If you notice that the flow of water from the spray is sluggish, first make sure the hose is not kinked. If the spray hose is not kinked, then you may need to clean the aerator in the spray nozzle. If the water flow remains sluggish after you have cleaned the aerator, you may have a diverter valve problem. You’ll have to clean or replace the diverter. 

If the spray head leaks however, you just need to replace the washer from the hose. For a leak at the faucet end of the spray hose, tighten the hose coupling. For a hose that leaks itself you probably have a cracked hose and will need to replace it.

Three common problems of a sink spray and how to fix them:

Clogged Spray Nozzle: Remove the nozzle screw and clean the perforated disc with a soapy water and small scrub brush. Open the clogged holes of the nozzle with a safety pin. Replace the nozzle.

Leaking Spray Head: With the water off, unscrew the spray head and replace the spray washer. Make sure the coupling is tightened once you reattach the spray head. 

Leaking Spray Hose: Remove the spray hose with a basin wrench. Remove the coupling under the sink along with the spray-head coupling. Replace the hose with a new one and reattach the spray head coupling and the sink coupling.

How to Clean the Diverter Valve: Unscrew the sinks faucet cap to reach the diverter. Make sure you know how to take apart a faucet.  Loosen the screw that is on top of the diverter just enough that the diverter is loose to lift it out of the faucet. Once you have the whole diverter out, take it apart for cleaning. Use soapy water and a small scrub brush to clean the inside and out of the diverter. If the diverter is too corroded you may need to replace it. Once you have cleaned the diverter or had purchased a new one, you are ready to reinsert it into the faucet.

1. Turn off the water supply and drain the tank so you may disconnect the water supply pipe. For a bowl-mounted tank remove the tank bolts and gaskets left off the tank. For a wall-mounted tank, remove the connection pipe by loosening the pipe couplings.

2. Then unscrew the locknut under the tank and remove the lift wires, guide rod and stopper. Now left out the valve and overflow tube.

3. Assemble the gasket on the new flush valve by inserting the assembly through the tank bottom. Position the overflow tube and assemble the conical gasket locknut. Once complete, tighten.

4. Slip the guide rod and collar down the overflow tube to install a stopper with lift wires. Once the guide rod is centered over the valve seat, tighten the adjustment the screw.

5. Hook the upper lift wire onto the tip lever. Than slide the lower lift wire down through the upper wire and guide rod. While using the adjustment screw, adjust the rod’s height.

6. So the stopper will droop straight down, screw the tank stopper onto the lower lift wire. Replace the bowl-refill tube and reconnect the tank then reverse the above steps.

If you can see water flowing out of a crack in a wall or floor, you know that the source is ground water. If water is not flowing out of a crack, you’ll have to make a test for dampness in your basement to see if the water is due to condensation or water from the ground. To do this:

1. Cut two 12in squares of plastic sheeting or aluminum foil.
2. Tape a peace to the inside of one of the basement walls and the other to the basement floor.
3. Wait 2 days.
4. Remove the plastic or aluminum foil.
5. If the wall or floor that was covered by the square is dry then you have condensation. If the wall or floor that was covered by the squares are wet, you have a ground water leak.

Controlling Condensation In The Basement:

You will need to lower your basements air humidity by:

1. Raise the temperature in the basement.
2. Make sure all vents of moist air, like your clothes dryer, are vented to the outside.
3. Place a dehumidifier in the basement.
4. Insulate basement walls.
5. Insulate cold water pipes.
6. Open basement windows, weather permitting.

Controlling Ground Water Leaks In The Basement:

1. Gutters and downspouts should be directed to clear water away from the foundation of the home.
2. If you have a leaking crack, you will need to call a professional to fix the basement foundation.

How to maintain and inspect you homes siding:

Inspecting Your Homes Siding: Look for obvious problems such as warped boards, missing or damaged shingles, holes in stucco, crumbling mortar, cracks in your home’s exterior paint. Don’t ignore problems such as dry rot and termite damage. Dry rot and termite damage is the most serious damages that can accrue and may eventually destroy your house.

Begin with a visual inspection of your home: The following is a list of problems and solutions to guide you through a visual inspection of your homes siding:

Deteriorated caulking: Make a note of any caulking that had dried out and need to be re-caulked. Check the seals around windows and doors and where a deck or fireplaces adjoins to the house. If any cracks in a boarded siding are found, you should caulk them.

Defective Paint: Repaint any defective areas of paint. If necessary, repaint all of the siding.

Cracks: Long, vertical cracks in masonry walls may be a result of settling. To find if the crack is due to settling of your home, place tape over a crack and leave it in place of several months. If the tape twists or splits, this may mean you your foundation is settling and you should consult a professional to determine if there a serious structural problem. If the tap is still in place all that is need to be done is to repair the crack.

Mildew: Combination of heat and humidity may lead to mildew on wood and painted surfaces. To retard mildew see how to clean your homes siding.

Efflorescence: Brick or stone veneer may become covered in efflorescence. Efflorescence is a white powder formed when water-soluble salts are washed to the surface. On an old wall, this may indicate a leak. Cleaning the siding will remove the efflorescence.

Dry Rot and Termite Damage: Dry rot is a fungus that causes wood to crumble. Termites destroy wood by crewing out its interior. Both can work away at wood timbers and siding.

To detect damage by termites, probe the edges of wood siding with a knife to look for soft, spongy spots. Pay special attention to any part of the siding that’s close to or in contact with the ground. Check for visible evidence of termites by looking for any bug that has translucent 1/2 inch-long wings. If you find any mud tubes this also may be a sign of termites.

If you find evidence of dry rot or termites, consult a licensed termite inspector at once.

Lubricate: Periodically clean the tracks and lubricate them with penetrating oil or silicone spray. Lubricate hinges and rollers.

