Show your appliances some love this Valentine’s Day

February 14th, 2013

Appliance Talk

It’s easy to feel slightly neglected by the ones we love throughout the year. I mean, that’s the reason why Valentine’s Day was created right?

But much like our longing for presents or romantic dinners on more than just February 14, the appliances that we adore need some love too.

So if you’ve being neglecting those maintenance jobs you know need to be done – or you simply haven’t stopped and thanked your overworked appliance – now is the time to do it!

Clean your rangehood

When we think about cooking, the thought may cross our mind to get around to cleaning the oven or trivets on the cooktop. But how often does your attention turn to your rangehood?

As one of the most underrated appliances in your kitchen, your rangehood deserves to be the first to get some love. Not only could a quick clean extend the life of your rangehood, but you might also

If you’re unsure about how to tackle each component of your rangehood, we’ve offered some advice in the past on how to do so.

Clean your washing machine

Soap scum can quickly and easily build up in your washing machine, along with dust, dirt and grime. In order to keep your clothes looking and smelling fresh, you’ll need to clean your washing machine.

One of the easiest ways to do so if to pour one to two cups of white vinegar into the machine and run it through a full cycle with hot water without any clothes or detergent. If your machine allows the lid to be opened while the drum is filling up, soak a sponge in the rising hot water and wipe does the inside of the lid, top of the spinner and all of the fiddly places where dust and powder may be hiding.

Of course, you may have to wait until the cycle is over and fill a small bucket with hot water and a dash of vinegar and give the machine a wipe down instead.

Descale your iron or kettle

Washing machines aren’t the only appliance you can clean with white vinegar. If you’ve noticed a chalky film forming on the hot plate of your iron or on the inside of your kettle, you need to do some descaling.

This will help to prevent the steam channels on your iron becoming clogged, and will also prevent your kettle from taking longer to boil than usual.

For the iron, mix one part vinegar to two parts water and fill the iron. Turn it on and set to the cotton setting, before turning the iron off again and holding over a pan or pot with the heat plate facing down. The water mixture will drain out into the pain, clearing the steam channels. Fill the iron once again with water, and drain over a pan again to rinse out the vinegar.

For kettles, let a mixture of one part water and one part vinegar stand in the kettle for an hour before wiping clean and rinsing with fresh water five times.