Plumbing
Locate the main water cutoff for the whole house and for all the fixtures.
When taking fixtures apart place the pieces on a big paper bag in the order
they are removed. Cover the jaws of your wrenches with duct tape before using
them on the decorative parts of plumbing fixtures. Take the broken or worn
out part with you to the hardware store. You need an EXACT match. Always use
teflon tape on the threads when reassembling fixtures. Check the manufacturer's
website for information on your fixtures. Keep a bowl under a repaired fixture
for a couple of days.
Paint
When you have more than one container of the same color paint, mix them (
box them ) before you start painting. Even if they were mixed at the same
time and by the same machine, they might be slightly different. To remove
latex or acrylic paint from brushes, use warm water and fabric softener. Put
left over paint in used, clean plastic containers with large mouths. ( juice,
cat sand etc. ). Label the paint with the kind, date you used it and where
in the house is was used. You think you will remember, but don't count on
it. If you leave paint in the gallon, cover the top with plastic wrap before
closing it and store it upside down. Paint a wide stripe of the color around
the can so you can see at a glance what it is. Be careful sanding walls or
trim that might have been painted with lead paint. Test kits are available
in the paint department. Keep your roller and brushes overnight by loading
them with paint and then wrapping them in plastic bags or wrap. Keep "Goof
Off " available to deal with the inevitable spills and drips. Paint windows
with lots of paint. You want a paint seal between the muntin and the window.
Scrape the excess the next day.
Tile
Remember to include the grout lines in your measurments. Do a dry layout and
take a photo. Use a wax pencil to mark your cuts. Fasten your substrate well
with adhesive and screws. Follow the directions on adhesive and grout. You
don't want to redo this! Seal the grout as soon as allowed. When using broken
tile or porcelin, sand or grind the edges. They WILL cut you if you don't.
Walls
Before hanging art work, make paper cutouts the size of the art and try the
placement. Mark the corners lightly on the wall in pencil. Move the paper
to the back of the art and make a hole where you want the fastener ( this
may mean pulling the picture wire to hanging position ). Go back to the wall,
mark through the hole and install your fastener. For heavy objects like mirrors,
use two fasteners about 12' apart. After patching or repairing holes on drywall
or plaster, dust thoroughly and use primer before using touch up paint. When
installing fasteners through wallpaper, cut a V shaped notch , lift the paper
from the wall and install the fastener. When hanging wallpaper, use a fresh
blade with at least every second cut. Cut a slot in a plastic soda bottle
and put used blades in the slot. Do not recycle this bottle! Tape the slot
shut and dispose in regular trash. When installing fasteners in drywall or
when drilling in plaster, tape a paper bag to the wall below the hole to catch
the dust.