Here’s a very good tip from Appliance411:
as, garberator, microwave, oven, range, stove, refrigerator, automatic and clothes washers or washing machines
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It is not usually a good idea to try self-cleaning an oven *immediately* prior to a big dinner. Cleaning a week or more in advance would allow service to be scheduled should a problem arise. They often do… and at the of worst times. HE Washers Need HE Detergent
When I got my new frontloading, high efficiency(HE) washer, I was told I could use a smaller amount of regular detergent or buy the more expensive high efficiency(HE) detergent. It was up to me, there would be little difference other than a bit more sudsing with the regular soap. I decided to start with the HE detergent and discovered that it sudses up too. In fact, I had to cut back to half the amount of HE detergent per load or the washer stopped, flashing an error code. Now, by using half, the cost was equal too.
It seems that the sudsing is an issue for many people, some feel you need it, others don’t care, but the real concern should be- are the clothes clean? I’ve been looking around and found that fixitnow.com has some great (although sometimes quirky) answers to the HE vs regular detergent question.
You have to start with the understanding that the tumble action of high-efficiency washers (i.e., front loaders) produce more suds than the agitator action in top loaders. Now most of people think, “Oooo, sudsy, that’s good!” No, not good. Suds do nothing to clean your clothes and are actually an undesirable by-product of the detergent’s chemical interaction with the water.
The main job of detergents is to remove soils and stains. They do this by breaking down the surface tension of water, in effect, making water “wetter.” The water is what actually does the cleaning by slipping in between the [dirt] and the fabric, separating them and suspending the [dirt] in solution.Detergents are designed to freshen, remove odors, and brighten fabrics as they clean. Another key detergent function is to hold [dirt], and any dyes from colored fabrics, suspended in the wash water so they aren’t re-deposited back onto the cleaned clothes. Traditional detergents are designed to do this in high water volumes used by conventional, top-loading water hog washers.
If you think about it, using HE detergent in your front loader is really common sense. Because of the low-water wash and rinse cycles in HE washers, HE detergents must work differently from traditional laundry detergents in order to be effective. So, a bunch of them pointy-headed scientist types with all kinds of fancy degrees hung on their walls got together to design detergents that would be low-sudsing and quick-dispersing to get the best cleaning performance in front-loading washers.
Excessive sudsing can cause problems in HE washers by “cushioning” — or even preventing — the tumbling action. HE detergents also hold soils and dyes in suspension in low water volumes, so they don’t re-deposit onto cleaned clothes.
Excess suds can cause the washer’s pump to overheat causing premature failure of the pump. These excess suds also cause residue to build up inside the drum and hoses. After a while, your washer will start giving off a moldy funk and infecting your clothes with its faint, musky stink.
Low wash temperatures and/or use of regular detergent (which causes excess suds) may prevent some [dirt] from completely rinsing out of the front-loading washing machines. Oily soils and some dirt-type soils are especially sensitive to lower wash temperatures and medium to high suds levels. Over time, [dirt] will accumulate in the washer and lead to the growth of bacteria and mold, which we professional appliantologists refer to as bio-gookus. This bio-gookus will start stinking and may even impart odors to your clothes. To avoid all this unpleasantness, you should periodically run a maintenance cycle on your front-loader.
The Fix it now folks suggest the following to run a maintenance cycle:
1. Select the hot water setting. If there is no hot water setting, then select a “white” or a “stain” cycle setting. (Note: do not put laundry in the washer.)
2. Select the “extra rinse” option, if offered.
3. Add liquid chlorine bleach to the bleach dispenser. Fill to its maximum level.
4. Run the cycle through its completion.
5. If the washer does not have a second rinse option, manually select an additional rinse cycle to ensure that no chlorine bleach remains in your washer.
6. If your washer still has a funk, repeat steps 1 through 5 as necessary.
BTW, this is good to do periodically on top-loaders, too.
I switched to HE detergent from the start with my front loader, and after reading this, I’m glad I did. These washers are an expensive investment, and I want mine to last a long time.
Cook Safely This Holiday Season
With the joy of the holidays comes the joy of delicious food- and someone has to cook it. If that someone is you, you might want to take a look at the Association of Home Appliances Manufacturers (AHAM)safety page. There, you can order brochures, read safety tips and learn facts like these:
- The range-top was involved in nearly 8 of every 10 cooking fires.
