We all depend on our home appliances for so many aspects of our lives, so when an appliance breaks down it can be an expensive proposition to replace it – especially if you’re on a budget. If repairing a necessity like this is too expensive and your credit score is low, you can apply for a payday loans bad credit with My Financial Broker. But did you know there’s a few things you can do to ensure that your appliances are working at their best and last longer?

Here’s some simple things you can do:

Regularly clean the condenser coils on your fridge/freezer – if your fridge or freezer breaks down you’re put in a bad position for food storage (not to mention the food already in there!). The most common reason for a fridge/freezer to break down is the condenser coils shorting out. You can avoid this by regularly cleaning out all of the dust that builds up at the back – just make sure to switch it off first.

Set your fridge/freezer to the most effective temperature – over cooling/freezing your fridge/freezer can short it out much sooner, because it’s using more energy than necessary. You should always try and find a medium temperature in-between. This will keep your fridge/freezer running for longer but also reduces the electricity it’s using, keeping down your monthly bills.

Clean the lint traps on your dryer – lint traps are installed on dryers to catch the lint that builds up over time to stop it getting on your dry clothes. You should ideally empty and clean this filter after every use for two reasons. The first reason is that a full lint trap stops your dryer working as efficiently and requires more energy, which adds to your electricity bills, decreases its efficiency and its life. The second reason is that full lint traps can be a fire hazard, with a number of house fires linked to this cause.

Clean the food filter on your dishwasher – similar to the lint trap on your dryer, food filters are designed to catch food waste. When the filter is full it can reduce the efficiency and increase the energy costs of your dishwasher. You should always make sure to clean out the food filter regularly and rinse any dishes before cleaning them in your dishwasher.

Descale your kettle – your kettle will build up over time with limescale, which solidifies after hot water has evaporated. Limescale can slow down the process of heating in your kettle, which then requires more energy to reach a boil and reduces its life. You can remove this by regularly boiling your kettle with half water and half white vinegar, and cleaning it out with antibacterial wipes.