In general, most of the items in Home Maintenance are important e.g. air filter change or cleaning the house. But mentioned below are some of the neglected or overlooked items in Home Maintenance, but they are the most important ones.
- Cleaning Dryer Lint
- Hose Bib Vacuum Breaker
- Drain Clog Removal
- Water Leakage Check
- HVAC Tune Up
- Roof Check Up
- Sewage Pipe Check Up
Lets go in detail why each of these is very critical to maintain.
Cleaning Dryer Lint
Lint is a highly inflammable substance. It’s dreadfully undesirable to have your house catch fire. Dryer Lint gets accumulated in the filter tray of the dryer, in the gaps where the filter tray is installed and in the flexible pipe connecting the dryer and dryer vent and the dryer vent. Cleaning the Dryer lint will not only ensure the safety of your house but also your dryer will run more efficiently. The clothes will get dried sooner saving you both time and money. Below table provides where to clean dryer lint, when to clean it, how to clean it and the related products used for this home maintenance.
| Where the dryer lint gets accumulated | When to clean the dryer lint | How to clean the dryer lint | Products Used |
| Filter tray of dryer | Before every wash | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cAe2js98Ngg&t=1s | https://amzn.to/3sKhFje |
| Gap where filter tray is installed | Every month | same as above | |
| Flexible pipe and Dryer Vent | Every 6 months to 1 year | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=URi6OBTqv7g | https://amzn.to/3WiZ23a |
Hose Bib Vacuum Breaker
A Hose Bib Vacuum Breaker is attached to the hose bib as shown below
This is mandatory to be installed as required by the city code. Failure to do so can result in fines up to $100 from the city. But what does it do and why is it so important?
Once you turn off your garden hose, Hose Bib Vacuum Breaker prevents backflow water flowing back into your house. This prevents flooding your house or contaminating your drinking water. The part costs only about $8 and you just have to screw the Hose Bib Vacuum Breaker on the threads of the Hose Bib. The installation is that simple. But it has such an important job that it makes to our top 7 items to do.
Drain Clog Removal
Below every sink and even HVAC has a P trap as shown below.
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This “P trap” traps water which in turn prevents all the sewage gases entering your home.
Without this P trap or the water in the P trap, your home would start smelling like sewage – sample image shown below. Many times, this P trap gets blocked with food, hair or grease. This results is slow draining of the sink or lowering your water level in the P trap which in turn results in sewage gases entering your home.
When the P trap of your HVAC system is blocked, the condensed water cannot drain away properly from the drainage pipes. Condensed water starts flowing on the HVAC tray and then overflowing on your ceiling. The sample image is shown below.
This is why we clean P trap every 3 to 6 months.
It is pretty simple to clean the P trap. There are AC Drain Clog removal products available in the market. You can also use bleach or white vinegar.
Also in the video below you can see how the drain clog is removed.
How to clean HVAC Drainage Pipes
Water Leakage Check
Water Leaks can happen at many different places in a home. The water leaks can result in mold development and can cause respiratory health problems. The image below shows mold development due to a leak behind the dishwasher.
Even a minor water leak can result in thousands of dollars in repair costs, so it is better to check for water leaks periodically and repair them. Mentioned below are the places to check for any leaks
- Behind Appliances – Dishwasher, Refrigerator, Washer.
- Below Sink
- Bathroom – Faucets, Bathtubs, showers, Caulking
- Attic – On the edges of the roof
- HVAC – Drainage Pipes
- Toilet Tanks
- Water Heater
- Hose Bib
It doesn’t take long to check if there are any leaks in your house and there is no cost of doing this either. You will have to spend 15-30 mins quarterly to do this task.
HVAC Tune Up
HVAC is one of the most expensive and complex unit in your home consisting of a compressor, evaporator, filters, air ducts, burners, exhausts, refrigerants, thermostats, damper motors etc. HVAC Tune-Up consists of
- Drainage Clog removal – which we already mentioned above
- Cleaning of Compressor and Evaporator Coils
- Inspect and Change Filters
- Refrigerant leak detection
- Burner Check Up
- Air ducts leaks
This may be difficult and time consuming for DIYers to perform HVAC tune up on their own. It will worth getting a professional help for this Maintenance task.
Roof Check Up
The roof is the first line of defense against harsh weather like rain or storms. Also, it is quite expensive to replace the roof on your own. Periodic inspection of the roof is essential to check for any missing or loosening shingles, leaks or mold development under the roof. Also many times, birds would block the exhaust vent with their nest. This leads to another set of secondary problems. Due to heavy storms, shingles could fly off.
If your roof is getting old, you will be inundated with salespeople trying to get your roof inspected for free. They will send you photos and information about what is going on with your roof.
Sewage Pipe Check Up
The sewage pipe is hidden underground. Therefore the problems associated with are not readily visible. Sewage Pipes can get damaged due to roots, pressure from the ground, get sagged or can get clogged due to tissue papers, grease from food etc. Clogged Sewage Pipes can result in the backflow of all sewage back into your house and on your floors through toilets. It is one of the worst nightmares coming true. The water damage due to backflow from sewage pipes can lead to tens of thousands of dollars in repair and may require an insurance claim to be filed.
It is recommended to have your sewage line inspected every 2 years. A sewer clean out provides access to your sewage pipe for inspection.
You will find these sewer clean outs at a couple of different places around your home. First one will be closer to your home and will be owned by you and it is your responsibility. Second one will be closer to the road and is owned by the city and it is their responsibility. Sample image is below
This is another maintenance item where hiring a professional is worth considering.
Concluding
These 7 home maintenance items are ignored most of the time due to multiple reasons like our of understanding or our busy schedule. These maintenance tasks if done periodically, will save you thousands of dollars in future repair cost. It is better to spend 1 hour quarterly and avoid future damage restoration costs. You can set the Home Maintenance Checklist in www.maintainmyhome.org and also set Notification frequency to notify whenever the maintenance task is due.
