Appliance repair questions from Honolulu homes

Open the windows, leave the light switches alone, put out any flame, and call the gas supplier from outside the house. A short whiff when an oven first heats up is combustion, not a leak, but a rotten-egg smell that lingers never is.

Yes. CPSC counted about 1,700 emergency-room injuries a year from appliance tip-overs in 2006 to 2008, and 13 deaths from stoves, ovens and ranges tipping between 2000 and 2008, many of them young children. The tipped ranges were unsecured, and weight on the open door brought them over. Any time a range comes out for repair, the bracket has to be engaged again when it goes back. Some makers will send a missing one at no charge.

Lint left in place: failure to clean was the top factor in USFA's count, at 34 percent of residential dryer fires.

CPSC advises an alarm on every level of the home and outside each sleeping area, either battery powered or plug-in with a battery backup. EPA finds carbon monoxide often runs 5 to 15 ppm near a well-adjusted gas stove and 30 ppm or more near a badly adjusted one, so a range hood vented outdoors helps too.

No, stop using it until the element is replaced, because GE warns that a failing element can spark and trip the breaker.

Start with the outside of the machine: the power cord, the breaker, a door or lid that is not fully shut, a control lock or demo mode, the water or gas valve, the filter, and whether the unit sits level. Unplug it or switch off the breaker before you touch anything inside the cabinet. Past that point, leave it for the technician. Whether the fix can happen on the first visit depends on parts, which the same-day repair page walks through.

Every five years, by both GE's and Whirlpool's guidance, or whenever a new washer goes in. GE puts the small screens and rubber seals inside the hose ends on the same cycle. Shut the water off before you inspect them. In a stacked building, a burst hose does not stay in your unit.

No. Under the Consumer Product Safety Act, CPSC can order the maker, distributor or retailer to repair, replace or refund a defective product, and the consumer is not charged for that remedy. So a recalled unit should go through the recall rather than a paid repair. Problems can be reported at SaferProducts.gov.

No. The 2024 DOE standards cover new products only, taking effect for machines made from 2028 through 2030 depending on type, and never require an owner to retire a machine that still works. A repaired older washer or fridge is still yours to keep running.

Only with an appointment. Bulky pickup has been by appointment island-wide since July 1, 2020, and each home or condo unit may book up to two metal appliances per appliance appointment. Items go out no earlier than 6 p.m. the night before and must be at the curb by 6 a.m. Putting them out without an appointment is illegal and can bring civil fines.