Being a homeowner is a great thing, but it also brings a lot of responsibilities. Proper home maintenance requires watchfulness, regular inspections, and some effort to keep maintenance costs relatively small. For those who are keen on DIY projects, home upkeep can be a fulfilling lifetime hobby since there is always something to do around the house. However, each area in your home, sooner or later, will come to the stage when the DIY expert in you should take a step back and let professionals do their work. If you have just become a proud homeowner but still wondering about the whole maintenance thing, here are a few basic things you need to know.
Buying a house means that you are entering a new cycle of continuous maintenance and repair expenses. It is how it is, and as long as you are meticulous about the upkeep, expenses will be reasonable. Still, it is hard to predict how much your home can cost you in future, but here are few general rules that vary, depending on the general conditions of your home, as well as age. One rule says that you should budget around 1% of the total purchase price annually. The other one (and more realistic one) says that you should set aside a dollar per square foot of your home. Also, be ready to spend more money if you live in the area with extreme weather conditions.
Make sure to clean your kitchen sink disposal once a month, and to sharpen the blades with lemon vinegar ice cube trick. Check your fire extinguisher and inspect or replace HVAC filters. Use cheaper ones and replace them more often, but keep in mind that if you still don't have a big family with few pets running around, you can replace them once in two or even three months. Also, flush toilets and run water in unused or rarely used spaces like the guest bathroom. Also, make sure to clean range hood filters with degreaser and some hot water.
Give your home thorough and deep clean every three or four months. Spring clean is not only for the springtime, so make sure to clean the whole house, from the basement to the attic, including appliances as well as space behind and below them. Inspect smoke detectors and replace batteries if needed. Check water softener, and don't forget to test if your garage doors work properly. In most places, it is mandatory to have an auto-reverse feature on garage doors due to the high risk of possible injuries.
Check all the plumbing and faucets in your home and see if there are changes in the pressure. Look for any sign of a leak on the tiles, floors, and walls. Also, make sure to inspect walls in the basement. To make sure that your water heater works properly, test pressure relief valve. Also, vacuum refrigerator coils because they accumulate big amounts of dust which makes your fridge using more electricity. Remove showerheads and clean the limescale to improve water pressure.
When weather allows, go out and inspect outside of your home. Check sidings and foundation on your house and look for cracks. Also, make sure to check water drainage and clean the gutters. Make sure to check all exhaust vents to the exterior of your house. Remove all dead plants and shrubs around the house and see if there are tree branches that are too close to electric lines. Once a year inspect the roof and look for any signs of damage or leak. Remember to service your air conditioning system once a year.
Although you can handle yourself the majority of small home repairs, there are a few projects you should leave to professionals. For instance, a renovation that involves structural work and tearing down a wall may seem like a good idea if you wish for an open plan living room, but without the help of experts, your house may collapse. Professionals from Premium Cleaning Group, who are trained and experienced in general maintenance, stress that any electrical jobs like wiring should never be a DIY project since it is too dangerous.
It is easy to learn things nowadays since much information is available. If you are enthusiastic about DIY projects, your best source is nearby home improvement store and skilled people who work there. Also, community colleges offer job training in plumbing, carpentry, and electrical repairs. Still, the quickest and possibly the cheapest way to learn more is to check out blogs, websites and YouTube tutorials where experienced people share their knowledge.
A beautiful and longlasting home requires continuous care and maintenance. Although good upkeep may seem like too much trouble, change your perspective and look at it as a form of investment instead of an expense.
Growing up in a village helped me become what I am today. Constantly surrounded by nature and animals my curiosity was satisfied. In my teen years, I moved to a city and started helping out at my dad's construction company. This is how I got the idea to become a civil engineer.
Since then constantly studying and finding new projects to work on has taken almost all of my time. But hey that’s what I love doing so it’s not hard!