From the desire to prolong the life of your appliance to wanting to ensure it stays as energy efficient as possible, there are many reasons that you may choose to clean your fridge’s coils. You can always call American Appliance Repair for refrigerator maintenance if you are not comfortable doing it yourself, but you can also read on to learn how to do it yourself.
Why Do You Need to Clean the Coils of Your Fridge
If you do not clean the coils of your refrigerator, you could end up with all types of buildup on them. From cooking grease to floor dirt, from pet hair and other debris, as time goes on, the coil can collect a hazardous amount of dirt, debris, and other gunk. This will require your refrigerator to use more power – which means higher electric bills. In some cases, the extra load required can result in your compressor burning out altogether, which requires help from an appliance repair company.
Begin by Turning Off Power and Water to the Fridge
Your first step is to cut the power to the fridge. You can either shut it off by unplugging it or turn off electricity flow altogether by shutting it off at the circuit breaker. We recommend doing both for extra safety. In addition to protecting you from potential injury, this can also prevent unnecessary energy from escaping from the refrigerator.
For similar reasons, you want to turn off any water supply to your fridge. If it has a waterspout and/or an ice maker then you will want to do this after you have shut off all electricity to the unit or you could risk injury
Move the Fridge and Find Your Condenser Coils
Before you try to move your fridge, lie a drop cloth down to prevent scratches to your floor. Once you have moved it, look for your condenser coils. You will find them either behind your fridge or underneath it. In most older units, there is a grind-style design that you will find mounted to the back of your refrigerator. They are most often black and they are generally exposed. The fact that they are outside the fridge and exposed to the elements is the reason they must be cleaned regularly.
Clean Your Condenser Coils
If the coils are on the bottom of your fridge, use a long, wired brush to get them clean. Similarly, if the coils are on the back of the refrigerator, run the brush through the coils and cover all surface areas. You can use a paintbrush on exposed grid coils. If they are not exposed, then remove the panel so you’ll have easy access.
If this is not something you feel comfortable doing on your own, contact American Appliance Repair at 800-640-9934 and we can provide a quote for help.
