Ask Lemmy

Empty the lint trap on your dryer every time you use it.

If you have a dishwasher make sure there is no food clogging the drain every now and then.

Clean a little every day, clean a lot on Saturday morning

Sodium bicarbonate and white vinegar is super good

Get a small tool box and start collecting tools inside it.

Basics to start with are:

• hammer
• screwdrivers (get the three major ones - flat, Philips (cross) and Robertson (square))
• screwdriver with multiple replaceable heads (get one with as many heads as you can)
• pliers (buy a set of at least three types) (also make sure at least one of these has a wire cutter)
• vice grips
• Allen key set (metric and imperial)
• adjustable wrench
• exacto knife (with replaceable blade)
• crow bar (at least 12" long but bigger is better) (don't get smaller because you can use the flat screwdriver for anything smaller ... a good size piece of iron is good for lots of uses)

To me this would be a good start. This is basically what I started with about 30 years ago and now I have a garage full of tools to literally build a house.

Every time you have something to fix or repair, use your kit and make sure to put everything back. And often you may need a special tool to get your job done, if you can afford it buy it and add it to your kit. The cost of the new tool will repay itself as you use it again later.

And if you are not mechanically inclined than don't feel a need to grow the kit either. These basics will help with most situations.

The rigidity of a bookshelf is almost completely a function of how firmly its backboard is attached. The usual flat-pack kind just has a backboard made out of a thin piece of particle board, and over time the little brad nails they give you with it waller out the holes they're in and/or back out slightly, and the entire thing gets progressively more wiggly. You can either add more nails or just replace them with short wood screws.

My contributory general advice to anyone living in their first home/apartment/whatever is to get a cordless drill and a set of bits for it. Not just drill bits for making holes, but also screwdriver tips. It is amazing the number of things you can find to use it on, and how much less annoyed you will be when some piece of furniture, fixture, or other gizmo requires removing or installing approximately 127,000 screws and you don't have to do it by hand anymore.

Keep shoes at the entrance as much as possible, and don’t walk around your house in them.

The 2 minute rule! If it takes 2 minutes or less, do it now. It helps keep your place more organized.

Counter dirty? Wipe it (1 minute of work). Dirty socks - throw into laundry machine or laundry basket. Used a plate or two, wash it (shouldn't take longer than 2 minutes).

It's about making doing the little things a habit which makes a big difference. This obviously won't prevent messes, but it'll help maintain the home overall.

Do not do any plumbing or electrical work yourself unless you are a plumber or an electrician respectively.

Consequences for mistakes can be extremely costly and/or deadly. If you rent, it's your landlord's responsibility to get that stuff handled. If you own, just pay the tradesmen to do it right.

If you lose something and spend ages looking for it remember where you looked first. That location is the home of that item, take it home when you find it. If you do this a few times you will have your automatic guess line up with where things are.

After you have cleaned for a rental inspection and gotten everything just right take a photo of each room. Use this as a guide for how things should look when you are done cleaning. If you can get back to that one room per week you will end up having very little to do before the next inspection.

Cleaning caddies are awesome. A cleaning caddy has two sections for cleaning supplies connected with a handle for you to carry it sound the house. Make a specific space for it and keep it stocked. Every time you go to clean you just grab that, take it to the cleaning, and you have everything right there. This means less thinking and more doing.

Get a few different brushes with softer, harder, thinner, thicker, shorter, longer, and so on fibres. The short ones are generally better for scrubbing something like group, while longer ones are good for going under the edge of the sink or around burners. Some surfaces are sensitive to metals, so use synthetic or natural fibres on those. Some surfaces are super strong and solid but have stains, metal brushes are great for those.

A drain weasel is worth more than 100 bottles of draino

Pest problem? Use Diatomaceous earth. It's like tiny glass for bugs that rips them apart.

Poisons kill better because they bring it back to the hive. They will also poison your dog, cat, hamster, squirrels, etc.

Learn how to spackle

Look for your nearest merch closeout/buyout store for things like cookware, tablewear, sheets and blankets, etc. I've basically stocked half my kitchen with stuff from Ollie's Bargain Outlet, and each pot and pan was less than $15. idk if there's a Canadian or European equivalent, or if that store exists there, but look for anything that advertises closeouts, buyouts, excess merchandise, or unsold merchandise

Does anyone have tips on a cheap sleeping arrangement? I’ve been on a cheap tatami mat and futon mattress, my body is pretty constantly sore. I usually pile up throw blankets to make it a little more comfortable.

Here's an unpopular one that will have people huffing and puffing with righteous indignation.

Go vegan.

Your food will keep three times as long and you will not even need a refrigerator. I speak with 20 years of experience of living mostly solo in small apartments. Not having to deal with highly perishable and pathogenic food at home is a major convenience.

A robot vaccum is good for apartments and noisy neighbors below. Just get a dumb one with a remote and no camera.

Buy some area desinfectant and regularly use it on the bathroom floor and toilet seat.

The first is to prevent warts under your feet, the second is against infektions like akne or your skin. Works pretty well so far.

Be carefull not to accidentally pour the desinfectant INTO your toilet, it might react with something. Use a paper towel to hold the chemicals instead.

UK experience:

• Open all your windows to air out for at least 20mins every day. If the place is prone to damp, twice a day. This includes days its sub-zero outside
• Cheap rugs in strategic high traffic places protect shit carpets
• If the landlord supplied it, the landlord fixes it
• Get a windup torch for when the power goes out (it will)
• Massive electric blankets to wrap up in rather than having the heating on 24/7
• Charity shops for cutlery, glasses, mugs, plates. cooking utensils etc. Just make sure to clean them well before using.
• Heavy thermal curtains in front of external facing doors and between rooms (if open plan).
• Make sure you know exactly where elec/gas/water meters are, make a note of their reg. no. and take regular readings.
• Get storage solutions that stack high rather than wide.

• 2 min rule, if you notice something and it takes less then 2 min; do it now
• if you rent, pretty much all of the appliances are your landlords problem
• Keep inside temp at least 60F 15C to prevent pipes from freezing/bursting. Disconnect hoses in winter. Sprinklers need to be flushed
• your water heater has a dial on it for more/less heat
• be sure to air the place out every once in a while
• bug spray is well worth the money
• learn to use molly bolts / plaster
• pay for tradesmen, but water line valves and breakers should be common knowledge
• be sure to replace your air filter, it can cause blocking. Don't close too many vents