Tighten and Clean: Tighten screws on hardware, and clean hinges and rollers. Keep the door sealed and painted along the edges to prevent moisture damage to the door.

Take Care of the Lock: Use graphite spray to the lock.

Inspect Regularly: Inspect the springs. replace any springs that develop bulges or are unevenly spaced. Make sure you have safety cables installed in the springs on any one-pieced garage door.

Weather-Stripping:  Weather-stripping should be nailed to the outside of a roll up garage door as while as to both sides and the bottom. On a swing up garage door only the bottom portion of the garage door needs to be weather-stripped.

Roll-Up Garage Door: A roll-up garage door consist of two tension springs. The tension springs are located on each side of the garage door or a single spring that extends across the top of the garage door opening.

Swing-Up Garage Door: A swing-up door, also called a one-piece door, pivots on hinges and usually has springs on each side to adjust the balance.

Preventive maintenance around your home is to keep your home in good  repair.  Such routine home maintenance will avoid major repairs in the future. Below is a list of the most common year round home maintenance work you should do around your home. The chart is simply a guide. If you notice a problem developing take action immediately.

CAUTION: Before inspecting or working on any electrical system or on any device connected to it, shut off the power and check to make sure the circuit is dead with a circuit tester. Unplug any device you plan to work on. For maintenance or repairs to plumbing fixtures or water using appliances you should shut off the water before making any repairs. Follow safety tips when on the roof.

Don’t walk on the roof any more than you absolutely have to, you may cause more damage to the roof and will increase your chances of an accident. Don’t walk on tile or slate roofs do to the fact they are too slippery and breakable to safely work on.

Don’t walk on steep pitched roofs: Let a professional make any repairs on a sharply pitched roof. If your roof slopes more than 25 degrees or rises more than 4 inches vertically for every 12 horizontal inches, the roof is too unsafe to work on and you will need to call a professional.

Wear: Wear loose, comfortable clothing and non slip rubber-soled shoes with good ankle support when working on the roof.

Work on the roof only in dry days:  Calm warm weather conditions are the only conditions you can safely work on a roof.  A wet roof can be unsafe conditions with a sudden wind you can be knock you off balance.

Never: Never work on the roof when lightning is around.

Repairing damaged shingles: When repairing a roof with brittle or old roofing materials and rotted decking never place your weight on the damaged shingles you are repairing as a safety precaution. You may fall right through the roof.

No power lines: Stay well away from power lines. Make sure neither your body nor the equipment you use to fix the roof comes into contact with the power lines.

Adjustable Wrenches: Adjustable wrenches are a must have for any home owner’s toolbox. A 6, 8, and 10 inch length should meet most of your household needs. To use an adjustable wrench, open the wrench all the way and then place over the item to be tightened or loosen. Seat the head all the way into the jaws and tighten the jaws.  Always turn an adjustable wrench toward the direction of wrenches adjustable jaw.

Types of Wrenches

Fixed-end Wrenches: Fixed-end wrenches can handle tons of pressure, but you must have the right size that exactly matches the fastener’s head. These wrenches come in box-end, open-end, or combination styles.

Ratchet Wrenches: A ratchet wrench with interchangeable sockets does what fixed-end wrenches do, but does the job a lot faster. For each turn you make on the lever of the handle, it reverses the turning direction of the socket on the nut or bolt.

Allen Wrenches: To loosen a set screw use an Allen wrench. Make sure to perches a set that includes a range of sizes. When using an Allen wrench make sure to tighten by hand only. Don’t use pliers to apply any pressure to turning the Allen wrench.

Sleeve Clamp:

Adjustable Hose Clamp: Place an adjustable hose clamp over a rubber blanket over a small pipe leak and tighten the clamp.

C-Clap: Lock a C-clamp and a small block of wood on a rubber blanket for a small leak.

Epoxy Putty: Submit an application of epoxy putty to a leaking pipe joint (after turning off the water) using a putty knife or your fingers. Let the joint dry before turning back on the water.

Quick Fix-Up

Stopping A Small Leak: You can temporarily plug a small pipe leak with breaking off a pencil point in the leak hole. Then wrap the pipe with at least three layers of electrical tape, extending the tape 3 inches on each side of the leak.

• Noisy tank fill

Possible Causes:

• Defective inlet-valve assembly
• Restricted water supply

Possible Fixes:

• Oil trip lever, replace faulty washers, or install new inlet-valve assembly
• Adjust shutoff valve

II. Problem:

• Running toilet

Possible Causes:

• Float arm not rising high enough
• Water-filled float ball
• Tank stopper not seating correctly
• Corroded flush valve seat
• Cracked overflow tube
• Inlet valve doesn’t shut off

Possible Fixes:

• Bend float arm down or away from tank wall
• Replace ball
• Adjust stopper guide rod and left wires or chain
• Replace defective stopper
• Scour valve seat or replace it altogether
• Replace tube or install new flush-valve assembly
• Oil trip lever, replace faulty washers, or install new inlet-valve assembly

III. Problem:

• Clogged toilet

Possible Causes:

• Blockage in drain

Possible Fixes:

• Remove blockage with plunger
• Remove blockage with plumbers snake
• Remove blockage with chemical cleaners

IV. Problem:

• Inadequate flush

Possible Causes:

• Faulty linkage between handle and trip lever
• Tank stopper closes before tank empties
• Leak between tank and bowl
• Clogged flush passages

Possible Fixes:

• Tighten setscrew on handle linkage, or replace handle assembly
• Adjust stopper guide rod and left wires or chain
• Tighten tank bolts or couplings, or replace gasket
• Clear obstructions from passages with wire

V. Problem:

• Sweating tank

Possible Causes:

• Condensation

Possible Fixes:

• Install rubber foam or polystyrene pads for tank insulation