Appliance expert weighs in on I-Team dishwasher investigation

CINCINNATI - Using the dishwasher is probably not on the top of a homeowner's list when it comes to potential dangers.

But hundreds of fires across the country have been started by appliances that we use almost every day.

9 News talked to a family in Northern Kentucky and a family on the West Side who had similar stories about their dishwashers catching on fire. It can happen even when the dishwasher is not running.

Between March and November of 2011 there were more than 260 complaints related to dishwasher incidents filed across the country with a public website, www.saferproducts.gov ., run by the Consumer Product Safety Commission .

"Appliances in general have to be treated with respect, and to keep an eye on them," said appliance expert Michael Lahey.

In response to the I-Team report, Lahey says the threat may come with certain kinds of dishwashers.

"You have a lot of the lower end models that might be made entirely of plastic, which any time you have electrical connection involved, there is a concern that a potential fire could happen," Lahey said. "It's not at a point where we go in and try to paranoid every customer and say 'Don't use your product, because it's going to catch fire,' because that's not the case."

Lahey added that most manufacturers do a good job of replacing appliances that have been damaged because of faulty equipment. But he says anything from dryers to coffee makers pose a danger if they're left on unattended.

To read the full I-Team report about dishwashers, go to http://www.wcpo.com/dpp/news/local_news/investigations/i-team-popular-dishwashers-catch-fire.