There’s nothing worse than waking up to a room with ceiling leaks or some other home catastrophe. You end up thinking that it could have been prevented. If your next step is calling a handyman, think again. Taking a few tweaks all by yourself can save you from unnecessary expenses on minor home repairs.
Little fixes can keep things in best condition. Thomas Mollidor, owner and president of UpKeepers, tackles the most common household problems and how to address them before they become more of a hassle.
Clogged garbage disposal. While there are many reasons for a garbage disposal breaking, a simple reset can fix it. The reset button is located underneath the disposal. If the blades of your garbage disposer won’t turn, you can manually turn the blades with the tool supplied by the manufacturer. If you look closely, it resembles a hex wrench.
HVAC, air conditioner, and furnace malfunction. When a heating or cooling system malfunctions, the heat/cold source, distribution system, or thermostat may be causing the problem. The easiest thing you can do is to flip back the breaker if you noticed that it has thrown on your electrical panel.
You can also turn off your thermostat and HVAC unit. Wait for three minutes and then switch your thermostat back to heat or cool and also flip the switch on your HVAC unit to “on.” This resets the system.
Broken electrical outlet. First, see if other outlets are dead. Check the circuit breakers, GFCIs, and loose outlets. The fix for a dead outlet is usually simpler than you think. Just hit the reset button located on the outlet. This can save the cost of a service call.
Ceiling leak. Small roof leaks can be tough to locate. You can track down and fix the common types of leaks with a tissue paper. Tape two to three sections of tissue paper lightly to the ceiling then observe when the tissue gets wet and when it happened. Most of the time water runs to openings in the vapor barrier, such as at ceiling light fixtures. You may have to stop using one of these fixtures temporarily and see which one is causing the leak.
Remember to follow safety precautions when performing any repairs. Do you have a story of do-it-yourself success? Share it with us!
HVAC, air conditioner, and furnace malfunction. When a heating or cooling system malfunctions, the heat/cold source, distribution system, or thermostat may be causing the problem. The easiest thing you can do is to flip back the breaker if you noticed that it has thrown on your electrical panel.
You can also turn off your thermostat and HVAC unit. Wait for three minutes and then switch your thermostat back to heat or cool and also flip the switch on your HVAC unit to “on.” This resets the system.
Broken electrical outlet. First, see if other outlets are dead. Check the circuit breakers, GFCIs, and loose outlets. The fix for a dead outlet is usually simpler than you think. Just hit the reset button located on the outlet. This can save the cost of a service call.
Ceiling leak. Small roof leaks can be tough to locate. You can track down and fix the common types of leaks with a tissue paper. Tape two to three sections of tissue paper lightly to the ceiling then observe when the tissue gets wet and when it happened. Most of the time water runs to openings in the vapor barrier, such as at ceiling light fixtures. You may have to stop using one of these fixtures temporarily and see which one is causing the leak.
Remember to follow safety precautions when performing any repairs. Do you have a story of do-it-yourself success? Share it with us!
No comments:
Post a Comment