While appliances make our lives much easier, they also pose significant risks if not maintained properly. Appliance maintenance is an absolute necessity if you plan on getting the longest life possible from you purchases. Proper appliance care is also able, in certain cases, to keep performance up to par and ensure that your units are running as efficiently as possible. Use this guide to take a quick inventory of the health and safety of the appliances in your home:

Kitchen Appliance Care
Kitchen appliance maintenance is probably going to make the most difference in your home overall, as the machines here are generally used quite often. Though a broken kitchen appliance should usually be handled by a service professional, keeping them clean and using them properly is something that homeowners should pay attention to if they are to function well over their lifetimes.

If a gas appliance stops working, check to see if the pilot light has gone out. If you have the manufacturer's instructions handy, they may show you how to safely relight the pilot yourself. Wait until you have a full load of dishes before running the dishwasher; this will not only save you money on energy and water bills, but can also extend the life of your appliance, too. A freezer that contains too much frost cannot function at its best; whenever frost gets to be 1/4-inch thick in your freezer, it's time to defrost. Has a burner on your electric stove stopped working? They are generally inexpensive and easily replaced. Yellow flames in a gas stove are an indication of a problem. Flames should always be blue, so seeing other colors means that you're not running at full efficiency; you may want to call a service professional.

Water filtration

If you end up installing a home water-filtration system in the garage, it would be wise to erect some sort of protective barricade around the device to avoid any possibility of vehicle damage. You might also consider relocating the system to a safer location.

Bathroom vent

When a bathroom does not have a window, a ceiling vent is crucial to removing moisture from the room. If the vent doesn't work, the unit should be replaced or repaired

Oven thermostat

An oven thermostat no longer is considered working when it allows the oven to reach temperatures more than 25 degrees higher or 25 degrees lower than what is set. When this occurs, the thermostat either needs to be re-calibrated or replaced.

Dishwasher

If the door seal on a dishwasher is damaged or worn, water will drain out onto the kitchen floor when the machine is running. Changing the seal is a fairly easy do-it-yourself project, or you can hire a qualified repair technician to fix it before the floor sustains any serious damage. This problems should be address before further damage occurs.

Dishwasher

A dishwasher improperly secured to mounting brackets will make a lot of noise and vibration when it is used. The unit can be stabilized with appropriate screws and brackets.

Microwave

When inspected and tested, this microwave oven was found to lack proper grounding, a potentially hazardous situation. Any qualified electrician can fix the problem.

Garage door opener

Many new garage door openers use electric eyes to trigger their automatic-reverse safety features. If the eye falls out of alignment, however, the door will not work properly. It should be realigned as soon as possible to avoid possible accidents.

Heater ventilation

Power fans are frequently necessary to aid ventilation of interior spaces of a house. When one fails to function, it should be repaired or replaced as soon as possible.

Microwave vent

Many new microwave ovens are equipped with built-in range vents. The vents contain filters that need to be replaced regularly. If the vent fails to function, a qualified appliance-repair service should be called in to make the repair or replacement.

Electric water heater

The heating element in an electric hot water heater eventually will need replacement. While a handy homeowner can do the job, a qualified repair person should be called in if there are any questions about handling the high-amperage element.