Little-Known Tips Make Laundry Room Maintenance A Snap (NAPSA)—As temperatures cool and days get shorter, home maintenance turns from mowing the lawn and watering the garden to indoor maintenance. Just as changing a furnace filter improves performance andefficiency, properly maintaining household appliances such as washers and dryers is essential to keep them running at peak performance year-round. Terri McGraw, aka Mrs. Fixit, a home improvement guru, en- courages consumers to trou- bleshoot potential problems to properly care for their machines and save time, money and headaches. McGraw, along with the Whirlpool Institute of Fabric Science, provides several tips to make washer and dryer maintenanceeasier this season: Consult your washer’s Use and Care Guide for instructions on regular maintenance of your machine. For high-efficiency (HE) washers, use only HE detergents in the proper amount to help prevent oversudsing and the buildup of odor-causing residue. Leave the door open after each use to allow air to circulate for HE washers. Check washer and dryer drains and pipes for blockages, such as lint or even missing socks, to maintain optimum water and airflow. Empty the lint trap in the dryer after each load to save energy and maintain fire safety. Keep the dryer’s outside exhaust clean to shorten drying time and decrease energy use. e Avoid the potential for odorcausing residue by “washing” the machine every 30 days by using a washer-cleaning cycle. This final tip is important, particularly with HE washers, which seal more tightly and use less water than older, less efficient washers—increasing the potential for odor-causing residue. To more effectively remove odor-causing residue that can accumulate behind the washer drum and around the doorseal, laundry appliance manufacturers recommend a regular maintenance routine. To aid in the maintenance of your washer, many leading washer brands recommend using Affresh™ washer-cleaning kit with Power Puck™ tablets and Grit Grabber™ cloths. There’s no better time than now to make regular washer maintenance a habit. Visit www.affresh.com to learn more.
