help with things needed for the home
 

As a single woman, new to TV, I am finding it difficult to know what to do and what needs to be done with the house.

I can't be the only one with this problem. What have others done? Please tell me some of the problems you have had and how you dealt with them?

Every time I find something that I should be doing, I don't know where to turn. If I get advice, most times I don't even know what they are talking about or how to go about getting it done. For instance, there are all kinds of gadgets on the outside of my house, I have no clue what some of them are or what I should do with/to them, if anything. I figured out one of them is the dryer vent and was told I should clean it out, how? Another post said something about checking up on the roof, how important is this? I am not about to be climbing up on the roof anytime soon. There is this little camera looking think on the side of the roof, what is it and do I need to check it?

I guess I could call a handyman, but how does that work, every time I have one little issue or question do I just call him to come over for a 15 minute advice job? Big jobs, like hanging pictures, I understand, but not the 100+ questions I have every day about one thing or another.

I'm having second thoughts about buying a house as a single woman, (I have no family in the area). I think I should have gone with a Condo.

Appreciate your advice. cm

Many women with husbands are in the same boat. :a040:

I, too, an a single woman who owns a home in The Villages. Don't worry, you will get your answers, you just have to give it some time. That little camera looking thing on the side of the roof is a rain sensor for your irrigation. It fills with water when it rains and stops your irrigation from operating when moisture is present. As for cleaning the dryer vent, just call Desmond Harris at 352-308-9243. He does a great job and the cost is very reasonable. If you provide the 9 volt batteries, he will change the batteries in all your smoke alarms, irrigation back-up battery, and anything else that needs a battery changed.

Make friends with your neighbors. They may be able to answer all of your questions.

As always, just ask your question here and I am sure you will get plenty of answers.

You might want to keep a notebook of names and numbers of contractors you hire to help you around the house. The first person in my notebook in my handyman. When I first bought, I felt like he was becoming my new best friend! :coolsmiley:

Are you willing to share the name and contact info Of your handyman?

I know the Cunninghams from Cunninghams home service and I consider them skilled in fixing a myriad of things and trustworthy people.

I use Alan Byer. He is an advertiser on this site and can be reached at 352-205-7504.

I, too, am a single woman. when I first moved in to my resale I was always running to my neighbor....I didn't know how to change the ac filter, I didn't know how the shower went on (never saw a pull down from the fixture one). for stuff like that the neighbors will help you or just ask here. My outside outlet didn't work and I posted here and people explained the reset buttons for the outside gfi outlets were in the garage (my previous house had them outside).

even though I am married I do the majority of the repairs. I find that this site is helpful with finding people to do repairs that I'm not capable of. You will find people that you live near our friendly and a lot of times the husbands will help out because it gives them something to do.

Start walking around your neighborhood and get to know them. Friendly neighbors are like gold and most love to help each other.

If your home is new call the home warranty office, they'll give you advice and recommendations. If it's preowned they probably can still hep with your district and lot number. Look on you villages ID for that info.

We found all our repair people, MDs, landscapers, etc., by coming on here and doing searches. If the search didn't give us the answers, we asked on here or asked our neighbors. Our neighbors are incredibly helpful. Do you have neighborhood gatherings? If not, start one! They are great for sharing information.

Post your questions on here. Someone will have the answer. Just send me a PM and I will answer them for you. I am somewhat handy.

l2 is being modest. He's extremely handy and extremely helpful.

If you're not comfortable asking your neighbors for help and don't want to constantly ask questions here, it might be worth your nickel to hire a handyman or someone else knowledgeable for an hour just to answer your questions and answer some basic questions.

Well said, Gracie. Don and BK can do everything.
Bkcunningham1@yahoo.com
When they say complete home services, they mean it.
Cunningham's Complete Home Services - Home

I understand your befuddled feelings. It is not easy managing the house alone, and I felt overwhelmed at first. It does not sound like there is anything really wrong, so why not take your time and make a list of things that you need to understand or want to have fixed.

You might want to get educated about the various systems in your house, and Don Cunningham is a great one to help you.

I, too, am a single woman who just bought on 3/19. Deal closed 8 days after my offer, so I was stunned. What I found incredibly helpful was:

1.following the home inspection guy (Ron Roosa) around as he rattled off info about everything in and out of the house.

2.talking to neighbors

3. visiting with the 3 people I knew in The Villages and writing down almost everything they said about how they managed their own homes

4. asking Villages people everywhere I went (e.g. at the swimming pool, in classes, at card games). All you have to do is mention that you are new & people practically fall all over themselves trying to help.

