A well-maintained refrigerator runs more efficiently, lasts longer and helps you avoid unexpected repairs. Fortunately, it doesn’t take much to keep your unit in good working order. Here are three simple steps you can take to extend the life of your refrigerator: 1. Regularly clean the condenser coils. Your refrigerator’s condenser coils are responsible for releasing heat from the unit, and when they’re covered in dust or pet hair, they can’t do their job properly. This forces the compressor to work harder, which increases energy usage and shortens the appliance’s lifespan. To clean the coils, unplug your fridge, remove the front grill or rear access panel (depending on the model), and use a vacuum and brush attachment to remove any buildup. 2. Replace water filters on schedule. Many modern refrigerators include water and ice dispensers with built-in filters. Over time, these filters become clogged with contaminants and lose their effectiveness. Changing them every six months (or as recommended by the manufacturer) ensures clean water and prevents strain on the filtration system. 3. Keep door gaskets clean. Gaskets, or the flexible seals around the refrigerator door, play a critical role in maintaining a proper fridge temperature. Dirty or sticky gaskets can prevent a tight seal, leading to energy waste and possible cooling issues. To maintain them, periodically clean both the gaskets and the door frame with soapy water. This will improve the seal and also help prevent cracking and deterioration over time.

3 Ways to Maintain Your Refrigerator

By Mark Kelly Owner of Kelly’s Appliance Center Diamond Certified Expert Contributor

2 Dishwasher Maintenance Tips

4 Choices for Wood or Faux Wood Flooring

Avoiding Problems When Cleaning Your Stovetop

Video: 2 Dishwasher Maintenance Tips

Video: 3 Ways to Maintain Your Refrigerator

Video: Hardwood Flooring Options

if you're in the market for a new
hardwood floor you'll want to know the
full scope of your options to learn more
we're in San Leandro with DC Owens of
carpeteria speaking on behalf of our
Diamond certified expert contributor Sam
goeran hello there I have a few great
tips on selecting your hard surface
flooring let me show you a few of the
things that we
have first I will show you a solid
hardwood floor this is a nice reddish
Hue and you can see at the edge that
it's a solid piece of wood 3/4 in is
pretty common another one to
consider is an
engineered hardwood floor the engineered
floor if we look at the edge is layers
of wood like a plywood type product
the difference is that the engineered
wood is much more moisture stable
because each layer of wood is cross
grained so when moisture affects it it
pulls at itself and prevents it from
expanding Contracting as much as a solid
hardwood
floor it's another product that is like
an engineered wood
floor but the edge as you
see is not the same the center core
instead of being plywood is a high high
density fiber board hdf is what it's
called so that started out 12 in thick
and they put it down with heat and
pressure to make it so it's only 38 of
an inch thick wood on the top wood
underneath so the little sandwich makes
it so it's much much harder than a
plywood or a solid wood and the center
core is even more moisture stable than
just regular wood another way of doing
it here's another engineered hardwood
floor by Armstrong Performance Plus and
we see the edge very much looks like the
other engineered wood that we look like
with layers of wood and what they did
different here that top layer they call
the wear layer they Infuse that with
acrylic so if you imagine looking at
that top layer of wood under a
microscope it kind of looks like a
sponge and that's why water can affect
it well they filled all those nooks and
crannies in with acrylic and now it's
really really hard when I take any piece
of a wood floor typically I can just
take my thumbnail and put a mark in it
but on that performance plus I can't
really do that because of that acrylic
that's in it makes it a little bit more
expensive but it's a good type of a
product here is another type of hard
surface floor this is
lvt luxury vinyl tile or luxury vinyl
plank when it looks
like a plank uh or it could look like a
tile here's another one that looks more
like like a
tile you can see the edge as well clicks
together very much like a uh laminate or
engineered
floor and I have some
more these are laminate
floors the center core is that same kind
of hdf highdensity fiber board and if we
look at the top of this we'll see you
can see basically it's a photograph the
board is about 9 in wide and it's a
photograph of three pieces and you can
see where it's joined together and where
it's not actually joined together where
it's just a photograph it's very
attractive but it's an inexpensive way
of making it and some people when they
look at this they say well it's nice but
it's a faux wood but they have other
laminate floors with the high density
fiber
board like this one you'll see
that it is very beautiful with lots of
color variations and even different
widths of the wood and everywhere where
that joins together you see the bevel
just like you would on a real wood floor
the center core again an hdf high
density fiber board this we can say is
moisture resistant but not
waterproof the
lvp or
lvt is actually waterproof I can take a
chunk of put it at the bottom of a
swimming pool and it wouldn't warp or
Buckle so sometimes when we're
considering maybe doing a kitchen family
room hallway and bathroom it's going to
get a lot more water than say a bedroom
maybe I want to go ahead and get
something that's waterproof for my
specific lifestyle two kids the Kool-Aid
mom we got lots of stuff going on we
want to stay looking nice even living in
it we don't want to act like we're
walking on eggshell uh when we get a
nice solid hardwood floor then we have
to remember we got to keep that humidity
at a very constant level 45 to 50% and
even if we're urged when we had a nice
rain to open up the windows and let the
house breathe in that nice fresh cool
air oh the wood's breathing it in too
and could cup and buckle so it's
important to choose the right product
for your specific
lifestyle to learn more from local top
rated companies visit our Diamond
certified expert reports at experts.
Diamond certified.
org

Video: How to Clean Your Stovetop


cleaning a stovetop is a simple task but
if you aren't careful you can run into
problems
today we're in catotti with diamond
certified expert contributor Dane Marcy
of Kelly's appliance center to learn
more a common problem a lot of people
have when cleaning their stoves is
getting too much moisture on it a good
tip is to spray your cleaner on a rag
and wipe it down if you spray the
cleaner directly on you can get water
and moisture behind the knobs on the
electrical components another common
issue that will happen is when you're
cleaning around the burners it's also
good not to spray directly on the burner
because you'll get moisture inside the
burner and that'll take a long time to
evaporate and dry out and your burner
won't light so make sure to wipe it down
dry it off and then when you're putting
your taps back on make sure that they
click and lock into place otherwise when
you go to light it it may continue to
spark
to learn more from local top rated
companies visit our diamond certified
expert reports at experts diamond
certified org


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