Home Maintenance and Repair

Aside from the aesthetic look that your wooden porch is adding to your home, it also makes a great hangout area for you and your guests, drying space for garments or storage space for garden utensils. But after a couple of years down the road, you might notice some fading or even some mildew on the wood. If you want to refresh your porch and make it feel nice and cozy again, the simplest way is by refurbishing the wood. Refurbishing the wood of your wooden porch is simple enough to do it yourself.

What You Need

This will vary, depending on your method.

• Sandpaper or Electric sander
• Deck stripper
• Deck finish
• Paint Roller
• Paintbrush
• Paint tray
• Water bucket
• Protective gear (gloves, goggles, mask)

Preparation

Before you can begin, you need to move all the obstacles out of the way. Remove furniture or plants standing on your porch so that the refurbishing can begin. If you have a power washer or one you can borrow or rent, you can give it a low pressure clean. In the case where the wood is splintering or untreated, it is best to use the garden house to clean any dirt or debris. After a good clean, it will be easy to spot stains on the wood.

Sometimes chairs wobble because the floor is uneven or because one or more of the legs are loose or because one of the legs is a tiny bit shorter than the rest.  Vintage chairs can be beautiful additions to your home, but may need a little TLC to make up for problems that have cropped up over the years.

I bought a very expensive wooden chair for a song a few years ago because the chair wobbled and nobody wanted to buy it.  My chair had one leg slightly shorter than the rest.  The good news is, there’s a super easy way to fix these problems.

Materials

• Hot glue gun
• Glue Sticks
• Sandpaper
• Screwdriver or drill with screwdriver bits

Is there anything more annoying than a drawer that doesn’t slide open easily? I have a lot of vintage wood furniture that I’ve acquired over the years.  The pieces are beautiful and have lots of character, but the wood tends to swell and shrink making the drawers hard to open and close.

There are several techniques you can use to fix this issue.

1. Reduce the humidity in your home.  Sometimes the simplest fix is to run a dehumidifier to soak up the excess humidity in the air.  The wood then shrinks and the drawers work perfectly.
2. Rub a bar of soap over the edges and sides of the drawers.  This leaves a bit of a residue on the wood that won’t harm it but allows it to glide a bit better.
3. Use waxed paper, paste wax or a candle stick to rub all over the exterior of the drawer.  This leaves a tiny bit of wax on the surface which helps the drawer to move more freely in the opening.
4. If all else fails you can remove some of the wood with sandpaper or a hand planer. Use low grit sandpaper first to take some of the wood off the drawer and then a high grit to smooth the surface out.  If this doesn’t work, you may need to remove even more of the wood using a hand planer.

Have you delayed scheduling your annual fall furnace maintenance appointment? We’re already into December and entering into the heart of the heating season but it’s never too late to show your furnace some love. It is so much worse to have to deal with a problem when your whole house is reliant on that appliance during the winter. Could you imagine how many space heaters you’d have to run to prevent your pipes and family from freezing?

Furnace Care Checklist

While some of the items on this checklist could be handle by everyday DIY homeowners, there are a few that require special equipment and others that are best left to a professional.

• Remove soot buildup from the combustion chamber and clean up any debris.
• Visually look over the flue for any cracks, holes, or corrosion. Small leaks can be seal with foil tape (i.e. duct tape will not work). If the flue is very corroded, it is best to have it replaced.
• If applicable, replace the oil filter. Be sure the oil valve is closed when working on this filter.
• Professionals will utilize a special meter to examine the exhaust gases to optimize the fuel to air ratio.
• Clean out the blower compartment of dust and debris. Open the oil ports and top off with the appropriate lubricant for your specific blower.

The cooling temperatures and falling leaves serve as a great reminder that it is time to take a look at the fall home maintenance checklist.

Chimney Sweep and Fireplace Inspection – Prevent a chimney fire by getting a professional to sweep the flue clean of creosote, especially if you have a wood-burning fireplace. Also, be sure to get a thorough inspection to find weak points in the masonry.

Window Caulking and Door Weatherstripping – Keep the warm air in and the cold air out by sealing up the envelope of your house.

Winterize Water Systems – The freezing temperatures can spell serious trouble for sprinkler systems, faucets, and pools. Empty all water from these systems if you are in a cold climate and be vigilant of the forecast for areas that occasionally see freezing temps. For example, empty the pressure vacuum breaker on the sprinkler system for winter if you live in the south. It only takes a minute and can save you a lot of heartache.

Filter Replacement – Replacing your filter is something that should be done as a part of regular monthly home maintenance, but at a very minimum new filters should be  put in place every 3-4 month.

Furnace Maintenance – This task is best left for a professional but savvy DIY’ers can handle some of the workload. Either way, this is a must before the heating season!

Gutter Cleaning – Cleaning the gutters of leaves and sticks is more than just keeping the roof looking nice. During the winter leaves can hold up water from melting snow that will eventually refreeze and cause damage. This effect is known as ice dams and will lead to a leaky roof.

Water Heater Maintenance – A couple times of year it is good to drain mineral sediment that can build up in the tank of the water heater. It’s a pretty simple process and doesn’t take much time. Also, it is good to inspect the flue, insulation, and TPR valve to prevent problems later.