Do you know what are the common things or appliances that you need to repair at your home? Have you thought about how you will repair those things and appliances?
Are you newlyweds, a family or a single person that just bought a new house? Well having a new house is everyone’s goal. It may be a small bungalow house or a two-story house or even a three-story house.
These houses always come at a steep cost. You need to have down payments, closing costs, property taxes, furnishing the house and of course decorating the insides of your home.
These are some of the things new homeowners are thinking of, but many homeowners forget about the one biggest cost that comes with owning a house – repairs.
You cannot escape on not repairing something that is broken or needs fixing. If you are a homeowner, repair issues will always come in your way as the days pass by.
One thing is for sure, you can prevent repairs when practicing preventive maintenance in all the things at your house including maintenance on your appliances. However, there are some that you just cannot avoid.
Maintaining your appliances like your dishwashers, washing machines, ovens, and dryers is really a must. One thing is for sure, once you have had the habit of maintaining your appliances, repairs won’t be needed.
But if sometimes, appliances have this way of being broken when you really need to use it, you can call professional technicians to do it for you.
Some appliances can be fixed just by yourself but when there are more mechanical or electrical problems, professional appliance technicians are needed. Know when it pays to call a professional.
Some home repairs can be predicted or prevented before they can be repaired. But will you wait for them to be broken or damaged?
From easiest to tough, here are the most common things that need repair at home. As a homeowner, you need to be aware and be prepared for these kinds of small or big things.
Common Repair Items
Fixing a Leaky Kitchen or Bathroom Pipe
A Do-It-Yourself fix for this type of repair can be done. You can simply tighten a slip-nut near the P-Trap. You may also check if the leaking is directly from a hole in the drain pipe, use a couple of hose clamps. If the leak is from a drain pipe inside the wall, consider calling a professional.
Replacing a Faucet
You can replace it by yourself if it is a centerset type of faucet. For centerset type of faucet, you just need to follow the faucet manufacturer’s installation instructions. Some faucets are more complicated type of faucet with various hoses that would be best to call for a professional.
Replace a light switch
Electrical work at home probably needs to call an electrical technician. But replacing a light switch is among the easiest to fix or replace.
If you have a switch that’s not working properly, you can do it with these common tools: a flathead screwdriver, a Phillips head screwdriver and a replacement light switch. Make sure to turn off the proper circuit breaker before starting to get to work.
Once you’ve done that, you can now unscrew the faceplate, disconnect wires, connect the new switch then replace the plate.
Replace Drawer Slides
If you find that drawer slides are bent, rollers are broken or rollers won’t turn even after lubricating, replacement is the best solution.
To keep the project simple, buy new slides that are identical (or almost identical) to the old ones. That way, replacement is an easy matter of unscrewing the old and screwing on the new.
Cleaning Gutters
If you are comfortable with a ladder, you can fix this quickly. Blocked gutters can cause water to pool around the house, it can leak into the basement, and seep under siding.
Leaves should be cleaned every spring and fall out of the clogged gutters to prevent this kind of water damage. If you are not comfortable moving or steadily climbing up and down a ladder and cleaning debris, call for someone who can do it for you.
Silence a Squeaky Floor
Here is one easy do-it-yourself way to keep in your files: To fix a squeaky floor under carpet, locate the floor joists with a stud finder, then drive in a trim head screw through the carpet, pad and subfloor, and right into the floor joist.
Be sure the top inch of the screw doesn’t have threads or the subfloor won’t suck down tight to the joist. We like trim screws because screws with larger heads pull down and pucker the carpet.
If that happens, back out the screw and drive it back down. Keep adding screws until the squeak stops.
Fix a Smelly Dishwasher
A smelly dishwasher is a real nuisance. The smell comes from bacteria that feed on trapped food and grease in the strainer screen at the bottom of the machine, in the jets in the sprayer arms and along the bottom edge of the door.
To solve this problem, clean food scraps from the tub and run a dishwasher cleaner. You can also clean the screen at the bottom. It is recommended to add a special cleaner to your dishwashing cycle.
Fixing a Sticking Window
One main reason for windows sticking out is the buildup of debris and dirt in the casing of the window. Sometimes, windows are closed already even though the paint is not yet dried. That is why the glue window is closed.
Fixing a stuck window often involves removing the window and could require using a belt sander or planer. You may call home repair service for this kind of repairs if you are not that experienced.
Fix or replace a broken toilet lever
You really hate it when a toilet lever is broken. It does break all the time. But worry no more for they’re very easy to fix. If you pressed the lever and it doesn’t flush, you can just poop the tank open and reattach the chain.