As the summer of 2010 comes to an end, people across the country are rushing to get their home improvement projects done. And if you’re like most people, you have a lot of projects that may need fixing around the house.
According to HGTV, some of the most common do it yourself home repairs for this time of year include fixing leaky roofs, cleaning gutters, making sure doors and windows have good seals, winterizing pipes, insulating the attic and pressure washing decks.
These are all home repair projects homeowners can do on their own. Most only require basic tools you may already have in the garage, or that you can find at your local home improvement store.
To fix a leaky roof, you’ll need some plywood, extra shingles, a crowbar, roofing nails, roofing cement and a ladder. For cleaning out gutters you’ll need an extension ladder, work gloves, a garden hoe and a high pressure washer or hose with a nozzle.
Checking windows and doors for leaks, meantime, requires you to spend the time carefully examining each opening in your home. The U.S. Department of Energy recommends homeowners first make a list of obvious places where air leaks or drafts happen, such as along window frames and weather stripping around doors, gaps along baseboards and junctures where walls meet the ceiling. Then you can use incense sticks or a damp hand to locate potential leaks.
If you use incense sticks, moving air will cause the smoke to waver at the site of a leak. If you use your damp hand, any drafts will feel cool to your hand. Where you find leaks, plug them with new weather stripping and/or caulk. Insulating pipes is very easy to do. You just need to carefully wrap them with pipe insulation.
But for exterior home repair projects like pressure washing the deck and driveway, or blowing insulation into the attic, you may be better off renting some tools. The American Rental Association has a rental store locator right on their website you can use to find the store nearest you.
