Typical homes and gardens

There really is no “typical” home or garden. Homes and properties come in all shapes and sizes, and one size does not fit all. Neither does one style of home and garden management meat all needs. Suburban dwellers have one set of needs, while the rural lifestyle may demand a different set of skills. To be sure, there are many things in common. Basic structure maintenance is about the same for both, basic lawn and landscape maintenance principles are about the same, but the size of the lawn, and the contents of the landscape can vary greatly!

Home and garden varieties

In some parts of the country, there is a trend toward larger suburban properties in what were once rural areas, and these new settings produce new challenges, and new opportunities. Many former urban and suburban  families are finding themselves with acreage beyond the norms of their former situations, with property features which stretch the boundaries of normal suburban maintenance practices. Managing such properties require a different set of skills, and a more varied physical and mental tool set. It may also require the use of alternative methods of land management to avoid over taxing the physical and economic resources available.

Home and garden websites

Most Home and Garden sites offer a lot of home improvement information, mostly of the home decorating type. A few venture into light gardening and landscaping to make everything look nice around your home. Some even offer a little advice on minor repairs for the homeowner, but very few dive into the deeper waters of serious issues in and around the home and the extended property. That is why we offer this site.

This home and garden website

X Ring Home And Garden covers more than just the standard property maintenance issues. It offers alternatives to the traditional forms of land and property management to meet the growing and changing demands of our day, and takes a look into the future, where less water use, less pesticide use, and better biodiversity practices will become the standard.

We offer serious information and advice for those who are serious about managing their property, with such categories as Land management, Lake management, Structure management, Lawn management, Landscape management, and Pest management and control.

The number of wooden or composite surfaced homes built in the United states is much smaller than fifty years ago, but there are still some being built. Outbuildings, like garden sheds, utility buildings, cabanas, and storage buildings are often built with wood or wood composite materials, which require a little extra attention to keep them looking good and functioning properly. A planned maintenance schedule for preventative maintenance can increase the life and functionality of any structure, and this is nowhere more of a truth than with wood or composite structures.

Even if your building is covered mostly with brick, there are still wooden areas that need your attention. The most likely spots are the upper portions of the gable ends, the soffit, and facia boards.

Preventing moisture is the key

Moisture is the enemy of wood. To preserve your wooden structure, you need to prevent moisture from getting into the wood. This is accomplished with paint, stain, or some other type of wood preservative, to seal the moisture out. The edges and ends are most susceptible. The will need extra protection where they are exposed, or joined. This is the job of caulking and trim.

Build a planned maintenance schedule

The best way to go about this is to have a schedule for cleaning, painting and sealing your wooden building. This is best done once a year, or at least every 18 months. This may seem like a lot, but you are dealing with the life of your structure, so it is important.

Wood structure preventative maintenance checklist and tips

Please follow the order listed below. If you caulk the building, and then realize you need to level it, your caulking may separate when the building is being leveled.

• Check the building for levelness. Do this first.
• Check for wood to ground contact and correct this.
• Check for termite trails on the sides of any concrete blocks.
• Scrape off any loose paint. Completely clean the entire building exterior. This is important for finding potential problems, and for assuring a clean surface that your coating will adhere to.
• Check for missing or damaged shingles.
• Remove any brush, limbs, or other debris.
• Check the edges of the eves and overhangs to make sure that there is nothing rotting there. If there is any potential damage from moisture in this area, you should consider adding, or extending metal flashing.
• Check directly under the roof, where it contacts the outside of the building, caulk any places where there are gaps.
• Check the corners of the building, look for gaps, and caulk accordingly.
• Check around doors, and windows.
• Check the door and window weather stripping.
• Check the siding, and caulk any exposed nail or screw holes.
• Apply your paint, stain, or wood preservative only when these other steps have been taken, and the building is clean and dry.

If you have a planned maintenance schedule, and practice preventative maintenance, it will increase the longevity of your building, and the building will stay in good condition as long as you continue your planned maintenance schedule.

Doors
Hardware
Finish
Drawers
Slides
Clips
Brackets

What to check for

In most cases, cabinet hardware and finish are the main concerns with cabinetry. Hinges are one source of problems, missing or loose hardware are another. Scratched, or cracked finishes are also a problem. With such problems, the “fixes” are pretty much self evident. If the hardware is loose, it can be tightened, missing, it can be replaced. If the hinges are the problem, they can be tightened, if they are loose and the screw holes will not accept the threads, further work may be required. They may be adjusted if appropriate, and replaced if the need arises. Problems with the finish may require touch up, or complete refinishing, depending on the extent of the problem.

Drawer faces often suffer from being closed too quickly. If the face of the drawer is slammed against the rails and styles of the cabinet, it can eventually break loose, or loosen up. The best answer in such cases is to simply repair any existing damage , and prevent future damage by eliminating the offending behavior.

Slides, clips, and brackets rarely present problems, but if a drawer or shelf  is overloaded, it can cause a strain on these.

Stripped wood screw holes are responsible for many problems around the home, particularly those related to loose door hinges. These can be misleading and annoying. Most folks tighten the screw, and think that the problem is gone, only to have the problem return after a while. There is an answer to this problem, and it doesn’t require ripping out the door frame and starting over. One of the best methods to repair a stripped out wood screw hole is to:

Repairing stripped wood screw holes

• Drill the hole to a slightly larger size.
• Insert a dowel the size of the drilled hole with a drop or two of glue.
• Saw off any excess dowel remaining. Give the glue time to dry.
• Drill a pilot hole into the dowel slightly smaller than the screw.
• Replace the screw.
• Please note that the pilot hole is a necessary step, otherwise, the dowel, and surrounding wood may split.

