse mode, which allows the blades to go in the opposite direction to clear jams.

This is a lot safer than using a fork or your hand, which I never would recommend.

The key tips:

  • Run the garbage disposal unit for 30 seconds when using, giving it plenty of time to chop up the food.
  • Always run water while using the disposer. This helps maintain the integrity of the blades while washing food particles out of the unit. Cold water should be used. This will coagulate any grease inside and make it easier for the disposer to chop.
  • You should continue to run water for a while after the unit is turned off to clear debris.
  • Occasionally add vinegar or citrus peels to maintain your disposer and keep gunk from building up. Citric acid is a natural cleaning agent and works well as a deodorizer.
  • Some chemicals, such as drain cleaners and bleach, can do more harm than good
  • It’s best to throw larger amounts of food into the garbage than down the drain.

Kitchen Appliance News – August 2006

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Frigidaire FEF336EC 30\When there were three major TV networks, appliances were fewer and simpler. WJAC-TV has an article Kitchen Appliance Features You Need and Don’t Need which helps you to decide which features should you pay for, and which ones should you forget?

For ranges:

For electric ranges, smooth glass surfaces are better because the coils on older style ranges are so difficult to clean.

For gas ranges, it’s worth paying a bit more to get a sealed burner and avoid those with a gap around the burner where spills of liquids and crumbs could easily drip below the surface

Upgrading to a self cleaning oven for an extra fifty dollars is definitely worth the money to avoid the task of cleaning it up yourself.

On the other hand, not all bells and whistles are necessary. A warming drawer might add as much as $150 to the price of the range and it’s a job done easily as well in your microwave oven.

For refrigerators:

“The least expensive refrigerators have old fashioned wire shelves. That means that spills can drip down. We think it is worth paying a little bit more and getting glass shelves that have rims all the way around the edge to contain the spills. It’ll make your life much easier in the long run.”

Good Housekeeping says: don’t even consider a refrigerator without an “automatic defrost” feature. For more tips on finding the right appliance for your family, check out the August issue of Good Housekeeping or visit www.goodhousekeeping.com.

Featured above: Frigidaire FEF336EC 30″ Freestanding Electric Range with 4 Radiant Elements & Self-Cleaning Oven

If You Can’t Stand the Kitchen Heat, Try Appliances Alfresco

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It’s July and maybe you haven’t yet emptied the Independence Day charcoal ash from the bottom of your Weber kettle grill. You’d like to figure out a way to heat up your house by boiling corn on the cob or macaroni or potatos to make salads to go along with the remaining summer barbeques you’re planning.

According to the Charlotte Observer:

The outdoor kitchen trend caught on with average consumers in the past two or three years, according to local builders, designers and landscapers.

Architects nationwide have reported a surge in the last year of customers requesting outdoor living space such as decks, patios and outdoor kitchens, according to a 2006 American Institute of Architects survey.

“The outdoor room is sort of the family room of the 21st century,”

More here.

more here

No Fan Of Air Conditioner Repairs — Do It Yourself Maintenance Tips

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air conditioning repairWith summer heat and threats of air conditioner supply shortages, if you can’t buy a unit, then keeping yours working is the way to go.

An air conditioner’s filters, coils, and fins require regular maintenance for the unit to function effectively and efficiently throughout its years of service. Neglecting necessary maintenance ensures a steady decline in air conditioning performance while energy use steadily increases.

Air Conditioner Filters: The most important maintenance task that will ensure the efficiency of your air conditioner is to routinely replace or clean its filters. Clogged, dirty filters block normal air flow and reduce a system’s efficiency significantly. With normal air flow obstructed, air that bypasses the filter may carry dirt directly into the evaporator coil and impair the coil’s heat-absorbing capacity. Keeping the filter clean can lower your air conditioner’s energy consumption by 5%–15%.

air conditioner newFor central air conditioners, filters are generally located somewhere along the return duct’s length. Common filter locations are in walls, ceilings, furnaces, or in the air conditioner itself. Room air conditioners have a filter mounted in the grill that faces into the room.

Some types of filters are reusable; others must be replaced. They are available in a variety of types and efficiencies. Clean or replace your air conditioning system’s filter or filters every month or two during the cooling season. Filters may need more frequent attention if the air conditioner is in constant use, is subjected to dusty conditions, or you have fur-bearing pets in the house.

Air Conditioner Coils: The air conditioner’s evaporator coil and condenser coil collect dirt over their months and years of service. A clean filter prevents the evaporator coil from soiling quickly. In time, however, the evaporator coil will still collect dirt. This dirt reduces air flow and insulates the coil, reducing its ability to absorb heat. To avoid this problem, check your evaporator coil every year and clean it as necessary.

Outdoor condenser coils can also become very dirty if the outdoor environment is dusty or if there is foliage nearby. You can easily see the condenser coil and notice if dirt is collecting on its fins.

You should minimize dirt and debris near the condenser unit. Your dryer vents, falling leaves, and lawn mower are all potential sources of dirt and debris. Cleaning the area around the coil, removing any debris, and trimming foliage back at least 2 feet (0.6 meters) allow for adequate air flow around the condenser.

Coil Fins: The aluminum fins on evaporator and condenser coils are easily bent and can block air flow through the coil. Air conditioning wholesalers sell a tool called a “fin comb” that will comb these fins back into nearly original condition.

