10-Minute House Repair and Home Maintenance Tips

Simple solutions to household headaches that take 10 minutes or less – these house repairs are quick and easy

Cheater’s Chair Fix

Trying to keep a rickety old chair together without going through the trouble of taking it apart and regluing it? Here’s another way to fix a wobbly chair.

Lube a Sticking Vinyl Window or Door

When vinyl windows and doors don’t operate smoothly, it’s usually because gunk has built up in the channels. Try spraying dry PTFE spray lubricant on the contact points and wiping it off with a rag.

Fix a Shutoff Valve

There’s nothing worse than starting a sink or toilet repair only to find that the shutoff valve won’t shut off.

Foam a Loose Showerhead

Fix a wobbly showerhead, or any wobbly pipe, with a few squirts of expanding foam.

Hide a Hole With a Smoke Detector

Short on time and money? Instead of patching a hole in the ceiling (which usually means repainting the whole ceiling) just cover it with a smoke detector.

How to Repair Kitchen Cabinets

Here’s a 10-minute fix for a cabinet door that won’t stay closed.

Silence a Squeaky Floor

To fix a squeaky floor under carpet, locate the floor joists with a stud finder, then drive in a trim head screw through the carpet, pad and subfloor, and right into the floor joist. Try these other squeaky floor fixes.

Bleach Away a Water Stain

Before you go through the trouble of repainting a ceiling to get rid of a water stain, try this trick.

Fix a Wallpaper Seam

If you have a wallpaper seam that’s coming apart, reactivate the paste around the gap with a rag soaked in warm water.

Restore Free Flow to a Faucet

When a kitchen or bathroom faucet loses pressure or starts spraying to the side, it’s usually due to a dirty aerator screen.

Unclog a Toilet With Dish Soap

If the toilet plunger doesn’t seem to be doing the trick, try this solution before you reach for the snake.

Flush Without Hang-Ups

Here’s a quick way to avoid a running toilet caused by a kinked toilet chain. Remove the chain from the arm attachment, and slide a plastic straw over the flapper chain, covering about two-thirds of the chain.

READ MORE: familyhandyman.com ~ Image: pixabay.com