Whether you are currently renting out an apartment or owning an actual house, there is still a chance that maintaining it can be quite challenging, not to mention overwhelming. The idea of taking care of a home can be quite daunting for most people. There’s just so much to do!
You have to take into account the actual cleaning process that goes into maintaining your home, cooking your day-to-day meals, and ensuring that all residential facilities are taken care of. The good news is that there are hacks that can make your life a little bit easier.
This article highlights all of the best house hacks you wish you had known from the start. With that in mind, scroll down to see what you can do to improve your home and save time and money while you’re at it.
1. Home warranty gives you peace of mind
Let’s start with something very basic – home warranties. The harsh truth is that there will always be something to fix. It’s part of owning a home. What you can do is to ensure that you have something to turn to when this happens.
A home warranty can help you save tons of money on expensive repairs.1 Furthermore, it also acts as an emergency fund in case there are maintenance fees that needed to be settled immediately. With this, you can hire a professional contractor right away regardless of what’s in your bank account.
2. And so does home insurance
Stemming from the previous point, you should know that your home is one of the largest financial investments in your life. With that in mind, any large investment attracts risk like fleas. To protect yourself from any of these financial uncertainties, it is best that you avail of home insurance. Home insurance can aid in safeguarding your family, as well as your home, from any risk that may arise.
3. Save up on life insurance
Speaking of insurances, this contract is more than just an insurer’s promise to pay. It is a kind of protection against any unexpected scenarios that may pose risks. With that in mind, one of the most important insurance policies of all is your life insurance.2
As each and every one of us age, our life insurance costs add up. This can slow us down. A great hack to take note of when shopping for this kind of insurance is to always compare and contrast policies, and check for available discounts. There are websites that offer guaranteed approvals and will allow you to save up to 70% on life insurance.
4. Replace your old windows to cut back on electricity bills
This is probably one of the most neglected hacks when it comes to reducing your energy bills. In today’s technological era, there are windows that are super efficient at keeping your house cool that you no longer need to use your air conditioning system.
Updating your windows at home and switching to these energy efficient windows will allow you to cut back on electricity bills. These windows can seal in heat whenever it is cold outside and cool air whenever it is hot outside.
In addition, these are also great for the environment because it helps in the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. You’ll not only cut back on cost, but you’ll also be saving the planet.
5. Always keep vinegar in every room
It is without a doubt that vinegar has so many uses that its benefits go beyond its culinary purposes. This hack tells you that you should keep vinegar in every room of your house as you can never really know when you’re going to use it.
You can use it as a window cleaner on streaky windows; you can wash blinds with vinegar; it functions as a weed killer; you can keep cut flowers fresh with vinegar; it’s great for rinse-free cleaning; it’s also used for removing bathtub film and preventing soap scum build-up; you can even use vinegar to dissolve any mineral build-up in showerheads.3
6. Utilize solar energy
Over the past decade, the world has seen great technological innovations that made the lives of everyone a lot easier. One of the discoveries that changed how we see the consumption of energy is the use of cost-effective solar panels.4
The government is now advising everyone to get into the bandwagon of utilizing solar energy. This act provides homeowners with a wide array of benefits. You can generate more energy than you use. In fact, you can even sell stored energy to power companies.
7. A non-gross alternative to drain plungers
Now, let’s proceed to some of the more basic house hacks. Most people are not very fond of cleaning the house, especially when it comes to unclogging the drain. The thought of using gross plungers to unclog the drain is not fun at all. Lucky for you, there’s an alternative that you may want to try out.
Before you grab your plunger or buy any of those expensive drain cleaners, try utilizing a cup of vinegar, a gallon of boiling hot water, and a half cup of baking soda. First, pour the baking soda down the drain, followed by the vinegar. After 15 minutes, pour in the boiling hot water.
This is one of the best ways to unclog a drain without getting dirty water all over yourself. Furthermore, the ingredients used for this are common household items. No need to pay for pricey drain cleaners since you can now use an all-natural and hassle-free way of cleaning the drain.
8. Go paperless
Going paperless is much more beneficial than you think! In fact, this is one of the most obvious house hacks that you should already know about. Sadly, people still fail to overlook this simple trick – going paperless.
In an attempt to save the planet and build a sustainable future for everyone, a great number of companies are giving its consumers discounts for going paperless.
9. Always drill a hole at the bottom of your trash bags
Do you ever feel frustrated when you take out the trash and the bag is sticking at the bottom of the can? While it is true that removing a garbage bag from your can is a daily task every homeowner experiences, it doesn’t necessarily have to be a stressful one.
The next time you take out the trash, try drilling a hole at the bottom of the bag so that it would function as a vacuum-like seal. This will eliminate any chances of the trash bag clinging on to the can when you take it out.
10. Add papers at the bottom of your trash bag
What’s actually worse than having to take out the trash with it sticking at the bottom of the can is when liquids leak out from under it. In fact, this is one of the many reasons as to why your trash bag is sticking at the bottom of the can.
Here’s another great house hack – add some paper at the bottom of your trash so that it will keep the liquids from leaking out. It would be best if you can use old newspaper that you are going to throw out anyway. These layers of newspaper at the bottom of your trash bag can effectively catch leaky messes before they start dripping on you when you finally take out the trash.
11. Freeze your fresh herbs
Here’s an unusual hack for someone who loves to cook at home. You can actually freeze fresh herbs in olive oil so that you will be able to use them all year long. As soon as you buy these herbs from the grocery or pick them from your garden, you can put them on ice cube racks along with olive oil and freeze them so that you’ll still be able to use them even when they’re not in season.