Condensate Drains: Occasionally pass a stiff wire through the unit’s drain channels. Clogged drain channels prevent a unit from reducing humidity, and the resulting excess moisture may discolor walls or carpet.

Window Seals for Room Air Conditioners: At the start of each cooling season, inspect the seal between the air conditioner and the window frame to ensure it makes contact with the unit’s metal case. Moisture can damage this seal, allowing cool air to escape from your house.

Preparing for Winter: In the winter, either cover your room air conditioner or remove and store it. Covering the outdoor unit of a central air conditioner will protect the unit from winter weather and debris.

Can You Hear Me Now? Amplified Phone Market to Grow As Boomers Age.

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Earlier this month, the news reported the latest craze, cellphone Ringtones that only teens can hear. The National Public Radio (NPR) article Teens Turn ‘Repeller’ into Adult-Proof Ringtone describes how:

The war between teens and authority figures has a new — or old — front: ears. British shopkeepers tired of teenage loiterers have turned to the Mosquito teen repellent, which emits a high-pitch frequency that most teenagers can hear — but not most adults.

But now teens have struck back against the Mosquito: They are using the same sound to communicate without adults’ knowledge.

At issue is a text-message ringtone that emits the same pitch as the Mosquito. Using it, students can learn about a new message while they’re in class — where they’re not supposed to be using their cellphones. Most of their teachers can’t hear the alert.

No matter which side of the argument you’re on, the rest of the article is fascinating reading.

At the opposite end of the sound spectrum are amplified phones for baby boomers. This Week In Consumer Electronics (TWICE) reports that

According to the Hearing Loss Association of America, 28 million Americans (one in 10) suffer from some form of hearing loss. The percentage shifts dramatically for those age 65 or over to one out of three. According to the National Institutes of Health, the number of people aged 65 and over is expected to double in size within the next 25 years. By 2030, almost one out of every five Americans (72 million people) will be 65 years or older.

Manufacturers Panasonic, Uniden, VTech, Motorola, ClearSounds and Clarity are getting involved not merely in raising the amplification but in isolating the frequencies that the hearing-impaired usually miss.

Refrigerator Sex Appeal???

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refrigerator tvHey, I didn’t put those words together in the first sentence of this Orlando Sentinel article entitled

See hot new ideas found in the fridge
Some of today’s models go high tech and high style, making food storage and cleanup a little cooler

Refrigerators may lack the sex appeal of other swanky kitchen appliances, but that image is changing.

Floridian readers take their refrigeration seriously! The article sees the Jetsons-ification of what was once a boring device and notes increasingly common new features like door alarms, computerized digital controls, slide-out storage, TVs, humidity controls, halogen lighting, and custom facades to match kitchen cabinetry.

Dacor and Sub-Zero use microchips to adjust defrost cycles to usage patterns. Bosch refrigerators have sensors in less pricy models. Usage patterns?!? Like when kids stand in front of the frig for half the afternoon?

Samsung‘s refrigerator has a 10-inch LCD touch screen with digital memo pad to set expiration dates. LG’s 15-inch screen has DVD capability on one door and a smaller 4-inch screen to display local weather information, digital photos, recipes and a calendar.

Parents used to scream at kids to close the refrigerator door and to remind them that the frig isn’t a TV. Not for much longer as these features trickle down in the coming years.

Laundry Appliances – Location, Location and Location

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laundry animated
It’s the fodder of cartoon strips and Erma Bombeck novels, but hauling laundry from bedrooms and bathrooms to remote laundry rooms and basements is the exhausting bane of leaving your parents’ nest and doing your own washing duties.

laundry animated
The July 2006 Consumer Reports discusses the efficient trend of moving the mountain of laundry closer to Mom (or Dad!) instead of the old way of someone bulldozering the laundry to the laundry room.

The issue covers the critical decisions in planning and purchasing and contains the annual washing machine and dryer report.

A few strong but reasonably quiet performers from our Quick Picks include the Whirlpool LSW9700P top-loader, $380; the Whirlpool Duet GHW9150P front-loader, $1,100; and the GE Profile DPSB620EC, $580, and Kenmore (Sears) Elite 6697, $640, dryers. To minimize vibrations, make sure that your appliances are level. And purchase products from a dealer who will allow you to return or exchange them if they shake and shimmy too much once they’re in place.
Key features to look for are stackability, cycle noise, cycle time, and end-of-cycle signal. Note that top-loaders are always substantially faster than front-loaders.

Luxury GE Appliances

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General Electric logoThere once was a time when this headline would seem as unlikely as “Performance Yugo” or “Haute Cuisine Denny’s“. Nonetheless, the New York Times reports in GE finds sleek profit in luxury appliances that GE is tired of sour grapes and is aiming at the Viking and SubZero market.

GE recently inserted a 30-page promotional brochure in four big-market newspapers, featuring Martha Stewart, Donald Trump, Jay Leno and other well-known moneyed people posing in their Monogram-bedecked designer kitchens.

“We wanted to give the idea that people who can afford Hatteras yachts and Neguchi tables choose Monogram,” Klein said, adding that GE has sold more than a dozen of those $30,000 wine vaults.
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“You’re going to have a billion middle class people in China and India by 2015.”

No more whining for GE now that it is in the wine vault and luxury appliance business! GE has seen that the appliance growth market isn’t just in the USA.