3 Things Single Moms Can Fix Themselves And 2 They Shouldn’t
Single moms are not known for their overabundance of cash. When something breaks, a bit of DYI magic can really help them save a lot of money; however, they’re also not known for their overabundance of spare time. As a single mom, you need to pick your battles carefully to make sure a weekend project doesn’t stretch out over a few weeks. You need to find that sweet spot of money-saved-versus-time-spent. To help you find it, here are three things that you can absolutely fix on your own and two fixes that you should leave to the pros.
PinFix: Change Your HVAC Filter
If you’re finding your home’s heat or A/C isn’t operating as efficiently as possible (i.e. your hydro bills are noticeably higher than last year), the problem could be a dirty HVAC filter.
How often should you change them?
- Single occupancy or vacation home: Every 6 months
- Family home with no pets: Every 90 days
- Family home with pets: Every 60 days
- Family with multiple pets or serious allergies: Every 20-45 days
An air filter is about $20.00, give or take. The step-by-step is also incredibly simple and can make a huge difference in your home’s energy-efficiency and air quality.
Fix: A Running Toilet
A toilet that runs all the time is annoying and a water-waster, but you may not have to call a plumber.
In most cases, the toilet flapper inside the tank isn’t making a tight seal after a flush, causing water to just keep leaking through it. This is a super-easy fix and you can pick up a kit in any hardware store.
Fix: A Blown Fuse
Older homes are notoriously bad for this problem. Old fuses are prone to blow any time you’re using too much power in a given room.
This is inconvenient but very easy to fix on your own, particularly after you’ve done it a few times.
PinDon’t Try to Fix: Your Garage Door
If your garage door has stopped opening or closing, you can try replacing the batteries in the remote; however, we wouldn’t do much more than that.
The garage door is expensive and complex, as well as potentially dangerous. Your best bet is to call the experts in garage door repair to come in and fix things. The risk-versus-reward ratio is simply not there for this fix.
Don’t Try to Fix: Gas Leaks
This one is automatic. Never, ever try to fix this by yourself.
In fact, if you smell gas, get your children and pets out of the house right away and call your gas company’s 24-hour emergency number. They should be able to dispatch a trained and certified technician to find and fix the problem safely.
PinThe more expensive and potentially dangerous a piece of equipment is, the more hesitant you may be to go near it, even when it fails; however, your furnace, your toilet and your fuse boxes are safe enough for the fixes we talked about today. Meanwhile, anything with complex machinery, electrical wiring, or gas should be left to the pros.
This is great information I have had a running toliet and it was an easy fix