12. Mark it with masking tape before nailing anything into plaster walls
Once you nail something on plaster walls, it’s always going to leave a mark that is quite difficult to remove. Most of the time, when you are renovating or decorating your home, marking something with masking tape first before nailing it can be a good house hack.
With this, you get to actually see and plan out how everything is going to look like. Of course, you can always opt for drywall, but plaster walls offer way better soundproofing properties. On another note, putting down a small square of masking tape over the area where you’ll be placing your nails can help avoid flakes or future cracks.
13. Use toothpaste to remove any scratches on your furniture
This is by far one of the oldest tricks in the book. Much like vinegar, toothpaste also provides you with a wide array of benefits beyond its usual purpose. The next time you accidentally scratch one of your expensive mahogany furniture, try applying a small amount of non-gel toothpaste on the scratch and rub it in a circular motion.
Eventually, the scratch would buff out and you would need to clean any excess toothpaste with a damp towel. This is a great hack that will let you avoid spending hundreds and thousands on refinishing services.
14. Freeze your pillowcases before using them on a hot night
Another unusual, yet very effective house hack is freezing your pillowcases before using them on a hot night. During hot summer nights, there’s nothing much more frustrating than having the heat tamper with your sleep session. Everyone has been there – not being able to get comfortable in bed because it’s just too hot.
Of course, you can always opt to switch on your air conditioning system; however, do note that it would cost you a lot, especially if you’re going to use your AC every night. Instead of doing this, you can spray your pillowcases with a small amount of water, and freeze it for about 15 to 20 minutes before putting it on your pillows. This can help you not only stay cool during the night but also cut back on your energy bills.
15. Put a heavy item in your toilet tank to reduce cost
This is a great house hack for homeowners who feel like their energy bill is outrageously high. There are a lot of reasons as to why this may be, but if you are looking for ways to cut back on your monthly expenses, try looking inside your toilet tank as the problem may lie there.
By putting something heavy, probably a brick, inside your toilet tank, you’re allowing it to displace a few cups of water whenever someone would flush. This greatly reduces the amount of energy used with every flush.
16. Warm vanilla bean in water on your stove
Nowadays, there are a number of essential oils on the market. This product presents homeowners with a great number of benefits, including making your entire home smelling good. If you’re looking for a much less expensive way of making your house smell good, why not try warming a vanilla bean in water on your stove.
Furthermore, you can add cinnamon or some cloves into the pot to add a spicier scent. This is a much healthier way of making your home smell good. Unlike scented candles that may pose certain risks and dangers when left unattended or air fresheners that may cause harm to your lungs, this tactic can effectively perfume the air inside your home with a nice aroma, and without having the need to jeopardize your health or that of your family’s and guests’.
17. Add magnetic tape to your hammer’s handle
For those who have tried fixing something with a hammer and some nails, you would know the frustration of seeing a cluttered workspace, especially when the nails are just everywhere. Not only is this annoying, but it is also dangerous for everyone.
A great way to avoid this situation is to add magnetic tape to your hammer’s handle so that the nails will not get lost. With this, you can effortlessly keep those nails in place and be able to use them whenever you need them. You’ll never have to risk losing another.
18. Use an egg carton to store squeezable condiments
Have you ever experienced using ketchup or mustard, and taking the time to wait for it to slide down to the opening? Well, this house hack specifically addresses that issue. The next time you throw away an egg carton, think about how it can help you with this dilemma.
Cut the egg carton into two so that it would have the base and the cover as its parts. Place them in your refrigerator and use it to keep ketchup, mustard, and other squeezable condiments upside-down.
These will allow the condiments to always be ready-to-use. Furthermore, with the egg carton holding them in place, you no longer have to worry about them toppling over whenever you would open the fridge door.
19. Store your trash bags on a roll
The main purpose of this guide is to show you how some of the things in your home can be utilized to make life a little easier. It aims to reduce energy and cost spent on things that you can pretty much avoid. One of the hacks that do exactly that is storing your trash bags on a roll. Instead of storing your trash bags in your cupboard or on a box, try mounting them on the side of the cupboard.
This trick will allow you to free up floor space and reduce the effort you exert when trying to retrieve them. The best part about this hack is that it would only cost you about $5 worth of supplies. Furthermore, the assembly would take you about five minutes.
21. Wrap your kitchen tongs with microfiber cloths
This house hack is not for your kitchen tongs, but for wiping your blinds. You can have a great cleaning and dusting tool by just wrapping each side of the tong with a couple of microfiber cloths, or even an old clean T-shirt, and securing them with rubber bands. This will allow you to clean some of the hardest parts to reach.
21. Invest in a WiFi repeater
We are now living in a digital age where people are always online. Businesses have adapted to this technological trend and so are its consumers. While it is still possible to live a life without the Internet, it’s probably very challenging to do so.
With that in mind, the final house hack for this article is to invest in a WiFi repeater. This is a tool that contains about two wireless routers, both of which are tasked to extend and amplify the existing WiFi signal in your house.
You can find a wide array of WiFi repeaters in today’s market. Remember this hack the next time you feel like your Internet is too slow. Don’t go on upgrading your Internet package just yet. Invest in a WiFi repeater to see if it does the job of boosting the signal. The best part about this hack is that using this product will not increase your monthly Internet bill.
Sources:1. https://www.consumerreports.org/buying-a-home/what-to-know-about-buying-home-warranty/2. https://www.fidelity.com/life-insurance/life-insurance-planning/what-is-life-insurance3. https://www.today.com/home/28-ways-use-vinegar-around-your-house-t722764. https://www.usgbc.org/articles/top-four-benefits-installing-solar-panels-your-home