#2 - Refrigerator Maintenance

(by Charles McNevich Jr.)

You should clean the back/bottom of your refrigerator a few times a year to get rid of dirt and dust that can interfere with the operation of your refrigerator. For old refrigerators, the coils will be located on the back of the refrigerator. In this case, unplug the refrigerator and place a damp cloth on the floor to catch dust and debris (just when cleaning). Use a small paint brush (one with soft bristles) or a vacuum with a soft brush attachment. Start at the top of the coils and gently brush any dirt and dust off of them. Continue all the way down to the bottom of the coils. The damp cloth will catch most of the dirt and dust. When finished, clean up any mess and plug the refrigerator back in.

For newer refrigerators, there is a kick plate on the bottom front of the refrigerator. Unplug the refrigerator, remove the kick plate and wash the kick plate with soapy water (and then dry it). With the kick plate removed, place a damp cloth on the floor under the refrigerator. Use a vacuum with a brush attachment to carefully vacuum up dirt and dust underneath (but don't touch the condensor or the fan). Using a flashlight, use a paintbrush with soft bristles to lightly remove dust from the condensor and the fan blades. Alternately, if you have a vacuum with a reverse switch, you can lightly blow off dust and dirt using the blower on the vacuum and then clean up the dust and dirt from the floor. When finished, replace the kick plate and plug the refrigerator back in.