MIDDLETOWN, Conn. -- It used to be that when appliances had problems, we'd take them to the repair shop. These days, though, it's often cheaper to go out and buy a replacement.

More people may be hanging on to older appliances during these tough economic times, however, and the United States Fire Administration says faulty appliance fires claim hundreds of lives each year and injure thousands more victims.

Eyewitness News took some older models to an expert and asked whether they should be plugged in or tossed.

After gathering items from the homes of Channel 3 employees, Eyewitness News reporter Heather Hegedus brought the items to Vinal Technical High School in Middletown, where Electrical Department Chairman Bill Zisk gave his shop students and Hegedus a lesson in Appliances 101.

Before plugging anything in, Zisk said you should do a visual inspection.

"Do you see this microwave in being dangerous in any way? The first thing you want to look at is the extension cord. Now the extension cord will require three prongs to put into a duplex receptacle. The most important part of the cord is the U-ground," he said.

Zisk said whether it's three-pronged or two-pronged, you should look for corrosion. He said the color green on a plug should raise a red flag.

"If it's brittle or cracked, it could possibly cause a fire," he said.

As for radiation, the older the model, the more you should be concerned, Zisk said. He said consumers should watch for radiation leaks from broken doors. He said leaks can be detecting using meters from an appliance repair shop.

Zisk's female counterpart, Stacy Juan, explained what to look for in older hair appliances. We brought a curling iron bought from Goodwill with a sticker that reads "has been tested" on it.

Juan said that the curling iron may have been tested, but is clearly missing a screw. She said if a set of curlers or a curling iron gets too hot or smells like plastic or rubber when it's heating, it should be tossed.

"There could be shorts -- there could be shorts in the wire. You could be using it, there could be sparking," she said.

Zisk also said there is a reason old sunlamps aren't used anymore.

"We don't know how much radiation is being actually emitted from this, but I'd be a little leery going around anything where there's any type of radiation," he said.

Another thing Zisk said should be looked for is the UL certification sticker on the back or bottom of the appliance. UL stands for Underwriter's Laboratories, and the sticker means the equipment was tested and approved according to UL's safety standards. He said that even older models should have the sticker.