It’s the weekend and you have a whole list of household chores to do. Oh, we know you’d rather be golfing or playing tennis or watching TV, but keeping your home in good shape is important. Your home may be the biggest investment you will ever make. Taking good care of it with regular maintenance is necessary to maintain its value and ensure it will provide a comfortable, safe shelter for you and your family for a long time.
Here is a home maintenance quiz that will test your maintenance knowledge. While this quiz does not address every home maintenance project, it does provide helpful tips and reminders for chores you may have overlooked. Call us, email us or post your comments here. We'll answer your questions and discuss any concerns you have about maintaining your new home.
1. How often do forced-air furnace filters need to be changed?
At least every three months during the heating season.
2. What part of the faucet usually needs to be replaced when you have a water leak?
The washer.
3. Should you run hot or cold water through your garbage disposal?
Cold water.
4. How often should the moving parts of garage doors be oiled?
Every three months.
5. What tools can you use to unclog your drains?
A plunger and a plumber’s snake.
6. What tool can be used to unclog a toilet?
Coil spring-steel auger.
7. What faucet part needs to be cleaned every three to four months?
Aerator—the screen inside the end of the faucet.
8. What can you use for traction on icy sidewalks, steps and driveways? (not much of an issue in San Antonio!)
Cat litter or sand—never use salt because it damages the pavement.
9. Where should the fire in your fireplace be built?
On the andirons or grate, never on the fireplace floor.
10. What will prevent soot and add color to the fire in your fireplace?
Throw in a handful of salt.
11. Where should your firewood be stored?
Outside, away from your house and not directly on the ground.
12. What helps keep unpainted concrete floors easy to keep clean?
Concrete sealer.
13. What should you use to clean unpainted concrete floors?
A solution of 4 to 6 tablespoons of washing soda in a gallon of hot water. Mix scouring powder to the solution for tough jobs.
14. When can you clean hardwood floors with water?
When the floors have a polyurethane finish.
15. Do hardwood floors need to be waxed?
Hardwood floors that do not have a polyurethane finish probably will need to be waxed periodically. Use liquid or paste “spirit” wax.
16. What is the best polish for vinyl floors?
Water emulsion wax.
17. When is basement condensation at its maximum? (Again - not an issue so much here.)
In new homes because gallons of water went into the concrete of basement walls.
18. Why should noisy water pipes be fixed promptly?
The condition that causes noisy pipes may be accompanied by vibration that can cause fittings to loosen and leak.
19. Why should frozen pipes be thawed slowly?
Frozen pipes should be thawed slowly to prevent the formation of steam, which could cause the pipe to burst.
20. How often should your roof be inspected?
A qualified roofer should inspect your roof every three years.
21. What should be regularly checked on your security system?
The alarms and circuit breakers should be checked to make sure they are in working order and the sensors should be inspected one by one.
22. To ensure your safety, what household equipment uses batteries that must be checked regularly to make sure they are operable?
Smoke and carbon monoxide detectors.
23. What do you use to fill nail holes and cracks in plaster walls and gypsum wallboard?
Spackling.
24. What is the white powdery substance that develops on masonry walls?
Efflorescence sometimes appears on masonry walls. It is crystallized soluble salts that can be removed by scrubbing with water and a stiff brush.
25. At what temperature should your water heater be set?
120 degrees Fahrenheit
26. How often do skylights need to be inspected?
Skylights should be inspected each time your roof is inspected so leaks don’t develop from cracks and interruptions around its seals, caulking and flashings.
27. What is a simple solution you can use to wash extremely dirty exterior windows?
A solution of equal parts vinegar and water or 3 tablespoons of denatured alcohol per quart of warm water. Use a piece of crumpled newspaper to wash the glass to avoid lint left behind by papertowls.
28. What can you use to help a window slide easily?
Rub the channel with a piece of paraffin.
29. What should you look for when you inspect your siding yearly?
Determine if wood-sided homes need to be repainted; check to see if the caulking around the windows and doors has split and cracked, and replace the caulk; clean the mildew; trim shrubbery away so it does not touch the siding.
And here's a link to the National Association of Home Builders email newsletter for potential and current homeowners. It's free -
www.magnetmail.net/actions/subscription_form_nahb_cenew.cfm
Monday, January 26, 2009
Monday, January 12, 2009
Housing Stimulus to Turn Around American Economy
The national statistics are startling: more than half a million jobs were lost in November, with nearly 1.9 million jobs lost year-to-date. One of the hardest-hit segments is the housing industry and related businesses, where it is estimated that three million Americans have lost their jobs in the past few years.
