Guest Blogger: Nick Dunin of instantwaste.com.au
How much money is sitting in your bank account at the moment? Do you have any savings put away for a rainy day? Our home is the most expensive thing we own and we all probably pay a good chunk of our wages towards our mortgage every month. Some people don’t have a lot left and would not be able to afford any big repairs should anything happen to their home. Even with insurance covering some of it you could still end up in a bad situation if something big went wrong.
You hope nothing happens, but there is something you can do to prevent it. Why don’t you start learning about the things that can go wrong so you can fix them before they do? Preventative maintenance is the easiest way to save lots of money in the long-term. We can look at some of the things you might want to check out. If you do need to get anything repaired just be thankful you weren’t too late. If they are OK keep checking in the future because you never know when something could go wrong.
The guttering around your home
Your guttering is only held in by tiny screws. Sometimes people try to save money by spacing them out more than they should and it means the gutters don’t last very long. If they start coming away from the wall then all the water that comes from the roof will run directly down the front of your home. This can cause bad damage to the walls and they usually need to be repainted. You should also make sure you take all the leaves out about once per year because they stop water from getting away.
On the roof
You probably have holes in your roof, or you will have if it’s not been checked for years. The tiles don’t last forever and eventually they begin to break away. If you don’t have a new house your tiles will be very old. When the water gets inside it’s not good because it can cause a lot of damage. Your home will be damp and moldy, plus if enough water comes in your ceilings could collapse. Go into the attic and check you can’t see huge amounts of light coming through any gaps.
Behind the kitchen appliances
Your appliances can deceive you and you might not know it. They could be doing their job properly and you could be pleased with them, but somewhere in the back the pipes could be cracked and water could be dripping onto your floor. Every so often you should pull them out from the wall to get a better look at what is going on. Replacing a pipe is easy and cheap, but dealing will mold is a different story altogether. Your nose won’t be able to handle it, so deal with leaks before they get too bad.
Inside the basement
Your basement is a prime target for water because it’s under the house. Water can only go down and guess where it’s going to go? If your walls are waterproofed and show no signs of cracks you can rest easy because they are OK, but if you do see any cracks or dampness on the walls you need to get someone out before it’s too late. The next time it’s raining check outside to see if the water can get away before it starts running back into your outside walls.
Bathroom spillages
How many times have you left the tap running while you ran away and did something else? There is nothing wrong with that if you come back, but when you forget about it the water spills over the sink or bath and ends up turning your bathroom into a swimming pool. You can get a water alarm for the bathroom that sits near the floor and whenever water reaches a certain level it will sound. Leaky taps also need to be fixed straight away before they get worse.
Under the ground
Your drainage system can cause all sorts of problems if you let it get blocked then do nothing to fix it. You might only realize something is wrong when the water starts coming back through the drains in your garden. If you have a hose it’s good practice to run water down the drains whenever you have time because if there is a block you will find out about it straight away before it can cause any real damage. Do this more often during winter when the water can freeze up easily.
About Author: Nick works for instantwaste.com.au which offers safe and clean waste management services to clients. His hobbies include reading and writing.
