15 Quick Fixes for Common Home Problems

If you’ve cleaned your sink and it still smells like something died in there, your garbage disposal is the most likely culprit. While your disposal is off, dump a cup or two of ice into it. Then turn on the water and run the disposal. This should dislodge gunk that has stuck to the blades. After the ice has disintegrated, turn the disposal back off and turn off the water. Then dump half a cup of baking soda into the disposal and follow with a cup of vinegar. You should absolutely get the “science project effect,” but that pop and fizz will help clear out any remaining particulates in the disposal. Finally, after the science project has been washed down the drain by some nice hot water, grind a cut-up citrus fruit down the disposal (if you want to eat the fruit, even just the rind will do). The citrus acidity will chew away anything that dared remain, but the real upside is how nice a smell-turnaround your disposal will have made!

When your toilet and gravity don’t seem to get along, it can be stressful for everyone in the household. Before you despair — or call a plumber — see if you can give your flush more gush. Look behind your toilet (probably on the wall or the floor) for your water valve. Once you’ve located it, turn the valve counterclockwise as far as you can — just keep going until it won’t let you turn it anymore. Once you can’t turn it anymore, it’s fully open, and that should help your toilet tank get its optimum water fill, which should power up your flush. 

Laundry rooms, basements and other utilitarian areas may have exposed pipe areas. And while that’s not a big deal most of the year, when the thermometer drops, these pipes can be prone to freezing up. A simple solution: install heating cables and insulate them. Simply run the cables up the pipes, using electrical tape to attach every few inches. After the cables are attached, cover them with insulating foam, and plug in the cord. 

The first step to non-stinky washers is prevention — moving clothes out before they get musty may be easier said than done, but will go a long way toward a fresher washer. Leave the door open to let the washer itself air out after loads, as well. But there are other measures you can take. First, clean the door’s rubber seal with a half-and-half solution of water and vinegar about once a month. Also, run a cleansing cycle in the wash, where you run it on the hottest cycle with the tub empty except for a cup of baking soda in the drum, and using distilled white vinegar in the detergent dispenser. Finally, clean your drain pump filter every few weeks, per your washer’s instructions.