I'm an appliance pro

Feb 22, 2024

AN APPLIANCE expert has shared his must-have product for cleaning the fridge - and it’ll work better than any spray at getting rid of food odours.

Care and accessories product manager Colin Swift swears by an old wives hack for making your fridge sparkle.

And that is white vinegar, with “cleaning with vinegar” totting up over 4k monthly Google searches in the UK.

The ingredient can be picked up from supermarkets for as little as 39p.

“Vinegar is a great choice for helping to clean out a fridge,” Colin, from Zanussi explained.

“The acid helps to break down any food grease and grime and it’s also a food-safe cleaner.

“Vinegar also helps to neutralise any bad smells that can come out from the fridge.”

What’s more, white vinegar is safe to use around children and pets, and it won’t ruin clothes like bleach if it’s spilled while cleaning.

“One of the best methods for this is to add some to a small washcloth in a shallow bowl and place this in the back portion of the fridge for at least 24 hours,” Colin said.

“If you have any vanilla extract, then this can also be added to dilute the vinegar scent.”

The appliance pro recommended wearing rubber gloves when cleaning with vinegar because it can cause skin irritation when undiluted.

He added that it should absolutely not be used with bleach, though.

That’s because mixing the products can cause a chemical reaction creating harmful chlorine gas.

"While white vinegar is fantastic at removing limescale and smelly odours, there are some instances where it should absolutely not be used, or used with caution in the home,” Colin warned.

He recommended not using it to clean your dishwasher, floors, kitchen countertops, stainless steel appliances or cast iron cookware.

Another appliance pro recently warned against putting your shoes in the washing machine.

"The tumbling action can scratch the washing machine's drum," they said.

"And the shoes themselves may lose their shape or cause imbalances, potentially leading to loud vibrations during the spin cycle."

Brits should clean their shoes by hand using "a soft brush and mild detergent" instead.