Thanksgiving Kitchen Prep: Get Your Appliances Ready Before the Big Dinner

Thanksgiving lands on Monday, October 12 this year. For a lot of families in Kitchener, Waterloo, Cambridge and Guelph, that means the heaviest cooking weekend of the fall, with the oven on for hours and the fridge packed to the door.

It is also when appliances tend to quit, usually after giving warning signs for weeks. Spend an evening this week on the Thanksgiving appliance prep checks below and you will know whether your kitchen is ready.

1. Run a Test Bake in Your Oven

Do not wait until the turkey goes in to find out the oven is off. Bake something simple, like a tray of cookies or a frozen pizza, and watch how it cooks.

If it takes much longer than the package says or browns unevenly, something is wrong. An oven thermometer on the centre rack will show the real temperature. If it is off by more than about 10 degrees Celsius, have it looked at.

2. Check the Bake and Broil Elements

On an electric oven, turn on bake and watch the lower element. It should glow evenly from end to end. Blisters, cracks or a section that stays dark usually mean the element is failing. Do the same test with broil.

On a gas oven, the flame should be steady and mostly blue. If the oven is slow to light, have it checked. If you ever smell gas, turn the oven off, do not operate any light switches, leave the house and call your gas utility from outside.

3. Self-Clean Early, or Not at All

A self-clean cycle runs extremely hot, and that heat is hard on thermal fuses, door locks and control boards. It is common for an older oven to fail during or right after a self-clean.

If you want to run one, do it at least a week before the holiday. Otherwise, clean by hand with baking soda and water.

4. Make Room in the Fridge and Check the Temperature

A packed fridge has a harder time staying cold. Clear out old condiments and expired food ahead of time, and keep the air vents clear.

Put a thermometer in a glass of water on a middle shelf overnight. You want 1.5 to 3 degrees Celsius, and never above 4. The freezer should sit at minus 18. If you are thawing a frozen turkey in the fridge, plan on roughly 10 hours per kilogram, so a large bird needs to go in several days early.

5. Clean the Fridge Coils

Dusty condenser coils make the compressor work harder, which matters when the door opens every few minutes. Unplug the fridge, pull it out, and vacuum the coils on the back or behind the kick plate at the bottom front.

6. Clean the Dishwasher Filter

Most newer dishwashers have a removable filter under the lower spray arm. With the dishwasher off, twist the filter out, rinse it under warm water and scrub off any grease with a soft brush.

A clogged filter leads to dirty dishes, standing water and bad smells.

7. Test Every Cooktop Burner

Turn each burner on high for a minute. Electric elements should heat evenly. Gas burners should light within a few seconds with an even blue flame all the way around.

A yellow or patchy flame usually means the burner ports need cleaning or the cap is not seated properly.

Book Repairs Before the Holiday Rush

If your test bake runs cold, the fridge will not hold temperature, or anything else on this list turns up a problem, call now rather than the Saturday before Thanksgiving. Al's Appliance handles in-home oven repair in Kitchener, fridge repair in Guelph, and service on every major kitchen appliance across Waterloo and Cambridge.

If a machine is past saving, stop by our Guelph location at 6 Holliday Street or our Kitchener showroom at 20 Stewart Street to see new, used and scratch and dent appliances, with delivery available.

Call 519-824-8828 or visit alsappliance.ca to book a repair. Happy Thanksgiving from all of us.