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Insulating Your Pipes

We always recommend insulating the pipes in your basement, especially here in New England where we experience such a wide range of temperatures.

Pipe Dimensions for Copper Pipes:

1/2″ pipe has a width of about 3/4″ on a tape measure, 3/4″ pipe has a width of about 1″ on a tape measure, 1″ pipe has a width of about 1.25″ on a tape measure

Cleaning Your Shower Vent

Any vent in your home should be cleaned periodically to make it run efficiently and extend the life of the machine. One vent that gets a lot of use but is often forgotten about is your bathroom vent! Watch this quick video to learn the simple process for cleaning these out.

Tightening a Loose Toilet

A loose toilet is not only annoying, but can lead to leaking beneath the toilet. If water gets under the tile, it is inclined to rot the subfloor. Also, loose toilets can cause water leaks creating a slipping hazard. We see loose toilets regularly at home inspections, and luckily, they’re an easy fix!

Cleaning Your Disposal

Often times our kitchen sink smells foul even after we clean the dishes out of it. Oftentimes the culprit is food debris stuck on the inside of your disposal. Pretty gross, right? With any system in your house the cleaner you keep it, the longer and more efficient it will run. Follow these simple steps to cleaning and de-odorizing that black hole!

Cleaning Your Heat Pump Filters

Today I am cleaning the filters in a Mitsubishi ductless split system also known as a heat pump. There are filters in all forced hot air furnaces and air conditioners, both central air and window units. In all systems the filters need to be cleaned or replaced periodically to extend the life of your system, increase efficiency, and ensure you are breathing clean air.

Upgrading Your Washer Machine Hose

The water pressure inside your washer machine hoses can cause a burst, flooding your home. It’s more common than you think, and the machine doesn’t even have to be running for a burst to happen! No on wants a phone call that there is water coming out of their basement windows. Switch your rubber hoses to metal hoses to greatly decrease the likelihood of a burst.

Dryer Ducting

Simple upgrades to your dryer ducting can avoid clogs which can lead to house fires. We see three different materials used, but in this video we are going to quickly go over which is the best and why. Simple DIY upgrades like this increase the safety of your home, and they don’t have to be expensive or overly complicated.

Nest Thermostat Review

Our homeowner tip today is a quick product review of the Nest Learning Thermostat. People always ask me about these and I highly recommend them. They optimize the efficiency of your home by learning your behavior and heating and cooling accordingly. They also sell sensors that allow you to balance out the temperature in each zone of your house. Everything is managed on an app which will send you alerts making them great if you go on vacation or if you have a second home… especially in these freezing temperatures.

Simple Insulation Tip

Keeping your home weather tight is often a lot a small measures that add up. Outlets and switches can be a small area that allows cold air to seep in. This quick, easy and cheap fix can fix that. Stay tuned for other air tightening tips that are easy home owner DIYs!