Making repairs in your home can be pretty costly once you’ve factored in the size of the job and hiring professional help. But did you know that there are some pretty easy and cheap home repairs you can do yourself to either fix the problem or make do and mend until you can afford the full repair. Here’s how to make easy and cheap home repairs!
When you own a home the responsibility of fixing anything that goes wrong with that home lies with you. Unfortunately this can get very expensive. Whilst buying your own home is fantastic and comes with lots of perks you do have to be prepared for the tougher jobs too. If you’re looking to buy property then check out real estate for sale in Whistler. But with a little bit of know-how there’s actually a few common home repairs you can carry out yourself that will dramatically cut the cost. Here are some common home repairs that are actually pretty cheap and easy to do yourself.
Draughty windows
Draughty windows are a big problem as they make your house colder and therefore cause you to spend more on your heating bills. It’s easy to tell if you have draughty windows, just run your hand around them on a windy day and you’ll feel the cold air blowing in. Now before you start contemplating expensive window replacements there as a cheap and easy solution. If nothings broken (hinges, handles, etc) then the draft will simply be caused by windows moving out of their original position over time causing gaps.
The good news is you can buy rolls of draught excluding, self adhesive foam for well under £10. Simply seal the gaps around the windows and goodbye cold house! If the gaps in the windows are quite bad chances are that down the line you might want to look at replacing the windows but in the mean time this is a super easy and very cheap solution that will keep your house warm.
Cleaning gutters
As long as your comfortable on a ladder this is such a quick and cheap job to do yourself but can actually stop a lot of damage happening to your home. Clogged up gutters can cause water to pool and leak into your home causing water damage. By regularly cleaning out your gutter you can easily prevent unnecessary water damage. Leaves and twigs are the main culprits for clogging up gutters so if you’re happy to climb up a ladder all you’ll need is a pair of gloves and a rubbish bag and just clear everything out of there. It is recommended that you have a second person around to hold the ladder while you do this though.
Leaking pipes
When you discover a leaking pipe it can be a bit of a panic and you’ll want it fixing ASAP but before you rush to call a plumber there are things you can do yourself that could fix the problem without the need for a professional. First things first you’ll want to turn off the water to prevent water damage and unnecessary wastage or water. Clean up the area around the leak so you’ve got a clear space to work in then you can check out if you can fix the problem. A lot of the time you’ll find that a pipe is leaking because the nuts need tightening up which is totally something you can do yourself. Once everything is tightened up, turn the water back on and check if the leak has gone.
Patching up holes in a wall
Maybe you’ve just moved into a new home and discovered the previous owners liked to hang a few pictures around the place or maybe you’re redecorating and moving a few of your own things around but chances are you’re going to have little holes in your walls. These are caused by nails for hanging photos or prints or slighting bigger holes are caused by plugs usually from attaching heavy furniture like bookcases to the wall. These couldn’t be easy or cheaper to fix yourself though and you’ll have lovely smooth walls in no time! All you need is some trusty Pollyfilla (or any non-branded filler for that matter). You can buy it ready mixed or buy a powder version to mix up yourself then you simply smooth it over the holes and leave it to set.
Most of the time it sets smooth but if you do have any little bumps you just need to lightly sand them out before painting or wallpapering.
So there you go, four easy and cheap home repairs you can do yourself so save time and money and look after your home.
What home repairs do you carry out yourself? Let me know in the comments.
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