Housekeeping

When one season transitions into another, there are many changes happening in the air. This is why there are unique allergies you must think about every time the seasons change. While the spring is the most synonymous with pollen and seasonal allergies, autumn has its own irritants hiding in the air. There may even be some fall allergies you didn’t know existed.

While it can be relatively simple to strip paint from wood, ceramic, or metal, plastic requires a little more careful attention to ensure that the material stays undamaged. The more conventional stripping methods that involve harsh chemicals will not work, as they can easily melt or damage the plastic. Lucky for you, since plastic is non-porous and smooth, it’s actually exceptionally rare for paint to form a permanent bond to it.

If you are itching to carve a pumpkin, you must remember that pumpkins shrivel up and rot fairly quickly. As soon as you slice into a pumpkin, you also cut into its lifespan. In general, a carved pumpkin lasts between five days and two weeks, with 10 days being the standard “average.”

Dishwashers can rack up quite a few foul odors, many of which would raise an eyebrow with most of us. If you recently had a mishap that involved melting plastic in the wash, you probably have a machine that has the acrid smell of burnt plastic inside its chambers. Sometimes, the smell is strong enough to cling to dishes! You don’t have to live with that aroma. There are ways to remove that smell for good.

By the nature of their design, tarps keep the elements away, but they get grimy in the process. No one wants a mud-encrusted tarp sitting on their garage shelf. But how easy are they to clean? Can you put them in the washing machine?

High-efficiency washers are a great choice if you’re looking to conserve water and energy. The water level sensor will determine the amount of water you need based on your load weight. Sometimes, the amount of water is not adequate for an excellent washing of your clothes.

Nobody likes to think about what happens after we flush the toilet. In many places, a public sewer system whisks away our waste without much thought. But for others, septic systems and cesspools do the dirty work.

Owning a jacuzzi is a fun way to enjoy the night air in the winter, or even to relax in the summer. They are extremely versatile as you can change the temperature of the water depending on the season. 

One of the more common reasons your sheets can make you itchy has to do with your laundry detergent. The main goal of washing detergent is to clean clothes. Many brands add fragrances to leave your clothes and sheets smelling nice. This all sounds great in theory, but in practice, it can cause issues.

Having a porch is one of the fastest ways to add value to a home, but only if it looks nice. The easiest way to give a porch a facelift is to add a fresh new coat of paint to it. Of course, that means that you will need to know how to paint your porch properly. If you have an aluminum screened porch, it quickly becomes an “easier said than done” matter.

If you live in a multiple story home, you may have found yourself questioning why your second floor is so much hotter than the first. Unfortunately, a warmer second floor may not be noticeable until the summer months when the heat really starts coming in. And when it happens, you’ll start to feel extremely uncomfortable.

Spring marks the return of flowers. If you have a beautiful garden with flowers that bloom in the early spring, then consider drying some of your favorites. You can make your mother a stunning dried flower bouquet using some of your favorite colorful flowers.

One day you wake up and discover that when you flush your toilet, the kitchen sink starts gurgling. Or maybe the kitchen sink gurgles when the water goes down. Your kitchen sink gets more use than any other faucet in your house, so this is typically where you end up noticing the issue. But the problem may have started somewhere else.

A relaxing backyard space is a desire of many homeowners, providing extra space to entertain, hang out, and eat al fresco. Outdoor furniture plays a large role in creating your oasis. However, it can look worn down if you don’t know how to clean patio cushions.

Home is where the heart is, but it can be detrimental to your health if you don’t pay attention to your surroundings. Indoor air quality affects everything from your mental health to your lungs, skin, and eyes. Many homeowners understand this but ask the question: Why is my home air quality bad?

It doesn’t matter if you are working on a home improvement project or in the middle of a plumbing emergency. When the shut-off valve isn’t working the way that it is supposed to work, it can be a real pain to the rear end. So what do you do if the water won’t shut off with the under sink shut off valve? What causes this?

Do you have a home improvement project coming up? Are you thinking about doing up the exteriors of your home? Then it is imperative that you zero in on the right exterior house paint. Your choice of materials for the job will determine whether you are making a sound and sensible investment or just increasing your costs.

Just like any other kitchen appliance, microwaves face daily wear and tear. Over time, one of the most common issues microwaves face is peeling interior paint. This can quickly become a fire hazard and even contaminate your food. 

Undeniably, if you cook using pots and pans, you also have to clean your pots and pans. Though, if you cook often, you may start to notice that your daily washing routine isn’t enough to prevent grease and food residue from forming stubborn stains. With this in mind, and for the sake of convenience, you might find yourself wondering: “Is Farberware dishwasher safe?”

Winter is famous for snow and cozy evenings, and infamous for flus, colds, and other illnesses that thrive in this chilly season. While there is no way to completely protect yourself from the flu and the common cold, changing what you eat is a great place to start. To ensure you stay as healthy as possible this winter, you need to know which foods work to strengthen your immune system.