Anytime that tools are used, there are dangers, so use them appropriately, and follow all applicable safety practices. Plumbing safety practices go beyond those of most other maintenance topics. There is more potential for microbial activity. Take special care when servicing plumbing drain waste and sewer lines.

Interior:

Plumbing is both an indoor and outdoor concern. We will start with the indoor, or interior of the home.

Hot water heater

Things to check:

Look for leaks and drips, particularly around fittings and connections. This is the most likely place for a leak to occur.

The TP, or top pop valve is always a concern, this valve “pops off” if pressure reaches a dangerous level inside the hot water heater. Most are set to open at around 150 pounds per square inch. TP valves should be checked at least once a year. TP valve activation is usually accompanied by hissing, or the sound of running water, and possibly, the presence of moisture.

Hot Water Heater Repairs: Top Pop Valve

Toilets

As with all other plumbing fixtures, leaks are the most prevalent at the fitting connections. The flushing and filling mechanism opens a drain when the handle or button is moved, and then seals the tank to allow refill, while simultaneously opening a supply line valve which refills the tank to a predetermined level, and the water supply valve is closed by a rising float.

This float and flapper mechanism is simple, but there are a few things which should be checked. The seals, and the flapper may shrink, or crack, which can cause annoying leaks, the filler mechanism may wear out, or become clogged, preventing proper operation. This is evidenced by intermittent, or constant running water. A good inspection would involve looking at the mechanism as it is working, checking for leaks around the supply, drain, and other fittings.

Showers and tubs

Showers and tubs have supply lines, and drains, and with showers, there will be a shower valve, supply line, and a shower head. Check for leaks around these.

Some repairs can be accomplished fairly easily, but most require getting into the plumbing chase, or the wall behind the tub or shower. In such cases, unless you are an accomplished handyman, the work might be best left in the hands of a professional plumber.

Sinks

Sinks have drains and supply lines, both of which are easily accessible, and these areas should be should be checked for leaks. Repairs are straightforward. Most have shut off valves installed under the sink.

Exterior

Most exterior plumbing supply line problems involve line breaks due to activities like digging. The majority of outdoor plumbing problems have to do with clogged drain lines. There are, of course, outdoor water supplies to external faucets, and irrigation lines as well. Where irrigation is concerned, back flow prevention is important, and proper irrigation head adjustment is a must for both your lawns health, and water use.

Things that should be checked are wet spots in the lawn, or around the foundation.

Related repair articles coming soon:

Changing a top pop

Repairing a faucet washer

Replacing a valve seat

Repairing a solder joint by sweating

Prevention is where pest control should start, management is what we do for the ones that get by our prevention measures.

The first step in pest management is to be sure that the pest prevention measures we have taken are adequate and appropriate. If there are problems with this, they should be solved before any chemicals are used.

Pest management other than pest prevention

The progression should be from least hazardous to most hazardous, of course starting with:

• Pest Prevention.
• Soaps. It is possible to kill most insects with insecticidal soap, even dish soap and water will work in limited circumstances.
• Some botanical products consisting of various plant oils also work well, but may have a slightly overwhelming fragrance when used in tight quarters.
• Traps can be very effective when used properly, and are available for insects and rodents.
• Commercial chemicals.

Pest control, other than pest prevention should always be approached cautiously, and with safety in mind. It should be remembered that when it comes to pesticides, the label is the law. Pay special heed to the warning found on each and every EPA registered pesticide label:

“It is a violation of federal law to use this product in a manner inconsistent with it’s labeling.”

Keep in mind that the label instructions are not written solely for safety, but also for effectiveness. There are many cases where using more than the proper amount of a pesticide will result in lower product effectiveness. An example of this is the improper use of  glyphosate, the active ingredient in “Roundup”. If too much is used, it will result in the dessication of the top of the plant, without allowing time for the chemical to reach and kill the root.

Pest control should be an integral part of any home maintenance program. Pest control should also be a part of an integrated home maintenance program.

No matter how well your indoor pest control is handled, the insects and other pests on the outside will always try to find a way inside. An integrated home pest control program should include steps to keep the outdoor pests, outdoors. Doing everything possible to prevent pests is the first and best form of controlling pests.

Key points to preventing pests:

• Make sure that the outermost parts of your property are cleared of debris, weeds and brush.
• Mow your lawn in a timely fashion, and at a proper height.
• Trees should be properly pruned to keep them from touching, and if possible, from overhanging the home. This is a good point to remember when building a home, or planting trees.
• Landscape plants and mulch should be kept at least 1 foot away from the home. This is a good point to remember when building a home or installing landscapes.
• Irrigation should be monitored to prevent over irrigating and puddling.
• All low spots, and any receptacles should be drained. See Home Mosquito Control And Prevention for more on this.
• Seal all potential insect and rodent routes of entry into the home. Look for cracks , missing mortar and caulk, and small openings around cables and plumbing.

Why another home and garden website? Well, the fact is, that most home and gardening sites focus on one or two issues, and leave out many of the important aspects of the topic.

Some sites focus on home improvements, and others focus almost completely on garden issues. Home maintenance, and garden maintenance are often left to individual sites dealing with such issues as pest control, or landscape maintenance, and are therefore dealt with as separate topics.

The question of maintenance is often pushed into a corner. Home and garden maintenance should be dealt with together, as a whole, and from a maintenance perspective. After all, if you make an improvement to your home, shouldn’t it be done in a way that will consider it’s future maintenance?