The remains of a dishwasher that reportedly sparked a fire inside an Orange Street duplex Friday, lays in a heap in the front yard of the residence. Photo by Greg Kendall/ladailypost.com

Staff Report

Los Alamos Firefighters responded to a dishwasher fire at about 1 p.m., Friday in a duplex at 3064 Orange St.

Firefighters quickly extinguished the small blaze. No injuries were reported but there is heavy smoke damage to the Orange Street duplex and fire damage in the kitchen area.

The cause of the dishwasher fire is under investigation.

Dangerous Appliance Advisory

Consumer Reports Magazine has reviewed 69,000 reports nationwide of appliance fires and found a significant number were caused by something other than “human error.”

Ranges, clothes dryers, air conditioners, refrigerators and dishwashers are the types of appliances that are reported to cause the most fires.

Consumer Reports notes that these appliances are more complex so more can go wrong. Many recalled products are manufactured in China and other foreign countries.

Given the current unreliability of appliances, Consumer Reports recommends homeowners not run dryers or dishwashers overnight or while away from home.

Consumer Reports recommends registering electrical appliances with the manufacturer to receive recall alerts.

A large number of dishwasher recalls were reported last summer. To check if an appliance has been recalled, go to recalls.gov.