Opening Doors Blog

Keep an open box of baking soda in the refrigerator and change it on the first day of summer, fall, winter, and spring. Control refrigerator odors by making sure all foods are wrapped, covered or bagged in plastic or foil. Spoiled food in the refrigerator can leave lingering sour odors. [...] Read More

Defrost a cycle-defrost freezer when the frost is 1/4 inch thick. Never use a sharp utensil to scrape the frost as it can cause serious damage. Use a dull plastic scraper instead and don't scrape against metal parts. If the frost is thick you can boil a pot of water and place it inside the freezer. [...] Read More

Gaskets, the rubber lining that surrounds the doors and keeps the cold air inside can become worn. From time to time check the gaskets for tightness, they should fit snugly. To check the door seal, close the door on a dollar bill in several places. Look for slight resistance as you pull it out. [...] Read More

The average shelf life of cottage cheese is five days but there's a simple trick to keep it fresh longer: refrigerate it upside down in the container. The creamy liquid will move from the original bottom to the original top so then keeping the entire contents that much fresher. [...] Read More

When you are shopping for a refrigerator, remember that the bigger the capacity, the more the expensive the appliance is to buy and to run. As a rule, two people typically need a minimum of 8 cubic feet of food storage, not counting freezer space. For every additional household member, add another cubic foot. Thus, for a family of five the refrigerator should be no less than 11 cubic feet. [...] Read More

The rollers may be jammed if your dish rack tends to stick. Turn the rollers by hand to loosen them. If they are worn or no longer, replace them. [...] Read More

Yellow and brown stains on the inside of your dishwasher as well as on your dishes are probably an indication of heavy iron concentrations in your water. To remove these stains, add a half cup of citric acid crystals to the water as the machine begins the wash cycle. You can also use a compound that appliance dealers sell to remove rust from a water softener's resin beads and don't forget to follow the manufacturer's directions. [...] Read More

A dishwasher uses the same amount of hot water and energy whether it's half full or fully loaded. So when you don't have a full load of dirty dishes, you should use one of the most underutilized functions on your dishwasher - the rinse and hold cycle. [...] Read More

To prevent small items like baby bottle nipples and jar caps from flying around in the dishwasher while it's running, put them in a small mesh bag. Secure the top of the mesh bag with a rubber band then loop the rubber band over a prong on the top rack. The small items will get clean while staying contained in the bag. [...] Read More

If you have a pot and pan setting on your machine, you don't usually rinsedishes before loading then into the dishwasher. The jet sprays of the water system will pulverize and flush away food particles. Make sure though that you put the cookware in the lower rack, facing the spray arm. [...] Read More