Do you ever wish adulting came with a manual? I definitely do. There's so many things we're supposed to do as adults that no one taught us how to do but we somehow need to figure them out on our own. For example, home maintenance? I never learned how to do that. Cleaning it up, tidying up, cooking, yea, I know that stuff, but actually making sure my home will be in good working condition? I'm kinda at a loss there. If you, like myself, are kinda clueless about what things you need to do to maintain your home, here are some suggestions from a reader.
While having a home of your own is a marker of making it as an adult, in reality, it usually comes with a whole host of challenges, and keeping your home in good condition is sometimes a lot of work. Home maintenance is one thing that you just can’t avoid; however, letting it slide will often end up with costly problems later on. So to help you keep on top of things, here are some simple home maintenance tips that you can put into practice without having to spend a fortune.
Keep pests at bay
Pests can come in all shapes and sizes, from rodents to termites. They can all cause a variety of damage too. Some might simply be an unpleasant inconvenience, while others can lead to serious structural damage. If you find that you need to call out the experts, click here.
However, if you’ve caught things early, then you can start putting some practices into action that can reduce the risk of attracting pests to your home. For instance, avoid leaving food out in the open or in open containers. Leaving bread, grains, and other vermin-friendly items is a sure-fire way to attract mice and rats into your home, and they can be hard to dissuade once they’ve found a good source of food and comfort. You should also avoid accumulation of leaves and mulch near your property, such as next to walls, as these can be breeding grounds for a variety of pests.
Check your detectors often
All homes should have a smoke and carbon monoxide detector, but one of the things we often forget to do is make sure that they are working properly. A faulty detector can lead to problems not just with maintaining your home – it could also end up as a fatal mistake, so making sure that the batteries are all working properly is a small but dramatically important task.
It’s a good idea to check that they’re in working order at least twice a year. While you’re at it, make sure that you have the correct fire extinguishers in your home, and that everyone knows how to use them in order to enjoy peace of mind.
Bleed your radiators
For those homes with radiators and central heating, it’s best to check that they’re in good working order well in advance of needing to use them. That means they shouldn’t be on your to-do list when it starts to get cold outside – instead, you should be looking into them before you need to turn them on.
Bleeding them regularly will help to maintain good pressure in your water system and ensure that they heat up well, and it will also highlight any issues that may be present, allowing you to get this addressed before it becomes a serious problem. You may need to clean out your central system to remove any build up, and this can often be done yourself quite easily.