Updated on Oct. 05, 2024
You may think some home repairs are out of your league, but even beginner DIYers can handle many of these fixes—and save a lot of money in the process!
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Stop bad dishwasher odors by cleaning food scraps from the tub and running a dishwasher cleaner through a cycle. Fixing a smelly dishwasher is a fairly simple DIY home improvement.
It is not uncommon for power switches and breakers to be accidentally turned off when other appliances are being installed. Homeowners are encouraged to check their circuit breaker to make sure the issue isn’t as simple as needing to turn a switch back on. A circuit breaker is typically located in the garage, although in some homes, the circuit breaker can be found in the basement, hallway or storage room.
Sanding stainless steel appliances with fine sandpaper and rubbing compound buffs out ugly scratches in your shiny stainless steel.
Some roof leaks are tough to locate. Sometimes the water shows up at a ceiling spot distant from the leak. If your ceiling has a plastic vapor barrier between the drywall and the attic insulation, push the insulation aside and look for flow stains on the plastic. Often water runs to openings in the vapor barrier, such as at ceiling light fixtures.
If you can't see any telltale flow marks, and since the stain is fairly small, look at the underside of the roof for 'shiners.' A shiner is a nail that missed the framing member, in this case when the carpenter nailed the roof sheathing to the rafters. Moisture that escapes into the cold attic from the rooms below often condenses on cold nails. Sometimes you can spot this if you climb up into your attic on a cold night. The nails will look white because they're frosted. When the attic heats up a bit during the day, the frost melts and drips, then the nails frost up at night again and so on. The solution is to simply clip the nail with a side-cutting pliers.
Stop bad odors in your clothes washer by running a cycle with a special mold-killing tablet and by leaving the door open to promote drying. Regular cleaning is the quickest way to fix a smelly washing machine.
There are a number of contributing factors such as blocked vents that can constrict air flow or lead to irreversible damages. But the problem might be as simple as changing your batteries. If the thermostat is not lit, it is time to change the batteries!
When the display panel on your appliance flashes strange numbers, grab your owner’s manual. It may be flashing a fault code that’ll help diagnose a problem.
It is instinctual for homeowners to contact an HVAC tech when they notice irregularities in their cooling or heating system. These irregularities could be a direct result of a dirty or clogged air filter. We encourage homeowners to check their filters and replace if necessary. It’s also beneficial for homeowners with pets, carpet, or for homes near fields or construction zones to have multiple filters for convenient replacement.
Pro Tip: Mark your calendars! 1-in. filters should be changed every month, 2-in. filters should be changed every 2 months and 4 to 5-in. filters should be changed every 6 to 12 months.
Simple fixes for the four most common refrigerator problems: an ice-maker breakdown, water leaking onto the floor, a cooling failure and too much noise. Chances are, you can repair the refrigerator yourself, save some money and avoid the expense and inconvenience of a service appointment.
Most dryer problems can be fixed in an hour with a few basic tools and a continuity tester or multimeter, and you can do the work yourself with these simple instructions. Get the clothes dryer repair guide.
Plumbing vent boots can be all plastic, plastic and metal, or even two-piece metal units. Check plastic bases for cracks and metal bases for broken seams. Then examine the rubber boot surrounding the pipe. That can be rotted away or torn, allowing water to work its way into the house along the pipe. With any of these problems, you should buy a new vent boot to replace the old one. But if the nails at the base are missing or pulled free and the boot is in good shape, replace them with the rubber-washered screws used for metal roofing systems. You'll find them at any home center with the rest of the screws. You'll have to work neighboring shingles free on both sides. If you don't have extra shingles, be careful when you remove shingles so they can be reused. Use a flat bar to separate the sealant between the layers. Then you'll be able to drive the flat bar under the nail heads to pop out the nails.
If your oven cooking times are off, recalibrate your oven temperature to match an accurate oven thermometer. The procedure is in your oven’s instruction manual. Learn how to adjust oven temperatures.
Vents are a sensitive component of any cooling and heating system. It is imperative to check vents, ducts, and grills for blockage as that can be the leading factor of irregular air flow.
Pro Tip: Furniture or plants should be at least two feet away from vents.
At least a quarter of all appliance repair calls are resolved with no-brainer solutions like pushing a button or flipping a circuit breaker. Learn what to look for and how to avoid these expensive lessons. Learn all of the simple fixes for common appliance problems.
You can solve most electric range burner problems yourself and avoid the expensive service call. It’s quick and easy to replace a burner or bad burner socket. Read the electric stove repair tips.
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