Home Maintenance

By Ann Springer

A few weeks ago my friend had a fire in her home that originated from her dryer lint. Luckily no damage was done to her home, but she did end up replacing her laundry system. Several years ago the same thing happened to another friend of mine. I was again reminded that home maintenance is an important and essential part of a home’s preventative maintenance needs.

Ask yourself, When was the last time I cleaned out my lint catcher and the attached tubing? Have I ever done it? Once you do it, it will open your eyes see how quickly that stuff collects and how flammable it really is. Who knew those things could get so filthy?

While on vacation a few years ago our water heater burst and began spraying hot water all over our garage with great force. Lucky for us an observant neighbor (who knew we were on vacation) called the fire department to have the massive water leak shut off. Unfortunately, we did have quite a few things ruined and mold issues because of the scolding water that enveloped our garage. The nice plumber who installed our new water heater informed me that you are actually supposed to clean out the silt from the water heater every 6 to 12 months. After incidences like these you wonder what other things need to be maintained but have been neglected due to neglect or ignorance.

It’s easy to get busy with the day-to-day tasks at hand and forget the things that don’t scream for our attention. It’s easy to replace a light bulb that goes out, but how often do we really drain the silt from our water heater? Or replace the air filters in our HVAC? Or do other important home-maintenance tasks?

Below is a list of some of the items that should be done regularly to prevent larger and more expensive problems. Most of these things don’t take much time or money, but can save you a lot of headaches and expense if they make it on your to-do list. (Click on each item below for detailed instructions.)

1. Water softener
2. Dryer lint
3. Furnace filters
4. Garage door
5. Water filters
6. Light bulbs
7. Microwave carbon filters
8. Sprinkler system
9. Caulking
10. Water heater
11. Smoke alarms
12. Leaky sinks
13. Moisture in bathrooms
14. Rain gutters