Reasons to Never Leave your Appliances Running Unsupervised Part 3 - Halt!

This situation certainly is not as serious as any of the others but it is annoying nevertheless. Sometimes appliances simply stop in the middle of doing what they are supposed to be doing.

Imagine that you have clothes in the washing machine or dishwasher; it starts the load and fills with water no problem but partway through the cycle or when you hit the drain cycle it just never does it. Your poor clothes and dishes will be sitting with a tub full of water and food and dirt! No matter what temperature you start the cycle at it will eventually return to room temperature and become a petri dish for bacteria.

This kind of situation is well... ripe, for mold to start growing and there is also a possibility that water will start leaking from any small imperfections or damage in the system.

Keep your things smelling fresh!  Don't trust that your appliances will work perfectly every time just because they normally do.  Next week we'll include important details on why, legally, you should not run your appliances when they are unsupervised.

Reasons to Never Leave your Appliances Running Unsupervised Part 2 - Damage

There is always the possibility that a machine may damage itself when it is running either because something has gone wrong or because it has been loaded improperly.  One example that I'm sure everyone has shared is with a washing machine.  

Ever overloaded your washer or put something too heavy on one side and it started banging around on the spin cycle like an old western shootout?  It's a terrible racket and even if you were sleeping you would probably hear it and wake up but the unfortunate truth is: every bump and bang is the washer drum hitting the outside panels and other parts in the machine and each one is a possibility for the drum to get damaged.

Dents in a drum might be able to get hammered out but any cracks in the drum and you will need to replace the entire thing!  Since most models have the drum attached to the motor assembly at the bottom and panels and supports surrounding it removing the drum to replace it essentially calls for a complete and utter disassembly of the washer.  A lot of technicians won't even bother doing this type of repair because the drum is an expensive part and the labour is as well since it's a hard job.  Often it is cheaper to purchase an entirely new washing machine than replace the drum.

If you've gone out (or are a very heavy sleeper) and don't stop the washer while it's banging around there are other things that can happen as well!  The machine will start moving around on the floor from the force of the motion possibly causing scratches on your floor and the drain or water hose leading to the washer may become disconnected and cause a flood!

Keep your home and you appliances safe and only run your machines when you are home!  Part 3 will be up later this week with more tips of things to watch out for.

Reasons to Never Leave your Appliances Running Unsupervised Part 1 - Fires

This time we're going to do several articles covering reasons why you should never run your appliances when you are not home or awake to watch, or listen, to them working. While this is something that just about everyone has done at some point this is actually a terrible thing to do. Ignore those that say it is a great energy and money saver and here is why:

Fire Hazards:

Dirt, lint, grease and other things can build up within your appliance and nearly all appliances get hot while they are running. This can be because it is necessary for them to work properly such as a dryer or a dishwasher or as a simple side effect of moving parts and electricity.

If the appliance has not been properly maintained and cleaned there is a risk that the debris can get hot enough to catch on fire. Even with proper maintenance however there is always the risk that wires have not been insulated properly; whether as a manufacturer defect or due to work that was done on it later.

Any money you may save while running an appliance at night is not worth the risk of it catching on fire while you and your family are asleep. At best the machine will be damaged, possibly beyond repair, or you could be looking for a new place to live if it goes badly.