The Life Span of Your Appliances 

Like everything electronic in our life your appliances will one day need to be replaced. The question is how do you know when you have reached that point?

At SoBellas home services we receive calls everyday about customers debating whether to repair or replace their appliances. The answer is not always easy as various factors come into play. We take our profession very seriously and no different than a highly trained doctor. In order to diagnose the situation we first need to send a certified and trained technician to evaluate the appliance. Based on his professional assessment we can then provide our customer with a definitive answer.

It is true that sometimes a problem can become so complex that it is to the customers benefit to simply replace the appliance. This is not always true though and in many cases you can save money simply by fixing your trusty appliance. In order to give you a answer we must look at the following three categories:

1. Dependability
2. Date of Purchase
3. Cost of Repair

Dependability

In terms of dependability it is important to consider how much you rely on your appliance. If you depend on it a lot such as one would with a refrigerator then its a bigger decision to make. You want to ensure that your unit will be around for a long time whether you repair it or replace it. 

Date of Purchase

Another important factor is the date of purchase. Did you know that most new appliances come with a  one year warranty? It is important to read the warranty that any appliance comes with as this can save you a lot of money in the long run. Also it is important to consider the lifespan that your appliance comes with. Contained below is a chart from the NACHI (International Association of Certified Home Inspectors).

Life Expectancy of Appliances

Air Conditioner (window) 5 to 7, Compactor (trash) 6, Dehumidifier 8, Dishwasher 9, Disposal (food waste) 12, Dryer Vent  (plastic) 5, Dryer Vent  (steel) 20, Dryer (clothes) 13, Exhaust Fans 10, Freezer 10 to 20, Gas Oven 10 to 18, Hand Dryer 10 to 12, Humidifier (portable) 8, Microwave Oven 9, Range/Oven Hood 14, Electric Range 13 to 15, Gas Range 15 to 17, Refrigerator 9 to 13, Swamp Cooler 5 to 15, Washing Machine 5 to 15, Whole-House Vacuum System 20

     

Even though appliances are supposed to last for several years they do not always get their maximum use. People typically replace them with more modern appliances and those that better fit the style that they are going for. If your appliance is not working and it has far exceeded its life expectancy then it may be best to look into a replacement. It is important to remember though that there is nothing like a classic. 

Cost of Repair 

At SoBellas we get some calls where the customer tells us that they went ahead and replaced the appliance that they were considering to purchase. This can be a great idea particularly when the cost of repairing the appliance exceeds the cost of buying a new one. We believe that in most instances it is best to repair your current appliances but we also know that sometimes its best to replace them.

Conclusion 

We hope that our latest blog post provided you with some good information to help you make a decision on your appliance. At SoBellas we believe strongly in maintenance as a way of extending the life of your appliances which is why we have our Customer Care Club. Our maintenance agreement is designed to offer you piece of mind and to save you money in the long run. Make sure to comment and let us know what are some experiences that you have had with appliances.          

   

Maintain Your Refrigerator with a Few Easy Tips to Avoid Refrigerator Repair

If you do not maintain the appliances in your home, you will end up spending thousands of dollars on repairs and replacing appliances that can no longer be repaired. It is better to simply maintain these appliances to avoid frustrating problems and spending money unnecessarily. Fortunately, most appliances do not require much to be kept in excellent condition, and this rule also applies to refrigerators, which should last an extremely long time by following just a few easy tips.

Make Sure it is Level at All Times

If something as large as a refrigerator is not level, there will be problems. A non-level refrigerator will inevitably lead to needing professional refrigerator repair, but this is avoidable by using a level. All you need to do is place it on top of the refrigerator to see if there is a problem that needs to be solved.

Do Some Routine Cleaning

While you can clean the condenser coils in the back of the refrigerator pretty easily, you will have the most success when you purchase and use a brush designed for coil cleaning. It is a minor investment for something that will help you maintain your refrigerator while also ensuring a quick cleaning job.

Choose Ideal Temperatures

In order to keep your refrigerator from working too hard, you want to choose balanced temperatures that keep your food at a low enough temperature, but not excessively low to cause overworking. For the fridge, somewhere around 38 to 39 degrees Fahrenheit should do the trick and putting the freezer at around 0 degrees Fahrenheit will ensure great energy-efficiency while also keeping food frozen.

If you have any questions about appliance repair, feel free to contact us.

Air Conditioner Repair: The Benefits of Air Duct Cleaning

Air Conditioner Repair: The Benefits of Air Duct Cleaning

Dust, cobwebs, and other debris that can collect in the ducting system can severely decrease your HVAC system's efficiency, so have the ducts cleaned regularly.