The range hood of your kitchen is one of the most important parts of your appliances. Whether you are cooking and there is a lot of smoke, or there are huge amounts of steam coming from your pot, range hoods help to filter and clear this away. They’re also great for lighting so that you can see what you’re doing. So, what type of lightbulb do you put in a range hood?

Ask any professional cleaning crew what kind of homes they can’t stand, and they’ll tell you it’s a hoarder’s house. Hoarders compulsively store everything they possibly can, including old food, pets, and trash. A hoarder house is always a threat to a person’s safety and health. Unfortunately, someone has got to clean those kinds of homes. If you’re stuck with the job, there are a lot of things you need to know…

Cleaning cat puke is a part of being a cat owner, and you must sadly get used to it. However, you must take it seriously, or else your floors will quickly get covered in stubborn stains. Luckily, cleaning cat vomit isn’t that hard if you get it down to a science.

Yeti is one of the most trusted brands when it comes to reusable drinkware. With their quality and effectiveness, this shouldn’t come as surprise. But there’s one important question that is shared by many Yeti cup users: are Yeti Dishwasher safe?

Hosting your entire family for one of the winter holidays is a significant undertaking. There is a lot to coordinate and plan, and the costs can quickly add up. Food, decorations, and equipment rental fees can amount to many hundreds of dollars, which is why it can be helpful to find ways to save money when hosting a holiday gathering.

One of life’s simple pleasures is a delicious bowl of ice cream after a satisfying meal. That ice cream should be easy to scoop and have a nice, creamy consistency. However, if your freezer doesn’t keep ice cream frozen, then your frozen treat becomes a goopy mess.

Scratches on your luxury vinyl floors are an unfortunate downside of having them. Kids and pets have a tendency to drag in small bits of dirt and gravel on the bottoms of their feet, scratching up the floor. With just a few steps though, these can be repaired.

The sight of mold in your dishwasher can make you think twice about using your dishes again. Dishwashers are the perfect place for mold to grow because of the moisture, heat, and darkness. Many people struggle with how to get rid of mold in the dishwasher, however, you can prevent mold growth and get rid of what’s already there by taking a few precautions.

It’s estimated that in the United States alone, 80 to 100 million people have allergies. This is close to a third of the population, and these allergies come from many places, including inside the home. So, what are the most common household allergens?

Countless homeowners have done everything that they can to transform their houses into smart homes. It’s easy to overlook certain simple devices that make it easier to go about your day as a homeowner, such as smart plugs. So, do smart plugs save energy?

Modern homeowners rely on the convenience of electrical outlets to power household appliances. Unfortunately, electrical outlets go bad over time just like every other part of the home. So, how often should electrical outlets be replaced?

You have invested a lot of time and money into your home. Unfortunately, you’ve noticed your driveway, garage or other concrete surfaces don’t look as good as they once did. You’ve done some homework and concrete resurfacing seems like the best option to repair and refresh that concrete slab. But before you spend the money, you need to know if it will last.

While ceiling fans are great for keeping your home’s temperatures low in the summer and your cooling costs even lower, they may be noisy, distracting, and unattractive in your living spaces. Not to mention, they can also be incredibly difficult to clean.

A plumbing trap, or P-trap, is a portion of a plumbing pipe that looks like a loop, “J,” or “C.” P-traps are extremely important as they keep gas sewer odors from escaping plumbing fixtures such as sinks, toilets, and drains. When designing a house, it can be hard to determine how far below the drain a P-trap should be.

When you’re shopping around for a house, one of the deciding factors is often the neighbors. How close houses are, whether or not the yards are separated in any way, and other things play a role. If your house is close to your neighbor, when Autumn comes around you might wonder how to stop your neighbors’ leaves from blowing in your yard.

Paint thinner, along with similar solvents, can be very dangerous when disposed of improperly. They can pollute groundwater or potentially cause fires when thrown in your household trash. Not to mention, that the EPA has proposed banning the major chemical found in most paint thinners: methylene chloride. Studies show that short term, it can poison your central nervous system and prolonged exposure can result in lung cancer, liver cancer, and even death.

It’s not uncommon to have water damage on your drywall, whether it be ceiling or walls, especially if you live in an area that experiences heavy rainfall. If you have water damage on your ceiling, you have probably wondered if painting over the problem area is a practical solution. After all, simply applying a couple of coats of paint is far easier than replacing ceiling material.

One of the most popular aftermarket accessories among four-wheel off-road enthusiasts is LED lightbars.  The advances in LED technology afford amazing lighting performance at remarkably reasonable prices. However, mounting these lightbars poses a problem for some vehicle owners.  The question of how to mount a lightbar on a vehicle roof without drilling comes up often.

Of all of the pests homeowners face, bed bugs hit where it really hurts the most. The last thing that any sensible homeowner wants is to feel unsafe in their house. Unfortunately, bed bugs excel at making it difficult to get comfortable or feel safe in your own home.

