Do it yourself fixes for busy moms.
Check out The Lawhead Team’s do it yourself fixes for the busy mom. Remember to pick on area of your house to focus on fixing up.
Between taking your kids to school and their many after school activities along with keeping up with your own work schedule and everyday tasks, small home maintenance projects seem to go keep getting pushed lower on your to-do list. A helpful suggestion we’d like to share was to pick one area of your home to focus on and make that a priority for the month for your do it yourself project.
Check out these do it yourself fixes for busy Moms from The Lawhead Team:
Slow Draining Bathtub – Do you have a slow draining bathtub? This is an easy, inexpensive do it yourself fix that you can do all on your own. In most cases, 90% of the time a slow draining bathtub is due to hair being caught in the drain. To fix this, locate the overflow, located just below the waterspout of your tub. This is the part of your tub designed to keep water from spilling onto the floor if you forget to turn off your tub. There should be one or two screws holding the chrome piece in place. Use a towel to cover your tub’s drain and remove the screws and the plate.
Once removed, you will see a pipe – take a wet rag and push it into the pipe to seal it closed. Now, fill the bathtub with two inches of water. Take a plunger, and while holding the rag in the pipe, start plunging the drain. You will be amazed at what comes up! Make sure to use a pair of rubber gloves to pull all the buildup out and throw it in the trash. After a few plunges and easy clean up your drain will be running like new, just in time for your kids bath time!
Say Goodbye To Your Running Toilet – Does your toilet run frequently or take two flushes to work properly? If so, you need to change the water level and replace the flapper. This do it yourself task is easier than you think!
Pesky toilets are common in many households and easier to fix than you may think! First, look inside your toilet for the up-right standing tube, know as the overflow. The water in the tank should be about a half-inch below the top of the tube.
To adjust the water level you will either have to turn a screw on the top of the fill valve, which is directly above the water coming into the tank or pinch a metal clip to lower or raise the float. If it is a screw, tighten the screw clockwise to lower the water level or counter-clockwise to raise the water to the proper level. If your toilet has a metal clip, push the float closer to the bottom of the tank to lower the water and lift it up to get more water in the tank.
The flapper is the rubber piece that is connected to a chain. Over time it can become deformed and not seal properly, which will result in a running toilet. A new stopper costs as little as dollars and of course can be found at Ace Hardware Carlsbad. First disconnect the chain, then pull the little clips off the side of the overflow tube and simply replace the old flapper with the new one and re-connect the chain.
Revamp Your Shower and Bathtub – If your shower and bathtub are older and have been put through a lot of use, the caulking begins to wear and look less than new. The good news is there is a simple way to make your shower and bath shiny and new! If you’ve decorated a cake with someone’s name on it, you can re-caulk your bathroom with ease.
First, remove all the old caulking. To do this, you will need to first soften the caulk by applying caulk remover. Once it is softened, slice through it using a sharp razor knife or plastic putty knife and most will fall free. Now, use bathroom cleaner to thoroughly clean the area where the caulk was removed and set a small fan to blow air on the shower area overnight to dry it out. This step is especially important to making your repair last.
Once it is dry you are ready to re-caulk. In order to get a clean line and prevent any excess caulk from getting on the tile, use painters tape above and below where the caulk will go, the area also known as the “joint”. Now, apply your caulking into the joint. Squeeze enough to get all the way into the joint and then use your finger to draw a smooth edge that will spill onto the tape. Once done, carefully remove the tape and you should get a nice clean professionally looking job. Make sure to allow the caulking to dry overnight before using your shower or bathtub area.
There you are! Quick and easy do it yourself fixes explained.