Philippine Real Estate Broker

Basements can be damp and musty places to be in unless they’re waterproofed well. Basement waterproofing can be done in several ways–some require professional assistance, but most of these can be done on your own.

In order to save money on unneeded repairs, it’s important to first discover the root of your leakage problem. Inspect your basement thoroughly and check if the leakage is coming from the plumbing or cracks in the windows, walls, and concrete. You can clean and repair the damaged areas yourself by patching up and sealing the concrete with a sealant.

It’s important that your basement has a drainage system installed. Without a good drainage system, you’ll definitely experience leaks even after sealing the concrete.

Make sure your drain pipes and gutters are unclogged and working properly. Extend the drain spout so the water from the gutter falls far away from your home and your basement.

If your lawn slopes towards the home, you could have some drainage problems. If your basement gets damp after you water your lawn, that means your lawn hasn’t been graded properly. To prevent this from happening, make the lawn slope away from the house by terracing it and making the area close to your home the highest. You could also build the ground up towards the house.

Finally, you can seal your basement’s walls except the last three inches closest to the floor. On those three inches, install a drainage system to collect and bring water out of the basement. You can purchase a drainage system at a hardware or home improvement store and install it yourself.

Photo credit

Plumbing experts say that their business jumps up at least 20% the day after Christmas. More house guests means busy kitchens and more food wastes down the drain, as well as extra showers and toilet flushes that can wear out your plumbing system. Nobody wants to spend their Christmas day stressing over pipes. Here are several things you can do to avoid holiday plumbing problems.

Don’t pour fat or cooking oil down the kitchen sink as these can solidify and cause clogs. Wipe the grease from your pots and throw them in the trash. Avoid throwing stringy waste like poultry skin and fruit peels in the garbage disposal. Sometimes they can’t grind these items very well and they’ll end up clogging the drain. Don’t wait til the garbage disposer is full before turning it on; put food debris in it while the disposer is running.

In the bathroom, spread out your showers throughout the day or wait ten minutes in between showers. This will allow your drains to to their job and gives your water heater some time to recover. Make sure the water heater is turned up to meet your house guests’ demands, but don’t exceed more than 125 degrees to avoid scalding. Place a wastebasket in the bathroom so your guests won’t use the toilet as the garbage can and instruct them to never flush down cotton balls, facial scrub pads, toilet paper, or similar items.

If you notice that any of your drains are running slower than usual, treat them with drain cleaning products before calling a plumber. Should you really need professional help, make sure to call the plumbing company before your dinner or party starts to avoid extra holiday service charge.

Photo credit

Awnings are great for seeking shelter from the sun or rain in your backyard; it also performs a double-duty of increasing your home’s aesthetic appeal. However, it’s important to store your awning before wintertime; otherwise, the build-up of snow will cause its lightweight structure to collapse.

Make sure you clean your awning thoroughly before keeping it away because dust encourages mildew growth, especially in cloth awnings. Not only are mildew marks incredibly difficult to remove – your awning’s going to stink! Even awnings made out of polyester and acrylic need to be cleaned properly. They can be stored wet for 48 hours but any longer than that and mildew will start to settle in. Since the stitching of the awning is made out of cotton, the mildew will definitely cause it to rot and for the whole thing to fall apart. Mildew also thrives in damp environments so make sure you keep your awning in a dry location to prevent growth.

Getting a retractable awning might be more convenient if you live in an area where it constantly snows. This type of awning can be folded and rolled against a wall and is self-storing once retracted. During the winter, you can remove the loose hanging valance of your retractable awning. Another way of storing it is to keep the awning retracted and keep the crank handle in the garage.

Awnings are a rather costly buy but with proper maintenance, they should last you for several years. Keeping them free from dust and storing them in a dry place during winter will definitely increase its lifespan.

Photo credit