There is a lot that goes into properly maintaining the appliances in one’s home. In particular, there can be a lot of work involved in ensuring that your home’s HVAC system is properly taken care of. One such maintenance task that homeowners often neglect, or do not realize the importance of, is having their ductwork professionally cleaned. Having your air ducts cleaned as part of your annual air conditioner maintenance and repair can provide many benefits to homeowners as well as to their HVAC system. Here are just a few of these many benefits.

Increased Efficiency

Dust, cobwebs, and other debris that can collect in the ducting system in one’s home can severely decrease your HVAC system’s efficiency. In fact, this debris can decrease the efficiency of your HVAC system by as much as 30%. This can cause your system to have to work harder, which can cause an increase in your energy bills. Thusly, having your ducts cleaned regularly can save you money on your utility bills.

Decreased Dust Accumulation

Much of the dust that accumulates in your home is spread through your air duct system. Having your duct-work cleaned can thus remove the dust at its source. People who have their ducting cleaned on a regular basis often find that they do not need to dust as frequently as they once did.

Air Quality

The air quality in one’s home can be greatly affected by unclean duct-work. Pollutants that can live and grow in these spaces, such as bacteria, allergens, fungus, pollen, and pet dander that can then be spread throughout your home via the duct-work. Professional duct cleaning can then improve the air quality in your home, and it can make your home a healthier, easier place to breathe and live in.

Regular duct cleaning can be vital as it can help to ensure the cleanliness and efficiency of your home’s duct-work. Doing so can help to keep your energy bills down, help to make your home a cleaner place, and it can help to lessen the severity of any allergies and/or respiratory problems your family may have. Contact us to find out about more of the benefits air duct cleaning can provide you with.

Guide to the Perfect Home Kitchen

Guide to the Perfect Home Kitchen 

Let’s face it we all envision ourselves as chefs when we are looking at our IPad and trying out the latest recipe we found on Pinterest. The love that you show in your food preparation should also be found in your kitchen.

In our Guide to the Perfect Home Kitchen we believe that you need 5 appliances and a bit of creativity. Below you will find the steps to our version of Kitchen bliss.  

The Appliances

The Blender

A blender is your best friend in the kitchen. Not only can you keep yourself and your family healthy with some fruit shakes but you can also experiment.

Who doesn't like experimenting with different fruits and veggies to produce the ultimate power shake.     

               The Toaster 

This is one of the first gifts that a married couple receives and there is a big reason for it. Toasters are the perfect compliment to any breakfast meal. Who doesn't appreciate some toasted bread in the morning. 

The Microwave

The microwave is by far one of the most important components. It is the perfect appliance to be used when you are in a hurry. Asides from that if you are not the best at cooking your own food then there is nothing like a microwaveable meal. 

Grill 

A small kitchen grill can do wonders for your waistline by melting off the excess grease. Your meats will taste delicious and you will be thanking us for it. 

The Kitchen Floor

Believe it or not the type of kitchen floor that you select is very important. You want to choose a floor that does the following:

1. Is easy to clean.
2. Will last for a long time.
3. Will not need to be cleaned for a long time.

Put Some Planets in your Kitchen

     

Plants in your kitchen will make it look nicer. It will also be more aesthetically pleasing to your guests eyes. Just make sure to keep your home clean from all of the dust particles. It is important for your kitchen to be visually appealing. 

These are some of our tips to getting the best kitchen possible. Please let us know in the comments below if you have some extra tips. 

       

  

Keep Your Rental Property Expenses Down with Air Conditioning Repair

When you own and maintain a rental property, it is easy to forget about maintenance and repairs because you are not the one living in the home or experiencing problems. It is vital to keep your tenants satisfied as vacancies only lead to reduced income, and this is the biggest downfall of any rental property owner.

While it is essential to maintain the entire property, utilizing air conditioning repair when it is needed is one important step to getting your property ready for tenants to look at, rent, and enjoy.

Ensure Tenant Satisfaction

From the moment a potential tenant walks into your rental property, you want to impress them. Accomplishing this will help you get the asking price and the lease length of your desire. Also, as the weather begins to warm up, your tenants will enjoy having a working air conditioning.

Avoid Replacing the Unit

An air conditioner that works but needs fixing is likely to have worse problems in the future, but fixing it right away will prevent these issues from worsening and becoming more expensive to fix. In some cases, waiting too long to repair an air conditioning unit can lead to needing a complete replacement, which reduces your rental property profits with additional expenses.

Save on the Utility Bill

If you pay the electricity bill for your tenants, you really do not want to leave the air conditioner in even mediocre condition as this will lead to poor efficiency. When this happens, it costs more money, takes more time, and works your air conditioner even harder to keep the inside temperature down.

