As a landlord, you’ll encounter many maintenance problems at some point. Leaky faucets, clogged pipes, faulty wiring, heating or air conditioning problems, burnt out light bulbs – these are just a few of them. Fortunately, the most common issues are usually the easiest to fix.
In this article, you’ll find a list of the seven maintenance problems anyone can encounter – and tips for dealing with them. While our instructions are pretty easy to follow, please remember that some issues may require professional help. Don’t hesitate to contact your local home repair company if necessary. After all, professional heat pump repair in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, or any other area is a much better solution than figuring out how a heat pump should work without some background knowledge!
If you’re ready to try fixing some things yourself, read on.
Replacing a Faucet
Replacing a faucet is one of the simplest tasks you’ll ever encounter when it comes to property maintenance and repairs. You can easily find a replacement faucet on any online store and install it yourself in under an hour with just a few tools.
The first thing you’ll need to do is shut off the water supply to your property. You can do this by turning off the master valve or by turning off the valves for each branch line. If you don’t know how to find and turn off the master valve, ask someone who has done it before – or call a plumber.
Next, remove the old faucet. Turn it counterclockwise until it stops, and pull it out. Most faucets are held in place by two or three screws. Be sure to write down where each screw goes so you won’t get confused when reassembling the faucet later on.
Now, attach the new faucet (remember where each screw goes!) and turn on the water supply. The new faucet will be in a different position than the old one, so make sure that it won’t block anything like sink drains or soap dispensers. Now you can open the hot and cold water valves to check whether everything works smoothly.
Replacing a Toilet
Replacing a toilet is a slightly more complicated task than replacing a faucet, but not by much. You still don’t need to hire a professional for this job – just go to your local hardware store and buy everything you need for installation. It’s best to buy a replacement toilet that matches your existing model – if your toilet doesn’t have an integral tank, then you should purchase a tank for it as well.
Before you start working, shut off the water supply to your toilet by turning off the water valve (usually located behind the toilet). If you don’t know how to find the water valve, ask someone who has done it before – or call a plumber.
Next, remove the tank lid by unscrewing the two screws which hold it in place. Remove the old toilet and dispose of it properly – don’t just throw it in your trash bin! Make sure you don’t damage the water lines or soil them during the initial installation of the new toilet. Install the new toilet properly and use the plumber’s putty to ensure that no leaks occur. When you’re all done, turn on the water supply and check for leaks.
Changing a Light Bulb
Replacing a burned out light bulb seems like an easy task at first – just twist the old bulb out of its socket, twist in a new bulb and turn on the switch – right? Wrong! First, switch off the power source or unplug the appliance in question. Next, hold the bulb by its base and twist it in order to break its contact inside its socket (you may have to do this several times). Finally, pull out the base of the old bulb and insert the new one. Try turning on your appliance or light – if everything works smoothly, then you’ve done everything correctly!
Checking for Leaks Under Your Property
You can easily check for water leaks under your property by using special leak detection kits available at any major hardware store. These kits are pretty easy to use – just follow their instructions carefully! There are also some DIY ways to check for leaks: wrap plastic around several nails, drive them into your basement floor and wait for several hours before lifting them – if there are any leaks, they will show themselves as damp spots under your nails.
If you want to go further, take a garden hose and run it under your basement floor with one end submerged in water and watch for leaks at the other end – they will often appear as damp spots on your basement walls.
Replacing a Broken Faucet Hose
Faucet hoses are very easy to replace – you don’t even need any tools! All you have to do is slide the old hose off of the faucet stem and slide on a new one. Remember that if you have a faucet with separate hot and cold water control valves, your new hose will come with two separate connectors on each end. Simply attach each connector to the appropriate valve. Remember to turn off the water supply before working on your faucet!
Replacing a Burned Out Heating Element
Replacing a heating element, for example, in an oven, is not as simple as it may seem at first glance – you should always hire a professional for this kind of job. Some heating elements are encased in ceramic and cannot be replaced by handy landlords! That said, if you know what type of heating element you have (ceramic, coil, etc.), then you may be able to get the replacement part from a local hardware store. If not, call a professional and tell them exactly what kind of heating element you have – they should be able to help you out.
Replacing an Old Doorbell
Doorbells are quite easy to replace yourself – all you need is a screwdriver and about 10 minutes or less! All you have to do is unscrew the two holding screws for your old doorbell, take it out and plug your new doorbell into the same place with its two wires in the same positions as your old doorbell. Installing your new doorbell doesn’t require any tools – just use the included double-sided tape to fasten it in place.
Conclusion
As you can see, there are many things you can do on your own. But always remember that some problems require professional help – if you’re not sure whether you can deal with a specific issue by yourself, reach out to an expert. This way, you’ll be 100% certain that the job is done right. If you don’t know how to make complex repairs, don’t do them – it may cause more harm than good, and the repairs will be even more expensive.
Also, make sure to stay on top of your maintenance. This way, you’ll be able to keep things in check, and the problems you may encounter won’t overwhelm you. If you let a professional check your systems and appliances from time to time, the cost of repairs will be much lower – and that’s a huge win!
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