Both central air conditioning return vent covers were smashed. Oddly smashed. I could almost picture a toddler on a Fisher Price trike having a blast slamming into them repeatedly… because nothing else really seemed to fit the damage I was seeing. But no matter what really happened, we were preparing the home for rental in […]
Maintenance
How to Clean Your Outdoor A/C Unit for Better Cooling
I don’t know about the weather in your locale, but here in the middle of the country, we’re getting temperatures in the mid- to upper-90s with 85 percent humidity. Yesterday, even though the air conditioner was cranked, the house wasn’t cooling down like it should have been, and we were all sweaty and cranky. There […]
How to Replace a Dead GFCI Outlet
GFCI Outlets, often referred to as GFI outlets or just GFIs, are used to reduce the risk of significant electrical shocks and injury. If you used a hair dryer this morning, you probably plugged it into a GFCI outlet. We’ve all seen GFIs in our homes – they’re the electrical receptacles with the ‘test’ and […]
How to Convert a Fluorescent Fixture to LED Lighting
I was within minutes of ordering my fluorescent fixture replacement bulbs and ballasts when it hit me. There must be a way to retrofit highly efficient LED lighting to existing fluorescent fixtures. I mean – if there isn’t, let’s start that company right now, right? So, I went to Amazon and immediately found a number […]
Summer Lawn Fungus Disease
2020 Update — Originally Published August 2014 This has been driving me crazy for a few years now, as I’ve really been trying to cultivate the most beautiful lawn possible. You can call it pride, or maybe you’ll want to say it’s a “guy thing,” but when I come home from work at the end of […]
How to use a Submersible Pump to Remove Excess Pool Water
2020 Update — Originally Published April, 2018 We all knew there was going to be maintenance with owning a swimming pool, but I honestly never considered the non-Summer efforts; it turned out I also needed a reliable, long-lasting submersible pump for the off-season months. To drain excess water. Chemicals, algae, filter, heater, chlorinator, skimmer and […]
Refreshing a Swimming Pool Landscape
2020 Update — Originally Published May, 2011 Last spring, my wife and I came up with a dream landscape and hardscape design to complement our in ground swimming pool – and we partnered with a number of local contractors to help bring that vision to life. It was a huge undertaking. In the end, though […]
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