5. Read, reread and print out all the helpful suggestions on this site under the category "Nuts and Bolts of the Villages."

I feel incredibly lucky to have moved someplace where it is easy to get answers to the common questions newcomers have. Thank you!

Thank you. Some very good advice here. I think I'll contact a Handyman to get some answers and help. My house is no longer under warranty.

I don't mind helping, if it's not a plumbing problem, or a electrical problem!!!

I know I'm going to sound really mean, but really what is the big deal. I too am a single woman and have owned homes for 30 some odd years. The great majority of the house is common sense . When you run your dryer clean the filter. When you need to change the AC filter, look at what it looks like before you take it out. The thing you thought was a camera, is the rain gauge so your system knows whether to water or not.

I understand that some of the systems of your home can be overwhelming. If you bought your home new, then the builder should have helped you with most of these during your walk through. That being said, I know most people have their heads spinning by the end of the walk through.

If you bought your home "pre-owned", then hiring a good Home Inspector and being there for the inspection usually helps a great deal. When I do an inspection I always try to help folks understand the various components of your home, like the Sprinkler system, A/C system and heat pump, dryer vent, smoke detectors, etc. This is part of the reason a good home inspection many times takes at least 3-4 hours or more.

Let me try to answer a few of your questions....

1) Dependant on what style/type home you have, your dryer vent either goes through the wall outside or up the wall, through your attic and out your roof. Dryer vent lint buildup is one of the main causes of fires here in the U.S. Because of that, folks should have their vent checked and cleaned at a minimum of once every year or two, depending on how often you use the dryer. If you find your clothes are taking longer to dry, or are finding a lot of excess lint coming out of your vent, it is time to have it cleaned. There are people here in The Villages that do this well everyday as a business.

2)That "camera thing" on your gutter is most likely your rain sensor for your sprinkler system.

3) As to your roof, if you are not used to or comfortable walking on your roof that I would not advise you to start doing this now. When climbing on roofs, gravity is not your friend. I walk all over the roof whenever I do an inspection, as I do find roof issues, like improper vents, incorrect roof flashing, ripped shingles, etc, etc, in at least about 10% of roofs for a one year old home. I also find issues in the attic on many homes. If you are not used to walking on trusses, I do not advise walking up and all over your attic.

This is why most homeowners have a warranty inspection done when their home gets to be about 10-11 months old...so issues can be found and documented and turned into the warranty department for repair so it can be fixed without you having to pay for it.

To put your mind at ease, I feel that The Villages usually builds a very good home, and they usually do an excellent job at taking care of the issues turned into them.

Please do not feel that I am posting here to "scare you into" getting a home inspection done. I would never do that. I am only trying to be helpful.....I certainly keep busy enough that I do not try to "go after" business in that way. Whether or not you ever need an inspection, please feel free to ask me any question you need an answer to...I am always happy to help. There are many other good people here that are also helpful. If you find it difficult to describe the problem or issue, you can always post a picture here.....if you have a question there very well may be others who have the same question or issue, so you would also be helping others.

I hope this helps. We are all here to help each other, so please do not feel overwhelmed or alone in maintaining your home.

Respectfully, Frank D.

Yup, you kinda do. Lucky for you to have owned many homes, this is my first and I'm not talking about cleaning the dryer lint trap. Thanks for the info on the rain gauge but someone already told me what it is...a little nicer. (BTW, I didn't think it was a camera, I said it looked like a camera) This is the reason people don't want to ask too many questions on this forum. Most people are kind and helpful, then there is this? My questions may seem trivial to you, but not to me. So I'll thank you to not comment. Thank you to the rest of you, you have been very helpful.

thank you Frank. My house is a designer, almost 2 years old. I was out of the country when I bought the house so was not here for the initial walkthrough. Then I had tenants for 10 months. Just moved in in January. So I missed all the typical new home owner "training". I did have it inspected before the one year warranty was up. I don't think there is anything wrong with it, just that since it's almost 2 years old and I haven't had things checked and/or done that should have been done in the first year, such as just had the AC cleaned and checked. Just so many little things to do and remember and all popping up at the same time. I think things are more clear now and things are progressing in the right direction. Thank you so much.

Bob Dix Handyman is pretty good at fixing many things around the house (electrical, mechanical, plumbing, etc.). He can, also, install drop-down stairs to storage above the garage, hang curtain rods, etc.). You can probably find his number in the Villages phone book.