[retiredguy123]

My house is 8 years old. I have to admit that I spend almost no money on maintenance. Here are some examples:

HVAC system – I add hot water to the condensate drain every 2 months or so and replace the air filter every 6 months. I have never paid an HVAC company to perform any preventive maintenance.

HVAC ducts – no maintenance or cleaning.

Water heater – no maintenance. It still produces plenty of hot water when I need it.

Clothes dryer – no maintenance, except to clean the lint screen. I have considered it, but I never paid anyone to clean out the vent duct. The dryer still seems to dry clothes as well as when it was new.

Smoke detectors – no maintenance or routine battery replacement, except that about 3 years ago, I replaced the batteries because one detector started to beep.

Dishwasher – no maintenance. Someone said that I should clean the filter, but I haven’t done that yet.

Refrigerator – no maintenance except to replace the water filter every 6 months. I started to use the cheap Amazon filters when Whirlpool raised their filter price to $60.

Plastic push-pull shut off valves – I still have the original cheap plastic valves and have had no leaks or issues.

Vehicle – I have a 5 year old SUV with 54K miles. The only maintenance I have done is to change the oil every 5,000 miles and to replace the tires and the battery. No other maintenance.

Maybe I have just been lucky, but I saved a lot of money.