5 Tips for Common DIY Home Repair Projects

For your home maintenance, you may be tempted to go ahead and hire a professional contractor instead of going DIY. Most homeowners feel that home repairs are complex projects and these tasks should be left to professionals. They fear that they will end up causing more damage while doing a home repair project. But if you have a plan in place, you can do any project on your own. Here are some simple home repair tips that can help you with your repair projects.

1. Bathrooms

Your toilet tank shouldn’t leak. To tell if you are leaking, you need to put some food coloring in the tank and come back after a few minutes. If the water in the bowl is pink, you need to troubleshoot a leak. Replacing the flapper can fix this problem.

2. Faucets

Your faucets may start to leak if the washers are worn. Actually, the washers on faucet handles are made of rubber and they wear out pretty quickly. To fix the problem, all you have to do is turn off the water supply and then replace the faucet handles.

3. Washer and dryer

The water supply hoses must be inspected periodically. Other than this, you may want to check your washer’s water supply lines annually. If they are made of plastic, you should replace them after a few years. But if the metal ends are rusty, you need to replace them immediately.

When it comes to the dryer, you should clean the lint filter regularly. This is important if you want to prevent fires. Apart from this, cleaning will also make the heating element last longer.

4. Water heater

Water heaters must be maintained for longevity. In addition, the maintenance of these devices prevents further damage. The water heater must be drained. To do so, you must turn off the water supply. Next, you should connect the hose to the drain fitting at the bottom of the tank, and then place the other end where you don’t expect water damage, such as a driveway. You should open all the other hot water faucets in your house, and then turn the drain valve back on. Now, you need to resume the water supply to get rid of the sediment in the tank. That is all.

5. Plumbing

You should follow the tips below if you want to keep your water supply pipes free of clogs.

• Do not pour oils and grease down the drains as this is one of the main causes of clogging in the pipes.
• You should use a hair strainer for your bathtub drain at home. Hair is one of the main causes of problems in the bathroom. You should prevent hair from getting into the pipes.
• If your toilet or bathtub is blocked, you can use a drain snake to reopen the toilet or bathtub. On the other hand, if your kitchen sink is blocked, you can try submerging it before using the drain snake.
• So with these tips in mind, you can do a variety of home repair tasks on your own.