When you have a large family, home appliances are a pretty big necessity. A bigger family means more food, more clothes, more dishes, more cooking, just more of everything and that needs to be accommodated.
Especially if your family is young and some of the kids can’t necessarily do a lot of chores or anything to take care of themselves, having and maintaining some of the more essential kitchen appliances is a must.
Having a reliable and preferably big fridge and freezer is important, an oven that is up to the task of being used every day and perhaps multiple times per day, a microwave, a dishwasher, a washing machine and a tumble dryer.
There are of course numerous other ones which can also be useful, including some you may not normally think of such as a dutch oven and a food processor. Purchasing all of these can be a tad bit pricey, even though it is worth it.
And what is perhaps more troublesome than the price, is making sure that the appliances last as long as they should. Most of these should continue to work for the better part of a decade and there are a few ways you can ensure that that happens:
Choose High Quality Machines
You can do a lot of the work right at the very beginning by just making sure that the appliances you purchase are of a high standard. What you are looking for here is an assurance of durability on top of the machine fully serving its function.
Now what most people will think of when they read this is that they should be spending more money on appliances, and in truth, that is kind of what I am suggesting. I’m not saying that you should just pick the most expensive model, but the best one will often be up there in price.
When you think long-term, this will actually be worth it because a better machine is more likely to last and you could end up spending more in the future for repairs or for a replacement, so consider it an investment.
You need to do a bit of research on various different brands, check out reviews of the products and find out which ones are popular and why they are popular. Listen to what the experts have to say about it, because they will think of things you won’t.
Like choosing a double oven so that different family members with different tastes or eating requirements can all have their own stuff cooking at meal times. The benefit of a recirculation hood which can be fitted anywhere in the kitchen and easily removed for cleaning.
Obviously if the best choice is just dramatically out of your price range then you shouldn’t shell out for it but there will always be other more affordable models which are almost at the same level of quality, just don’t allow yourself to be put off completely by price.
Clean Everything Regularly
All of these electrical appliances are susceptible to damage as a result of dust and dirt. If dust, grime or limescale is allowed to build up on the delicate, inner electronics then they will get clogged up and will either slow down or stop working.
Aside from just regularly cleaning the outside of the machines, you should also do a thorough job on the inside of the oven and the microwave every few weeks and twice a year you could take all of the food out of the fridge and freezer and wipe down inside those too. Appliance Hunter gives the best appliance cleaning tips.
So thinking more specific to each appliance, we’ll start with the fridge, which you need to clean the coils at the back of. They are more likely to overheat if dust is allowed to mount there so you should clean them with a vacuum every once in a while.
For the dishwasher, you have to consider the possibility of clogging. You’re putting dirty dishes in there on a regular basis which means that every time it’s used, food is passing through the pipes and naturally this can lead to them getting clogged.
This will ultimately result in the dishwasher not draining properly, and you should be able to recognize when this is a problem because you will hear gurgling noises or there might even be leaks.
It shouldn’t be too difficult of a problem to solve, detaching the pipes and cleaning them with an abrasive cloth should do the trick to get this issue under control. There’s also the possibility of your kettle getting clogged with limescale as a result of regular use.
Using a descaling agent of some sort gets rid of this and you should probably try to do that on a relatively regular basis.
Invest in a Warranty
Even if you make a point of buying the right appliances and you work hard to maintain them and keep them clean, things can still go wrong, especially if your family is a little bit on the bigger side.
Accidents do happen, there are issues of wear and tear which can eventually happen even to the best machines and then some things just go wrong for no apparent reason. This is why you seriously think about a home warranty.
Home warranties will cover things like fires and break-ins, but what many people don’t realize is that so many homes are spending so much money on repairs and replacements for their appliances.
A home warranty will cover damage to your appliances too, as well as the eventual replacements. So if you have a good home warranty, you can really consider the value of buying a good appliance because it might be the only payment you ever have to make on it.
So in short, maintaining your appliances so that they last longer and serve you well for their entire lifespan is a relatively straightforward process. The best course of action is to make sure that you actually have good appliances, put in the time to keep them clean and then get yourself covered in case of issues.