With only 5% of U.S. homes being heated by propane systems, you may be wondering if it is the correct choice of fuel for providing power to your home. When comparing the costs with traditional electric heating, propane is usually the cheaper option. Propane power also comes with other benefits not provided by electric grid power.

Hail can cause a significant amount of damage to your home and your property. It may look relatively unharmful, but it can pack some power upon landing.

Washing dishes is part of everyday life as an adult. While the task of washing by hand can be a bit tedious, there are all sorts of devices and accessories that make washing dishes less annoying. The dishwasher is the best example of a device that makes doing dishes less time- and energy-consuming. But if you are worried about your energy costs, you might wonder if it costs more to do dishes by hand,  or in a dishwasher.

Leeks are a vegetable closely related to the onion and often have a very similar flavor profile. This vegetable is commonly used in salads, sauces, stews, and soups. With a softer flavor than an  onion, the leek is a perfect vegetable substitute in many familiar recipes.

People commonly use backfeeding in areas with sudden power outages due to problems at utility power grid plants or natural calamities, like hurricanes. However, although it might appear to be a good solution in some situations, is backfeeding a generator illegal?

Aquaphor and other health aid ointments help heal the skin and reduce pain or irritation. Unfortunately, they can quickly leave oily stains on clothes and household linens, such as sheets and towels. Although oil-based stains are among the hardest to deal with, they can be eliminated. So, how exactly do you get Aquaphor out of your clothing?

One day, not too long ago, I was at my mom’s house when I heard a loud crash. I ran to my closet where the noise was coming from and quickly noticed that the shelves had collapsed. Since then, we got Closetmaid shelving. We installed it in hopes of making sure we don’t see shelving topple again, but was it a good idea? Moreover, how much can these shelves hold?

Bi-fold doors have long been a popular option, whether used for a closet, in a doorway, or even as a room divider. However, they are certainly not the only door option nowadays, especially when it comes to closets. If you’re looking for alternatives to bi-fold closet doors, you have lots to choose from.

You can find at least one microwave in everyone’s home nowadays. But the microwave oven was not really a thing until the 80s. In fact, only a quarter of homes in America had a microwave oven in 1986, and by 2008 that number was up to 95%. But how much do you really know about your microwave oven?

The reason some nuts go bad in the pantry has to do with their fat content. Fat goes rancid. The higher the fat content, the quicker nuts will go rancid. Therefore, it’s a good idea to store nuts with very high fat content in the freezer, as this significantly prolongs their lifespan.

A faucet aerator is a great way to conserve water usage and save a bit of money on your water bill. Faucet aerators mix air in with the water stream, saving up to an extra 16 gallons of water per day! It’s essential to clean your faucet aerator regularly and replace it every year to ensure continued efficiency.

When painting anything on the interior of your home, you need to use primer as an undercoat. The number of coats of primer you need can vary, depending on your desired end result.

Hard water: An oxymoron or the cause of cleaning nightmares around the nation? While the term seems contradictory, hard water buildup is a real problem plaguing many households. It also poses the question of how exactly one would clean water stains without using more water.

Intex pools can be great during the summer months. After all, who doesn’t enjoy spending time with the family in the backyard, enjoying the sun, and having fun? If you are thinking of purchasing an Intex pool or have already gotten one, there is one question: what to put under your Intex pool.

Clogged drains can cause problems in the kitchen and bathroom. The last thing anyone wants is their kitchen sink to back up or their clogged tub drain overflowing. Luckily, in many cases, white vinegar is the perfect home remedy for unclogging drains, depending on the cause.

Your garage fridge is likely to freeze if it is overcrowded and stuffed with food. Overstuffing your fridge typically means that many items get crowded in the back. This can easily block the vents in the back of your garage fridge and make the contents freeze.

The number one reason why clothes contain detergent residue when you take them out of the wash is that you used too much detergent. If you use double the amount of detergent you should, it can be hard or impossible to remove all the soap from the water before the cycle completes.

Bananas are one of the best and most popular fruits to freeze. This yellow fruit is usually cheap and sold in bunches. Bananas are also a fruit that should not be put in the refrigerator, as this allows bananas to ripen naturally and quickly.

This article isn’t to stop you from your dreams of creating an organized refrigerator. By all means, sort and categorize your food to your heart’s content, so meal prep or grabbing a snack isn’t a hassle. But know that fridgescaping goes beyond simple organizing and could actually be counterproductive.

When moving into a new home, one of the first things most people do is change the locks. You want to feel secure in your new home and changing the locks helps with that. This is the time when a lot of people make a common mistake.

A fence can really enhance your property, but it can also cause arguments with your neighbors. Chiefly because many fences are supported rails and posts on one side of the fence and a smooth surface on the other. And this generally means only one person gets the side with the smooth surface often known as the good side.