It is ideal to avoid air conditioning problems when possible, so contact us to utilize our air conditioning repair services to help you save money on your rental property expenses.

Secrets to Maintaining your Refrigerator

  

The refrigerator should be the cleanest appliance in anyone's home. It is one of the most frequented appliances that you will ever use. You depend on it to keep your food fresh and most importantly free from bacteria. We hope that you find the following information useful and as always feel free to provide us with any tips that we have left out on the comment section.

Keep your Refrigerator Balanced 

The first thing that you want to do in order to preserve your refrigerator is to make sure that it is level. A solid foundation is essential for many things including your refrigerator,

An unbalanced refrigerator will cause a lot of strain on its motor.

Cover your Food

The next secret is to cover your food. We all love the smell of certain foods but trust us if you don't cover your food your refrigerator will begin to stink. Also covering your food will help it stay fresh and most importantly tasting better. Doing this will keep your refrigerator smelling like new.

The following 3 steps will help you with covering up your food:

1. If possible keep your fresh food in the same plastic wrap that it came with. 
2. If you plan on saving any leftovers please make sure to put them in a airtight container. 
3. Its better to keep dairy foods in the containers that they come in.

   

Keep the Doors Closed Tight

It's no secret that if you have even a small crack in your refrigerator door you will be using more energy. You can ensure that your doors are closing correctly by doing some routine maintenance. For starters you should be cleaning out where the door seals. Even a tiny amount of food can create big problems for your  favorite appliance.

Keep the temperature Right

It is a good idea to keep your refrigerator at around 38 degrees Fahrenheit. Doing so will not only keep your food from spoiling but it will also give you the most use out of your appliance. Another good tip is to put your freezer at zero degrees.

Check your temperature often.

 

Make Sure that your Coils are Maintained  

If you have never checked your coils then you better start doing it now. The coils are crucial to keeping your appliance working as they create the coolness and release the heat. If they are not properly cleaned then your refrigerator will not function properly. 

1. Look at the back of the refrigerator as this is where they are located.   
2. Use a brush attachment and begin to clean them.
3. Look out for any dust that may be clogging them. 
4. This is something that you will have to do every few months. 

Remove the Ice

If you do not clean out the ice then you could be asking for trouble. Ice can freeze and therefore damage your freezer. Another bad issue that can occur is that ice can harvest fouls smells that will become very difficult to get rid of.  

If you have an issue that requires a professional contact us.   

Ice can smell bad over time.

Protecting your Family from Carbon Monoxide

Protecting your Family from Carbon Monoxide: Things you need to know

You have heard those tragic stories on the news before about the effects of carbon monoxide but how much do you really know? 

To understand carbon monoxide we first need to know what it is. Carbon monoxide is a gas that has no smell and has been described as a silent killer. You will not even be aware of its presence until the damage has already been done. The reality of this menacing gas is that everyone is at risk. It is said to be especially dangerous to the very young and elderly. Those of us that require more oxygen are at an increased risk towards its dangerous effects.

How does it work? 

Carbon monoxide occurs when  there is combustion that is not complete in organic matter due to there not being enough oxygen to complete the full oxidation to carbon dioxide. This deadly gas is produced in carbon based fuels which means that a lot of the machines that you rely on could be capable of producing this gas.

The following types of household machines and appliances are capable of producing carbon monoxide:

Lawn Mowers can produce carbon monoxide.

  

• Lawn Mowers
• Furnaces
• Power Washers
• Automobiles

Any device that is susceptible to the incomplete burning of various fuels.

How can I protect my family from carbon monoxide? 

You should first and foremost ensure that any appliance that comes into your home is installed and maintained by the manufacturers guidelines. We know that reading all of the instructions takes time but it will be worth it. It is important to have a company such as SoBellas preform seasonal maintenance on such appliances. We have a great customer care club that provides you with those needed maintenance visits at a affordable cost. 

You can also take the following steps:

• Do not try to service appliances that use fuel without first doing your homework.
• If you are doing remodeling on your home make sure that you do not block the vents on any of your appliances. 
• Do not turn on the power to a gasoline powered machine in a enclosed area. (ex. car in a closed garage.)
• Make sure that you don't use gas fueled appliances as a heater for your home.

Preventative devices are also very important such as using carbon monoxide alarms. These devices are designed to inform you of any carbon monoxide gas before it reaches a deadly level. 

What if my alarm goes off showing that there is carbon monoxide?

This step is easy to remember. You MUST leave the home and contact 911. Under no circumstances should you go back into the home until the authorities have properly inspected it and have deemed it to be safe to reenter.  

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