- In nearly 3/4 of the fires reported (73%), the person responsible for the fire was not in the area when the fire started.
- The other major causes of cooking fires reported were grease, food left on the range, and combustible materials on the range-top.
- In nearly 2/3 of the fires (64%), people in the residence did not attempt to fight the fire but left the area.
- Unfortunately, one-half of the people who did try to fight the fire, did it incorrectly, further endangering themselves and their families.
- A larger percentage of the cooking fires were caused by people in the age range of 19 – 69 than is represented by their percentage of the overall population.
- One-half of the cooking fires reported were caused by people between the age of 30 – 49.
The age range of 19-69 and 30-49 being overrepresented makes sense to me since that is the age of most family members who are the cooks in the family. So, if you are the family chef, cook carefully and have a delicious holiday.
Viking Fridge Review
If you are in the market for a new, large refrigerator and you would like to get a custom, built-in look with standard cabinets, this just might be the fridge for you.
Sharp Introduces New Line of Microwaves
Sharp launched a new line of heavy-duty compact microwave ovens designed to accommodate the limited space designs of busy commercial kitchens. The new line, which includes the 1200-watt R-CD1200M, 1800-watt R-CD1800M, and 2200-watt R-CD2200M, is redesigned to have a small footprint and a 0.7-cubic-foot cooking cavity. New TwinTouch dual controls make the microwaves ideal for crowded kitchens, allowing users to easily operate the oven no matter where it is located.
The new models feature dual control panels, one along the top of the unit and another on the bottom edge along the door. In many kitchens, the microwave is placed on a high shelf, which makes accessing the standard control panel challenging. In those situations, users can opt to use the more readily accessible bottom-mounted controls, which eliminates reaching up to the top of the microwave.
Models R-CD1200M, R-CD1800M, and R-CD2200M will be available in early 2008.
Induction Cooking is Hot- and Cool
Induction cooking has been around for a while, but it seems that in North America it is just beginning to assert itself. I’ve recently learned more about how the technology works from some helpful sites.
At choice.com.au they offer a clear explanation about the magnetic fields:
Each ‘element’ (an induction coil) generates a magnetic field that induces heat in steel cookware placed on top of it. In essence, the pot becomes the element that cooks the food, so the cooktop surface doesn’t get as hot as other cooktops. Induction cooktops have the same instant control as gas and are the fastest of all cooktop types to heat and cook food — for example, they take about half the time of conventional electric cooktops to boil water.
They go on to explain that induction cooktops are smooth surfaces that are extremely easy to keep clean.
Because the heat is contained by the vessel, the cooking surface doesn’t get hot. This picture shows that induction cooking is hot and cool.
Another site, theinductionsite.com, has very thorough explanations of induction cooking and even includes some simple drawings like this one below with clearly labeled descriptions.
How Induction Cooking Works:
- The element’s electronics power a coil that produces a high-frequency electromagnetic field.
- The field penetrates the metal of the ferrous (magnetic-material) cooking vessel and sets up a circulating electric current, which generates heat.
- The heat generated in the cooking vessel is transferred to the vessel’s contents.
- Nothing outside the vessel is affected by the field–as soon as the vessel is removed from the element, or the element turned off, heat generation stops.
(Image courtesy of Induction Cooking World)
As mentioned in point two in the diagram, pots and pans must be made of a ferrous, or magnetic metal. One way to check if your current pans are ferrous is to see if a magnet will stick to them. If your pans do not have a ferrous metal base, you will need to consider the cost of some new cookware along with the generally steep cost of these cooktops. (I found them online for $1,800-$5,000.) There are some induction ranges in the works that can use other metals, but they’re not available yet.
I had concerns about the magnetic fields generated by the coil, and discovered that they are not completely unfounded. People with pacemakers should take precautions near the range and might want to check with their doctors before getting one. Theinductionsite has a whole page dedicated to the controversy surrounding radiation from electromagnetic waves.
There seem to be plenty of both pros and cons to induction cooking- lower energy use saves money, but the cooktop is expensive and may require new cookware. Food cooks more quickly, but new techniques must be learned. The safety of the burner going off automatically if there is no pot on it, but the pots slide easily and could get unintentionally bumped so the food won’t cook. If you are shopping for a new range there is a lot to consider about induction cooking and the choice will be a personal one.
