If you’ve listed your home for sale, and are expecting a home inspector in the near future, you may be able to save a few dollars on repair fees by tackling the jobs yourself. Some problems, however, do require professional assistance, but at least you can determine whether or not you can do-it-yourself.
Common Toilet Problems
Your toilet is one of the hardest working fixtures in your home. Save a buck by tackling your toilet problems yourself.
If you hear the water constantly running, the chances are that you simply need to replace the flapper valve. The flapper valve is designed to allow water to rush into the bowl, flushing down through to the drainage pipes, and keep the water sealed in the tank when the valve is closed until the next flush. Flapper valves are made of rubber, which is why they don’t last forever. Continuous use will inevitably wear down the seal. To replace the flapper valve, which can be purchased for around five dollars at just about any home improvement store, start by turning off the water inlet valve that feeds the toilet. Then remove the faulty flapper valve from the clips that keep it in place, and install the new valve in its place, ensuring the new valve seal is tight. Turn your water inlet valve back on and flush your toilet a few times to make sure it flushes properly.
Depending on the circumstances, such as whether your three-year-old flushed her Barbie Doll or a whole roll of toilet paper down the toilet, a clogged bowl can often be fixed with a good old plunger. When using a plunger, the idea is to create suction with the plunger by completely sealing the opening at the bottom of the bowl. For best results, keep the water from penetrating the seal as you plunge up and down. If you need a new plunger, try to find one with an extension flange on the rubber end in order to obtain a better seal while plunging. Plungers can also be found at nearly every home improvement store, and they run between five and ten dollars. If it turns out that your three-year-old flushed her Barbie Doll, a plunger may not do the job. In extreme cases such as this, you may need to purchase a toilet snake and snake the drain in order to unclog it.
If your flusher handle is either stuck or broken, there is a quick fix solution… replace it! Flush handles are inexpensive, and can be purchased at most home improvement stores for about five dollars. To replace, lift the toilet lid, unhook the malfunctioning handle’s chain, loosen the nut mounting the handle, remove the old handle, screw in the new handle, reattach the chain, put the lid back on, and your done! Be sure to check that the handle is working properly by flushing the toilet several times.
Water Pressure Problems
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If you’re experiencing a clanging in your pipes when you flush the toilet, or if your hose or showerhead alternates between trickling out and jetting out, you have a water pressure problem.
Water pressure problems are often easy to fix, and they should be resolved immediately before they cause problems with your plumbing
If your water pressure is too high, it can cause damage to your plumbing fixtures, it can blow out your gaskets and seals. Many manufacturers will void their warranties if a product breads because your water pressure was too high and broke their product.
Here’s how to test your water pressure to find out if it is higher than the recommended 65 pounds per inch (PSI):
You have to turn off every plumbing fixture in and around your house. That includes faucets, the icemaker, the pool filler, sprinklers, the dishwasher, the washing machine, the evaporative cooler, etc.
You’ll then need to find the outdoor water spigot closest to the front of your house. That is where the water enters your home from the city water supply. Screw in a water pressure gauge into that spigot. These water pressure gauges can be found t most hardware stores and purchased for a few dollars.
Then you turn on the water at the spigot and watch the gauge’s needle. The number that the needle points to indicates your water pressure.
For an accurate reading, you’ll want to repeat this test three times a day: early morning, midday, and night. There will probably be some variation between the three readings. The optimum range is between 55 and 65 PSI.
If you’ve discovered that your water pressure is above 65 PSI, you should install a pressure regulator to even the flow. You should have this installed by a plumber. A regulator might not solve the clanging in your pipes. You might have to have an air-pressure regulator installed at the location of the noise. An air-pressure shock absorber provides cushion when you flush your toilet or turn a faucet on and off.
Having Air Ducts Cleaned
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Every day, tens-of-millions of Americans are forced to endure poor indoor air quality, inhaling mold, household chemicals, dust, pollen, pet dander, and a variety of other indoor contaminants. To give you an idea of how big an issue this is, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) lists poor indoor air quality as the fourth-largest environmental threat in the country. Indoor air quality is often at its worst during the winter months when cold weather keeps people indoors with the windows shut and doors closed.
According to the National Air Duct Cleaners Association, cleaning your air ducts can help a great deal, if you have pets, if you have had water damage in your home or if someone smokes in your home. The National Air Duct Cleaners Association doesn’t go as far as saying that cleaning your air ducts will improve your health. However, the EPA advises that if you clean your air ducts incorrectly it can cause problems by stirring up dust. The EPA also advises that if you’re considering cleaning your air ducts because a family member living in the home has asthma or allergies, you should have them consult a physician first. The stirring up of the dust due to cleaning the air ducts could trigger asthma because asthmatics have hypersensitive airways that are easily irritated.
Before you decide to clean your air ducts, you should first determine whether your air ducts contain excessive amounts of dust, dirt, or mold. You can often do this by removing a floor or wall register and taking a picture of the duct with a digital camera. Unless there is a serious contamination of some kind, a regular duct-cleaning job will usually do the trick.
Costs for air duct cleaning start at about five-hundred dollars for a small home and can often run more than a thousand dollars for a larger home. If your home has two or more heating and cooling systems, the cost will usually increase.
See more:
Do It Yourself Plumbing Tips
How to Diagnose & Repair Poor Water Pressure or Lost Water Pressure
Air Duct Cleaning Overview
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As long as you keep the return air filters clean, duct cleaning shouldn’t be necessary as the supply side is pressurised. Pull out your air filters once a month and rinse them out with the hosepipe on both sides before using a little disinfectant then put them back in once dry. A little preventative maintenance goes a long long way to keeping your air ducts clean. A clean filter will trap more dust and prevent your air ducts from getting dirty in the first place.
I had an experience wherein our toilet was leaking unnoticed because the leak was so minute. I discovered the leak only after cleaning the toilet and drying it with tissue paper. You can also easily spot a defective flapper valve after flushing. If the water is still running for more than 5 mins, then it’s very likely that you need to replace its valve.
Indoor air quality is really a concern for most homes. If you’re constructing a new home, you might want to discuss with your architect on how you can get a home with proper ventilation. Oh and don’t forget to ask for a greener home.
These are some really great tips for new home owners, as well as anyone who owns a home. Another good tip is to keep up on routine maintenance. It’s really easy to take care of small problems, but if you don’t keep up with maintenance, they become large problems, which will cost more money.