We all want our homes to remain as best they can for as long as possible. As we consider this, let us explore five essential home maintenance tips for all to follow.
Maintaining Your P-traps
Unless you are a certified plumber, chances are you have never even heard of p-traps. Still, whether you are familiar with this term or not, it doesn’t take away their significance and how important they are in the proper maintenance of your house or apartment.
For regular folk like you and me, a p-trap is a plumbing fixture found either under your toilet or the sinks in your bathroom and kitchen. In most cases, it is U-shaped and serves the dual purpose of trapping debris draining from the sink and preventing the formation of clogs.
As a rule of thumb, they should be taken care of at least four to five times a year. Your best bet is to hire the services of a weld systems expert who will not only clean these stainless steel pipes but also use marking fluids for metals to track when this process should be conducted again.
Cleaning the Chimney
Few people would say no to owning a property with a natural fireplace. It is especially true during the later months of the year as temperatures swiftly go down and families struggle to stay warm indoors and outdoors. If you are lucky enough to have a house with one, the last thing you want is for it to become a source of extreme danger to yourself and the other members of your family.
As such, even if Santa Claus will probably not make a grand entrance to your household on Christmas Eve, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t clean your chimney a minimum of twice a year. After all, chimneys are among the most popular places for birds to build their nests and dirt to buildup. Left uncared for, they can cause a fire resulting in the burning of your entire house.
Wipe as You Go
If you want to see that it is indeed possible for a country of close to 150 million people to be one of the cleanest, if not the most pristine nation in the world, you should definitely go to Japan. And if you look closely at train stations, shopping malls, restaurants, and other public places, you will notice very few trash bins or people sweeping the streets.
So how is this possible? Where does the garbage go, and who takes care of it? For starters, it entails people being self-conscious of their belongings and a deep sense of respect for shared spaces. It also includes a centuries-long household system of cleaning as you go and wiping dirt whenever you see it instead of waiting for it to pile up.
More than Curb Appeal
Most real estate experts say that curb appeal is one of the most important factors for people deciding whether to buy your property or go elsewhere with their money. Some even claim that a beautiful exterior will add from ten to 15 percent more value to your home than a house that looks dirty and unkempt.
Whether this is true is up for debate. Some buyers base their decisions on location or the inside, and the level of convenience of a place is of paramount importance.
Still, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t take care of your lawn or collect fallen leaves, put them in a bag, and throw them away. By doing so, you will make your place cleaner and prevent weeds and other pests from making your backyard their permanent place of residence.
The Beauty of Simplicity
The great mixed martial artists, philosopher, and movie star Bruce Lee once said, “The idea is very much like sculpture, not to add on, but rather hack away the unessential so that the truth will be revealed unobstructed.” It is safe to say that, at the time he uttered these now famous words, he was not talking about home improvement. Even so, the concept can still be applied.
For one reason or another, plenty of families like to hold on to things. Be it their grandmother’s old jacket or the collar their first pet wore, they keep these things with them but never actually look at them. They often forget that one thing is to keep something that has sentimental value, but quite another is simply stashing away junk whose only purpose is to build clutter and even damage your closet or den.
Five useful home maintenance tips are maintaining your p-traps and chimney, taking a proactive approach to cleaning, ensuring the outside is as good as the inside, and getting rid of unnecessary things. They will not only make our houses look better and last longer but also make our lives happier and more fulfilling.
