Appliances can be quite frustrating to clean as they tend to have little nooks and crannies that are hard to get into. Despite this, it is super important to give them a good once-over every so often. It doesn’t matter if they cost $10 or $1000, cleaning them properly and frequently will offer so many benefits. To highlight just how important appliance cleaning is, we’ve listed the top 5 reasons to just bite the bullet and do it…even if it’s an annoying job.

1. Prolong the lifespan of the appliance

Leaving an appliance dirty and using it over and over without properly cleaning it first is one of the most effective ways to make sure it doesn’t last. Wear and tear isn’t something most warranties will cover either. It’s worth doing a decent clean to add the possibility of a few extra months or even years to the lifespan of your appliance.

2. Improve the performance of the appliance

Coffee machine not brewing tasty bean juice the way it should? Toaster smells like it’s on fire each time you use it? That’s probably because you’ve not cleaned them in a while. Crumbs, oils, residues and other gunk can build up in machines that aren’t cleaned properly and frequently, leaving a bad taste in your mouth…literally.

3. Keep the appliance looking top notch

Nobody wants to cook or eat food prepared in a grimy kitchen. When appliances look unclean, it can be quite off-putting. You wouldn’t eat in a restaurant that didn’t clean their appliances, so don’t force yourself to do so or your guests to when they visit.

4. Improve the energy efficiency of the appliance

An unclean appliance might struggle to do whatever it’s been designed to do. If the appliance doesn’t need to work extra hard to do its job, it might do it quicker, meaning you can reduce electricity usage while reducing your carbon footprint and saving money in the process.

5. Reduce health and safety risks

We touched on the fact that a crummy toaster can smell like it’s burning your toast each time you use it. This is a sign that you’ve got a fire hazard on your kitchen bench. Though you may not smell it with other appliances, a build-up of food and other bits and pieces that gather in them when they’re not cleaned thoroughly or as often as they should be can cause danger due to malfunctions, fire hazards, germs and bacteria and a range of other reasons.

Think carefully next time you use an appliance and let it sit without cleaning it. It’s worth the extra few minutes of cleaning time to avoid making the mistakes mentioned above!