Before putting homes on the market, realtors advise homeowners to stage homes for selling by completing repairs and thoroughly cleaning.
We often hear from pleased customers who’ve used RepairClinic.com to repair and improve kitchen appliances and heating and cooling equipment prior to selling their homes.
Last week, we heard from this customer:
“My wife and I have our homes on the market. We’re looking at retirement homes. My realtor told us we needed to replace the missing knobs on our 1970s cooktop and said details like missing knobs on appliances give a negative impression. Since it’s a vintage appliance, I thought we’d have to replace the appliance itself. With luck and your site’s pictures and descriptions, I found the right ones. Thanks for making it so easy to find parts and order. The knobs just arrived and they fit great. I am grateful! It saved us a lot of money. Thank you.”
Replacing worn parts and thoroughly cleaning appliances and heating and cooling equipment will go a long way in improving the overall appearance of your home.
Here’s a list of easy, inexpensive ways to spruce up your appliances and heating and cooling equipment:
Range/Stove/Cooktop
1. Replace broken, missing or worn knobs.
Replacements are easy to install and inexpensive. RepairClinic.com has replacement knobs for older and newer models of ranges, stoves, ovens, cooktops and range vent hoods. With your appliance’s model number ready, head to RepairClinic.com.
Need help finding the model number? Check out these videos:
How to find your range’s model number
How to find your range vent hood’s model number
2. Swap out dirty burner drip trays for shiny new ones.
Soiled burner drip trays (a.k.a. burner drip bowls) can turn a range or cooktop into eye sores. Once these trays have spills and burn marks, they’re nearly impossible to clean. Shiny new replacement drip trays are cheap and simple to install. RepairClinic.com has replacements.
3. Make your range/oven/cooktop shine.
- Use care when cleaning your range or stove top’s control panel. Using abrasive pads or a harsh cleaner can wear off the decal indicators, which identify the knob controls for each burner. If these decals wear off, the whole control panel will require replacement. If this has already occurred, enter you model number at RepairClinic.com to find the recommended replacement for your model. “Use a light-duty cleaner or simply soap and water with a rag,” advised Ryan Huntley, one of RepairClinic’s in-house appliance repair specialists. Try this popular All-Purpose Cleaner.
- Metal tops should be cleaned with Heavy Duty Degreaser and a non-abrasive pad.
- If you have a gas range, take care not to use too much water when cleaning, especially around the knobs. If water seeps into the knob shaft holes, it can cause ignition switches to short out and problems with the sparking system.
- Solid Burner Element? No problem. While this is not a cleaning product per se, it does an impressive job restoring solid burner elements to a near-new condition. Check out this bestselling Solid Surface Element Cleaner.
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4. Remove dust and dirt from beneath your range.
We use this handy Vacuum Attachment and long-handled bristle brush to make it easy to remove dust and dirt.
Refrigerator
5. Replace the gasket (a.k.a. rubber seal around the door).
A refrigerator’s gasket has the important job of keeping warm air out and cool air inside. Over time, the gasket wears and tears become common. Gaskets are simple to replace:
6. Clean off the condenser coils.
Condenser coils remove heat from refrigerators and keep the temperature cool. They’re the large, radiator-like coils located at the back or beneath the unit. They’re also dust and dirt magnets. A long-handled bristle brush and your vacuum cleaner will remove dirt and fur from the coils fast and efficiently.
On models with coils located beneath the unit, you can access this area by removing the bottom grill or kick-panel located at the front or an access panel at the back. A flashlight will be helpful in this dark area to prevent any damage to the fan.
7. Replace broken crisper drawers, bins and door shelves.
Even if your refrigerator is moving from the home with you, your prospect buyers may check out the interior of your refrigerator as a way to gauge how you’ve maintained your home. Replace chipped and broken interior components.
Dishwasher
8. Touch up rusting racks.
Use touch-up paint to prevent damaging rusting when the rack tines’ plastic coating wears out. Tine tips can prevent further rusting.
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The right way to load a dishwasher
Garbage Disposal
9. Freshen your garbage disposal (a.k.a. garbage disposer)
Eliminate disposal odors naturally with these biodegradable, non-toxic cleaning pellets.
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Washing machine
10. Clean out your washing machine tub.
It’s common for detergent residue to build up inside of washing machine tubs. Use this cleaner to make remove and prevent odor-causing residue.
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9 tips for washing machine care
Central air conditioner
11. Clean out your central air conditioner’s condensing unit.
From the inside of the condensing unit, use a garden hose with a steady stream to push out leaves, grass clippings, twigs, pollen and other debris that are stuck between the coils. With care, you can also use this condenser coil cleaning brush to gently remove the debris from the coils.
Anything else you’d add to this list? Please share in the comments below.
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