This has been updated as of 3/19/20 In this time of uncertainty and fear, I want to assure my clients and those of you who are looking for help with repairs that I have always made cleanliness and safety equipment a high priority for my business. Usually the respirator has been used only for dealing with saw dust or fumes, but that is now being used for any in home repair. Nitrile gloves have been used and will continue to be used to help prevent contraction and spread any germs to/from surfaces. Washing of hands is done between jobs and hand sanitizer is kept in the truck as well. Tools are c ..read more

PART FOUR: The toilet flange and wax ring: This is one of nightmares. You flush the toilet and water, at least you hope it is water starts oozing from underneath the toilet and out over the floor. The smell of sewage is potent in the air. These are both signs of issues with the wax ring and the toilet flange connection. A couple of things could have happened. The toilet was never seated properly or just as with all things, over time things start to sag and pull away. If this happens to you, and you need to replace the wax ring, I suggest if your toilet is over 5 years old and you never replac ..read more

PART THREE: The Supply line: So your supply line burst… again shut off the water. Dry things up and disconnect the supply line if you can. There are some supply lines that directly connected to the shut off valve. These were very popular in the 1960’s to 1990’s. Then someone came up with braided supply lines. There are pros and cons to both as with everything, but I like the braided supply lines, so whenever I come across them I end up changing them out because it just becomes much easier to work with in the future. So If you’re going to change the supply line I also feel it is a good idea to ..read more

The Tank to bowl gasket: If you are seeing water on the floor in the general vicinity of the toilet, turn off the water as described earlier. If after you have turned off the water you find that water is still coming from the tank, but not necessarily all going to the bowl, you probably have a leak from the gasket or the bolts that connect the tank to the bowl. Again, if you are reading this in the middle of the night, shut off the water, drain the tank and mop up the mess and go back to bed, you’ll want to take care of this in the morning. What you will need to complete this repair is a new ..read more

Nothing wakes me up like the sound of my wife’s voice saying, “The dang toilet is running!”  Okay, it’s not like it sounds.  But outside of home invasion, my wife telling me that the toilet is running will get me out of bed pretty darn fast, because my wife is a beautiful person, who likes her sleep, and well happy wife, happy life. So how do fix a leaky toilet?  Well that depends, on where the leak is coming from. Most leaky toilets I come across are do to the flapper that gets lifted up when you press the flush lever is no longer seating properly when it goes back down.  ..read more

Ever gone to look for a filter for your air conditioner and been completely daunted by the seemingly endless selection. Not only does the size of the filter matter, but then you have different ratings. And it seems that brands have different ratings for their filters! Well this is partially true. There is actually some uniformity of the rating systems used. And that is what this blog post is about. According to Services Champions, (servicechampions.com), there are five (5) ratings you will come across: 1) Microns and particulate matter 2) MERV 3) FPR 4) MPR 5) HVAC air filters dimensions Most ..read more

So you had the plumber come out and repair the pipes to your plumbing. Everything is done, the water is back on and the truck has left the drive. You walk back to your restroom to look at the finished project and you see a giant hole behind the toilet that exposes the dark cavernous cave between the studs of the wall. How could this be?! It is at this moment that you pick up the phone and have a decision to make. Do you call the plumbing company and plead with them to come back and fix the holes, or do you just let it go and find someone else to do the new repairs? Lets take a step back here ..read more

How does a guy who went to college to become a Marine Biologist end up with an Econ degree become a Handyman? I am sure that is a question my mother would like answer to. Actually my mother is one of my biggest supporters and best clients! Well the real answer to this question is a long one. It all started with a wall back when I was teenager. And that wall somehow found itself with a hole in it. My Dad was non too pleased to find that hole. He promptly put me in the car and drove me down to the local hardware store and purchased the necessary materials needed and took me home. He then procee ..read more

There are many areas of home safety, we will touch on many of them in the near future, but I wanted to talk a bit about smoke and CO detectors. The reason is as I was going through a few of the feeds from a neighborhood social media app, one post got my attention. The person posted that she was slowly being driven out of her sanity because of an insistent chirping sound even after she had tried to change the batteries! She also had pointed out that the smoke detectors she had in her home were hardwired and were ten years old and needed to be replaced. She couldn't find the "correct" replaceme ..read more

Whether you are selling your home by yourself or have a Realtor working with you, here are some best practice ideas for staging your home to be sure your asset gets the best market price. Curb Appeal: The first thing people see isn't even the front door. Their eyes travel from the house numbers to the front curb to the top of the roof and back to the door. Everything they take in needs to say that this home has been well maintained. There are several things that can be done to help make this a reality. First is to make sure the that the house numbers are easy to see and read from a distance ..read more