Home Appliances

Home appliances make life easier, but what's really going on inside them? HowStuffWorks Home Appliances articles take a look inside common household appliances.

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Americans spend an estimated $250 million annually on air purifiers for their homes. Asthma and allergy sufferers are responsible for most of these sales. How can you benefit from owning an air purifier?

By Ed Grabianowski

The garbage disposal is often overlooked until it breaks down or starts to smell. Find out how to clean, fix and buy a garbage disposal with the help of this article.

Steam is a powerful cleaning agent. It sterilizes without detergent and can effectively detach dried-on muck from plates and cups. But do steam dishwashers live up to their hype?

By Jane McGrath

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What do chefs, bartenders and geneticists have in common? They all use blenders. A blender is an appliance you can't live without if you want to turn solid ingredients into liquid deliciousness.

By Emilie Sennebogen

Ever wonder how a toaster knows when something is done? Does it pop it up regardless? Does it really care if you pick "Light" or "Medium" or "Dark"?

By Marshall Brain

Appliances are built to perform. They work hard, usually without too many problems. When an appliance breaks down, you may be completely at a loss. Learn how to repair major household appliances.

By Fix-It Club

Gas and electric ovens operate fairly simply, and they're usually easy to repair, mainly because the components are designed for quick disassembly. Learn how to service and repair gas and electric ovens.

By Fix-It Club

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Central air and window conditioners require routine maintenance to keep them operating at peak efficiency. It's important to know how a system's main parts function. Learn to troubleshoot a central air and room conditioner system.

By Fix-It Club

Before you toss out that malfunctioning hair dryer, toaster, or other small appliance, make sure the problem isn't an easy one to fix. Learn troubleshooting tips for all types of small appliances.

By Fix-It Club

Getting your oven dirty is easy. Getting it clean again is another matter entirely. Self-cleaning ovens sound good, but do they really work as well as their makers promise?

By John Kelly

There's nothing worse than having your AC go on the fritz in the middle of summer. And one of the biggest reasons for air conditioning failure can be easily prevented.

By Patrick J. Kiger