Terrifying Warning Shows Why You Should Never Run Your Dishwasher At Night

Modern technology has given us many conveniences, and for those who despise doing dishes, the dishwasher is a godsend . Almost 90 million homes in America have the appliance, but along with being incredibly helpful, it can also be incredibly dangerous, especially if you run it at night, and one terrifying TikTok video shared by a homeowner explains exactly why.

The video shows what is left of Simone Anderson 's kitchen. The mom of two from Kansas says in the clip that she ran her dishwasher before going to bed, something she always does, but this night, she was woken at 1:22 a.m. to the smoke detector going off. She told Newsweek , "I immediately woke up my husband, Paul, who ran downstairs to investigate and he found our entire dishwasher engulfed in flames. He ran upstairs to tell me that we needed to get the kids and get out, so that's what we did."

Within three minutes, the family was safe and outside, and two minutes later, the house was full of smoke . Per Simone, "It's a total loss and our entire kitchen will have to be redone. Every item inside the house is covered in soot, so everything is being packed up by a restoration company who will clean what can be salvaged and help us decide what to keep. Losing everything and not being able to be in our home is devastating. I'm thinking of all the holidays and birthdays that are coming up, and it makes me sad that we likely won't be in our home for any of them."

According to the local fire department, fraying wires in the ten-year-old dishwasher were to blame for the blaze. It could be more than six months before Simone, her husband, and their four and one-year-old kids get to return to the home, so she is using that time to spread awareness about the dangers of running a dishwasher overnight. She wrote in the TikTok video, "We are devastated. Please pray for my family. Check your smoke detectors. Don't run appliances at night. It's not worth the risk."

It is sound advice - the US Fire Administration states that electrical malfunction is the leading cause of residential fires annually, with the most deaths happening between midnight and 8 a.m. As for what to do - always plug your appliances directly into a wall socket, not a power strip or extension cord, and make sure you maintain appliances, regularly inspecting them and replacing any worn wires.