Most people would admit that home cleaning and chores aren’t something they particularly enjoy, but when it comes to home maintenance as a whole, this can add a number of extra jobs to do around the house — some of which are time-consuming and costly. No matter your opinion of home cleaning or maintenance, however, it’s always important to keep on top of it for a safe and happy home.
The reason why it’s always a good idea to have a regular maintenance routine is because a lot of household problems can get much worse over time. If you’re not checking or maintaining certain areas of your home, this could lead to a build-up of neglect and result in a more costly fix down the line. This may even have more serious consequences for your property overall, such as leaks or other damage from broken roof slates you didn’t realise you had.
Here are 5 handy home maintenance ideas to keep on top of it.
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Have a Serious Declutter
Not only is it very difficult to complete home maintenance and cleaning jobs if your house is full of clutter, but it also makes it more likely that you won’t spot when serious maintenance jobs need taking care of. Decluttering is the first crucial step to a safe and happy home that you can easily clean and maintain, and this is vital if you’re an untidy hoarder with items piled in rooms.
Decluttering your rooms will help you to take better care of the state of floors and walls and help you to notice any problems like damp, loose nails, or structural damage, which might otherwise have been covered up by piles of clutter.
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Set Reminders to Check Certain Home Features
It’s very easy to keep on top of the cleaning and maintaining of the things you can see and use on an everyday basis, such as kitchen equipment or the cleaning of your fireplace. However, certain key areas of a household are there to help keep your home functioning as it should but are easily taken for granted if you can’t see or hear them.
Examples of this could be:
- Smoke detectors you forget to maintain because they (hopefully) never need to get your attention
- The condition inside your drains that you can’t see, such as problems or clogging
- The condition of your roof, especially after bad weather, because it’s out of sight
- The condition of your guttering, because you can’t see it from below
- A window that is broken or doesn’t open properly, which you’ve missed because you haven’t needed to open the windows in a while
Setting reminders to check areas of your home like these is a great way to get into a good habit of checking them — otherwise, you can easily forget because they’re simply out of sight, out of mind.
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You Don’t Have to Try and Do Everything Yourself
Some home maintenance jobs can be difficult, and if you live alone or don’t feel confident doing certain jobs yourself, there’s nothing wrong with asking someone else to take care of it for you.
Home maintenance and cleaning don’t have to be about trying to keep on top of everything yourself. For certain home maintenance jobs, such as anything relating to your property structure, then getting the help of a handyman professional is always encouraged. You can easily find a tradesman online and in your area for the type of jobs you need completing.
This will also make it more likely that you will keep on top of certain home maintenance jobs if you can depend on professionals to take care of it for you rather than trying to do the jobs yourself.
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Protect the Exterior of Your Property
This is especially important if the area where you live runs into severe weather on a regular basis — or if you’re aware of bad weather on the way. Weatherproof paint is a great idea for the exterior of your property, and you’ll want to get into the routine of regular touch-ups to make sure it’s always protected.
You might also want to think about cutting back any overhanging trees that are close to your property, as these run the risk of damaging roof tiles, smashing windows, or compromising the integrity of your property if hit by strong winds.
Protecting the exterior of your property in relation to harsh weather can also relate to any loose items you have in your garden or yard. If you have a lot of items like garden furniture, bins, or clutter, these can easily be damaged or moved by strong winds and bad weather, so protect items by:
- Securing them to the floor
- Covering them with weatherproof materials
- Packing them away inside a garage or storage facility
- Storing them inside instead if you can
- Decluttering outside and getting rid of anything you don’t need from your yard or garden
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Clean Your Washing Machine and Dryer
Your washer and dryer are there to clean your clothes and help everything to stay fresh, so you may not have given much thought to actually cleaning your washing machine or dryer in return. This is an important maintenance routine to get into to ensure everything remains clean and safe. Especially when it comes to your dryer, a build-up of lint can be a fire hazard for your home, so it’s essential to keep on top of it as part of a regular maintenance routine. A good idea is to empty the lint every time you load your dryer so that you never forget.
Your washing machine may require a clean if you notice it starts to smell when you load your laundry or if you’re noticing any build-up of grime. Your washer cleaning routine can depend on how often you do your laundry, such as a busy family, compared to a single person, so make a routine that works for you.