Although San Antonio has not been hit as hard, we are still suffering consequences of the perception that we are in as dire straights as others around the country. An economic stimulus package currently being proposed to Congress could help reverse this trend and restore our country to financial stability. The centerpiece of the package focuses on the housing market, which accounts for 15 cents of every dollar spent in our country during a typical year.
"It cannot be stressed enough that Congress nneeds to act quickly to stem the tide of the housing crisis across American," said Becky Oliver, Executive Vice President of the Greater San Antonio Builders Association. "When the housing market is suffering, billions of dollars in wages and purchases are lost, negatively affecting almost every sector of the U.S. economy."
Fix Housing First, a coalition of more than 600 organizations led by the National Association of Home Builders, is urging Congress to take quick and decisive action to stimulate the housing market and stop the decline in home values, which will ultimately create more jobs and help lift the American economy.
According to the coalition, this can be done through a significant tax credit and implementation of an interest rate buydown for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages.
The Tax Credit
In July, President Bush signed into law the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 which authorized a $7,500 tax credit for qualified first-time home buyers purchasing homes on or after April 9, 2008 and before July 1, 2009. However, due to a wave of financial disruptions during September and October, the economy worsened, credit tightened, and the spillover to the general economy was deeper than previously anticipated. This means that a more roust economic stimulus package is necessary to get the economy moving again.
Specifically, a more significant credit is needed to enable families to buy homes and help straighten the economy of their local community and the nation. In the plan that the coalition is recommending, the credit amount would be substantially increased to 10 percent of the price of the home, up to $22,000. Unlike the current credit, it would not be limited to first-time buyers and the home owner would not be required to repay the credit.
The Mortgage Interest Buydown
The coalition is also recommending a mortgage interest rate buydown which will help get buyers back into the market and further stimulate the economy. Interest rates recommended by the coalition range from 3.99 to 2.99 percent for homes purchased by the end of December 2009.
The coalition also supports continued intensive efforts to prevent foreclosures and keep people in their homes.
The combination of these stimulus actions would increase demand for housing, help stabilize home values, reduce foreclosures, restore and save tens of thousands of jobs and turn the housing market and economy back in the right direction.
Fore more information about Fix Housing First, visit http://www.fixhousingfirst.com/
This article by Bridle Bit Corp. president and CEO Fred Elsner appeared in the San Antonio Express-News on Sunday, January 11, 2009, courtesy of the San Antonio Builders Association.
Although San Antonio has not been hit as hard, we are still suffering consequences of the perception that we are in as dire straights as others around the country. An economic stimulus package currently being proposed to Congress could help reverse this trend and restore our country to financial stability. The centerpiece of the package focuses on the housing market, which accounts for 15 cents of every dollar spent in our country during a typical year.
"It cannot be stressed enough that Congress nneeds to act quickly to stem the tide of the housing crisis across American," said Becky Oliver, Executive Vice President of the Greater San Antonio Builders Association. "When the housing market is suffering, billions of dollars in wages and purchases are lost, negatively affecting almost every sector of the U.S. economy."
Fix Housing First, a coalition of more than 600 organizations led by the National Association of Home Builders, is urging Congress to take quick and decisive action to stimulate the housing market and stop the decline in home values, which will ultimately create more jobs and help lift the American economy.
According to the coalition, this can be done through a significant tax credit and implementation of an interest rate buydown for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages.
The Tax Credit
In July, President Bush signed into law the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 which authorized a $7,500 tax credit for qualified first-time home buyers purchasing homes on or after April 9, 2008 and before July 1, 2009. However, due to a wave of financial disruptions during September and October, the economy worsened, credit tightened, and the spillover to the general economy was deeper than previously anticipated. This means that a more roust economic stimulus package is necessary to get the economy moving again.
Specifically, a more significant credit is needed to enable families to buy homes and help straighten the economy of their local community and the nation. In the plan that the coalition is recommending, the credit amount would be substantially increased to 10 percent of the price of the home, up to $22,000. Unlike the current credit, it would not be limited to first-time buyers and the home owner would not be required to repay the credit.
The Mortgage Interest Buydown
The coalition is also recommending a mortgage interest rate buydown which will help get buyers back into the market and further stimulate the economy. Interest rates recommended by the coalition range from 3.99 to 2.99 percent for homes purchased by the end of December 2009.
The coalition also supports continued intensive efforts to prevent foreclosures and keep people in their homes.
The combination of these stimulus actions would increase demand for housing, help stabilize home values, reduce foreclosures, restore and save tens of thousands of jobs and turn the housing market and economy back in the right direction.
Fore more information about Fix Housing First, visit http://www.fixhousingfirst.com/
This article by Bridle Bit Corp. president and CEO Fred Elsner appeared in the San Antonio Express-News on Sunday, January 11, 2009, courtesy of the San Antonio Builders Association.
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