How a Vacuum Works
If you take a minute now to visit www.howstuffworks.com, you will be prepared the next time a small child asks you how the vacuum works. This site gives a clear, and very detailed description of a vacuum’s mechanics.
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When you plug the vacuum cleaner in and turn it on, this is what happens:
- The electric current operates the airplane propeller).
- As the fan blades turn, they force air forward, toward the exhaust port (check out How Airplanes Work to find out what causes this).
- When air particles are driven forward, the density of particles (and therefore the air pressure) increases in front of the fan and decreases behind the fan.
This pressure drop behind the fan is just like the pressure drop in the straw when you sip from your drink. The pressure level in the area behind the fan drops below the pressure level outside the vacuum cleaner (the ambient air pressure). This creates suction, a partial vacuum, inside the vacuum cleaner. The ambient air pushes itself into the vacuum cleaner through the intake port because the air pressure inside the vacuum cleaner is lower than the pressure outside.
As long as the fan is running and the passageway through the vacuum cleaner remains open, there is a constant stream of air moving through the intake port and out the exhaust port. But how does a flowing stream of air collect the dirt and debris from your carpet? The key principle is friction.
These are a Few of My Favorite Things
I have some appliances that are my go-to tools for making life easier- my immersion blender, bread machine and toaster oven are a few. At appliancepulse.com they’ve come up with a list of what they consider the eight counter-top appliances people can’t do without.
They are:
- coffee machine
- microwave
- toaster oven/toaster
- blender
- food processor
- stand mixer
- rice cooker
- juicer
I’ll stand by numbers 2-5, but my coffeemaker can stand idle for weeks at a time, I haven’t used my juicer in about 8 years (Don’t ask me, I don’t know why I keep it.) and I don’t own and see no need to own a rice steamer.
Everyone’s cooking style is different and families’ needs change. Things we can’t seem to do without -the juicer- become clutter in the closet and some appliances that seemed impossible forty or fifty years ago are standard in the most basic kitchens today – the microwave.
What are you using daily at your house? We’d love to hear from you.
Downsizing? Some Choice Advice for Baby-Boomers
As the population ages, many people choose to move to smaller homes or condos for ease of maintenance. Some Baby-Boomers are purchasing smaller, second homes that can become retirement homes in the future.
Marriette Mifflin at about.com advises:
Take a serious look at your appliances, large and small, and consider their age, general condition, capacity, performance, and how likely you are to use them in the future. Consider the impact of moving certain appliances. Older refrigerators or freezers may not survive a physical relocation and would be best replaced for the new home.
Replacing older appliances for more efficient ones will save you energy dollars and the outlay to purchase now, will hopefully provide you with many years of trouble-free use. Replacing later on a limited budget may be more difficult.
We all have our favorite appliances and housewares, but most of us have items that we actually like, but seldom use for whatever reason. And, we often store appliances that aren’t working quite right, for disposal at some undetermined time – well now is the time. When you’re faced with moving, re-evaluating and de-cluttering is a must.
A second or retirement home may be smaller than the family home you’ve spent many years in new appliances should be evaluated accordingly.
Do you really need a high capacity washer and dryer, or would a compact set be sufficient? What size of refrigerator is adequate? Maximize counter space by choosing space-saving appliances and limiting counter presence by importance, and storing the rest.
Consider handling and ease of operation. Choose a vacuum that you can easily lift and maneuver, or consider an upright that may be easier to handle. When buying a new laundry set, the optional pedestal drawers do add to the cost, but may greatly increase the ease of transferring clothes and reducing back strain. An upright freezer may be more accessible for you than a chest model.
It is worth the investment of some careful planning now– it could pay off with some serious savings financially and emotionally, in the future.
Whirlpool Dream Kitchen Sweepstakes
From November 1 – December 31, 2007, Whirlpool brand and Dream Dinners invite consumers to register to win a Whirlpool Gold(R) suite of kitchen appliances or one of four Whirlpool Gold(R) Velos(R) SpeedCook ovens. The Velos oven can cook up to 47 percent faster than a traditional oven, getting the holiday turkey and all the fixins’ on the table in nearly half the time.
Consumers can visit www.whirlpool.com or www.dreamdinners.com for information on how to enter for a chance to win their dream kitchen.