Monthly Archives: June 2015

The refrigerator is the second busiest if not the most busy large appliance in your house. It runs 24/7 and is essential in the preservation of your food. It can take some punishment and requires regular cleaning, but it doesn’t have to be a chore.

Cleaning the refrigerator means you’ll have it operating at top efficiency. This means that when clean, it will use less electricity and deliver proper performance.

First comes the cleaning and checking. Look for leaks along the seal by putting a flashlight or some portable light inside and close the door. Turn off the lights and examine to see if you see light emitting from the fridge. If so, you need to tighten up that seal. This will keep food fresh and odors down.

Next is cleaning. You can use a number of homemade cleaning solutions or a brand name one from the store. Get one or make one that not only cuts through grease and grime, but also disinfects and won’t harm the surfaces of the refrigerator itself. You can then buff some wax on the glass to prevent stains and such, but your main goal is to get rid of grease and grime, disinfect and then prevent same.

There are also a number of ways to deodorize your fridge too. The old standby is a box of baking soda opened and sitting in the back of the fridge. Another is using a sock with activated charcoal that you can get at any pet store. Put it in the sock, tie a knot in it and stash it out of the way in the fridge. That will absorb the odors for at least a month or more. Some cotton with vanilla extract, orange oil, lemon oil, or something like that, will add some pleasant aroma to the fridge.

There are lots of household remedies so it’s best to search around and ask friends and family what they use.

Once you’ve gotten the refrigerator cleaned, cleaning it over time will be easier. There are other things you an do to aid in your refrigerator cleaning regimen.

Keep items at least an inch away from the walls of the refrigerator. This will allow for the fridge to circulate the air and keep things cool. Keep all containers with lids and tops tightly closed. Avoid putting meats on top but keep them on the bottom as if they leak you won’t have a waterfall of stuff. Vegetables should be in their own bin, best on top of a plain paper bag or paper towels that will absorb moisture and odors.

Cleaning your refrigerator should be a pleasurable experience, not a chore.

Image credit: Andriy Popov