Turkeys, Veggies, and Potatoes Oh My!

Imagine: It’s 11:00 am the day before Thanksgiving. You’ve got your turkey buttered and stuffed, ready to go in the oven. With a quick flick of the wrist you twist your temperature dial to broil and wait for that comforting hiss of your oven as it slowly preheats; but nothing happens. No hiss…frantically, you check your oven to discover it’s not heating up and in need of service. To relax, you open your freezer to get some ice, and THEN you find out your freezer isn't cooling! The world is falling apart, and your holiday is ruined.

Follow these five tips to avoid such a catastrophe and maybe even save your holiday celebration. #1 Have Your Oven Checked and Serviced Early!

Simply by living at a Camden community, you have unparalleled access to some of the highest trained maintenance technicians in the industry. Organize a plan to have your oven inspected and serviced by your community’s maintenance team early in the holiday season. This will ensure that any issues are found, addressed, and if needed parts can be ordered to repair the appliance. If a major enough issue is found and it cannot be fixed, your Camden community will replace the appliance with no charge coming to you. If you wait and your oven is broken for your festivities, you’ll be up a turkey creek without a baster.

#2 DO NOT Over Pack Your Freezer

Another way to avoid holiday disasters is to avoid over-packing your freezer. This can happen when you try to stuff a 16-pound turkey, frozen veggies, ice cream, frozen pie crusts etc. all into your freezer at once. Without any space to travel, the cold air in the freezer freezes over in the vent and breaks. Having this happen may entail the complete replacement of your fridge, and if this occurs on any day, it’s always a frustration. Make sure to neatly pack and organize your frozen goods within the freezer to allow the cold air to flow freely from the vents.

#3 Things NOT to Put Down Your Garbage Disposal

For those of you who may not know, the garbage disposal is, in fact, NOT something that can break up everything on your plate. A garbage disposal is mainly there to ensure that all small debris is broken up and easily passes down your drain. The following list of items are NOT allowed down your drain:

- Hard Stuff: - Animal Bones, pits, seeds, nut shells

- Rice, coffee grounds, oatmeal, pasta (foods that expand with water contact)

- Grease: - Oils, Fats, Meat Fats

- Glass, plastic, metal, or paper products

- Starchy or stringy veggies and fruit peels.

However, if you want to sharpen your disposal’s blades, drop a few ice cubes in there and let the blades chop them to pieces. The ice is hard enough to sharpen the blade but soft enough not to damage it.

#4 Properly Water, Treat and Dispose of Your Christmas Tree

If you’re like me, then you NEED to have a live tree in your Camden apartment home for the holidays. While there is nothing wrong with an artificial tree but having the real thing with its natural pine sent and bushy limbs are simply the best. However, this does mean you need to take care of your tree while it’s in your apartment. If you do not water your tree daily, or remove dried dead branches, this could spell disaster for your apartment. Dried branches and pine needles can easily catch fire when exposed to hot lights for prolonged periods of time. Make sure that once you get your tree, you re-cut the bottom and water it daily. When it comes time to de-decorate your apartment, talk to your leasing office to see if they have a designated spot on the community for tree disposal. If not, try googling for a removal service in your area. Please DO NOT throw your tree into the garbage bins in your apartment community. DON’T BE THAT PERSON!

#5 Manage Your Garbage (Food, Wrapping Paper, Other Waste)

Finally, we are creating just as much trash as we are wonderful memories. Make sure to follow up with your leasing office to know when the trash is picked up and if the service your community uses will be absent on certain days. Having separate bags for food, paper, and plastics can make taking the garbage out a lot easier and faster. That way you can get back to the fun! With these five tips, you can avoid almost certain holiday disaster. If you’re interested in lowering your carbon footprint, check out these tips for sustainable cleaning products for your home! *All Photos used courtesy of Camden Property Trust*