You’ve probably heard it a million times: owning a home goes beyond just paying for the mortgage. Keeping a clean house as well can be a huge headache. All it takes is one red wine spill and you need to hire someone like ideal cleaning. When something breaks, you don’t have the luxury of calling the landlord to handle and pay for the repairs. Thankfully, you don’t always need to call in a professional.
There are some home repairs you can do on your own. All you need is a little (or lot) of elbow grease and some basic tools.
Stop a leaky pipe
- Turn the water off. The shut off valve may be near the sink or even as far as the basement.
- Once the water is off, put a bucket below the pipe.
- Twist off the compression nuts. These are the big pieces that you can unscrew. This is also your chance to rinse the curved pipe or what is called a P-trap.
- Replace the washer or even the entire P-trap if needed.
- Screw it in place, and turn the water on.
Patch a hole in the wall
For nail or screw holes
- Clean the area and wipe the wall.
- Put some spackle in the wall using a putty knife. Allow it to dry.
- Once it dries up, use a fine grain sandpaper to sand the wall until it is flat.
For larger holes
- Cut a rectangular portion of the drywall that surrounds the hole.
- Cut a section of drywall from scraps. Place it inside the wall.
- Add drywall tape around the seams.
- Slather a joint compound and use a large putty knife to scrape it until it is flat.
- Let the compound dry and sand it down. Apply paint if needed.
Open a locked door
- Know how your lock works.
- Prepare your lock picking tools.
- Put the tension wrench in the lower part of the keyhole.
- Know which way the cylinder should be turned to unlock it.
- Apply light torque to the wrench in the appropriate direction and hold.
- Insert the pick in the upper part of the keyhole.
- Feel the pins and push it until it sets.
- Continue applying torque and push the pins for all remaining pins.
- Make use of the tension wrench to turn the cylinder. The lock is now unlocked.
Unclog the toilet
- Prepare your plunger. Be sure you are using the correct one.
- Make sure there is enough water in the bowl to submerge the plunger’s head.
- Do 10 downward thrusts. Minor clogs would clear up at this point. If it doesn’t, it is time to use the auger.
- Run the end of the auger in the toilet until it reaches the clog. Turn the crank. Once you have a good grip, you’ll be able to pull out the clog.
Some of these home repairs can be done even if you have little or no experience. You can easily find some of the tools and other tech accessories at a discounted rate by using Argos discount code from Dealslands.co.uk. However, it is important that you do your research first, especially if it is something you don’t understand and is extremely hazardous.
