Home maintenance is essential for all households, but some simple mistakes can result in more stress and less success. From refusing professional help to ignoring essential areas of the property, this list will teach you three home maintenance mistakes you should always avoid.
DIYing Everything
Many homeowners can make repairs and perform upkeep themselves, which is great. Having a DIY kind of mindset can help you pick up useful skills for keeping your home in shape. That said, you can’t do everything yourself. Since some homeowners assume they can DIY everything or simply don’t want to pay a professional, the results can lead to costlier repairs in the future. Tasks like installing special roofing materials or fixing the plumbing system are best left for professionals unless you are a professional.
In fact, you should hire professionals for home maintenance jobs you have no experience in, even if you’re a DIY kind of homeowner. In doing so, you can learn a bit about how any given maintenance task works and potentially approach it with a DIY solution after you gain more experience. To put it simply—DIYing is fine but know your limits and reach out to a professional when necessary.
Leaving Fridge Coils Dirty
Refrigerators have condenser coils, which accumulate dust and other forms of buildup over time. Cleaning the coils prevents this buildup from hurting the fridge’s ability to effectively sustain cool temperatures. In fact, ignoring the condenser coils can lower the lifespan of your fridge altogether, hence why skipping this task is one of the top home maintenance mistakes you should always avoid.
Some homeowners leave condenser coils dirty simply because they don’t realize the coils are dirty. In other words, they’re not inspecting the coils as frequently as they should, which is only once or twice each year. This is one of those tasks that require some research beforehand, but the process is relatively easy to learn after your first go at it.
Neglecting the Gutters
Cleaning out the gutters is something homeowners should typically do once or twice throughout the year. All you have to do is look inside the gutter for leaves, twigs, and other obstructions and carefully remove them to prevent leaks from occurring. Since you might not spot overflowing gutters unless you’re monitoring them during rainfall, many homeowners skip this task during their spring cleaning.
If you find yourself neglecting this form of upkeep throughout the year, take some time to learn the importance of functioning gutters. Your gutters aren’t in place for aesthetic purposes—they play a crucial role in combating moisture damage at home.
