Monday Top 5: Common Household Fixes Part 1 —Professional tool .

Points of Interest

• How to...
• Get a low light bulb out
• Fix a stuck door
• Repair drywall
• Find a stud without a finder
• Get painters tape to work

This subject is way larger than a Top 5 list but we see we power as well go somewhere.

The early day we were seated round the water tank and talk about when we first moved out of our parents house. When you get that first place, you run into a list of problems that you never actually had to remember about. Either your Dad (or Mom) did them for you or they had all the tools on hand to get the job done easily. But now you're on your own with limited tools (maybe some form of passing away gift from the folks) and you've got to do do. What were the outset things we ran across. Well, here they are. 1) How to get a light bulb out when it breaks off in the fixture

We can't say you how many times we've moved into a home and the foremost matter that happened was a low light bulb. Sure, replacing a bulb is slowly but what if it breaks in the process. We've hear (and tried) the potato trick (cut it in half and jam it on) but this often ends with a very messy light socket. If you've got pliers handy, you can try them (make certain you round the power off - and not only the change if you're at all unsure) though there are less traditional methods. We've heard use of corks and broom handles. For ceiling fixtures, the boom handle approach is particularly useful as you can belt out the lie of the glass. If the socket is too big, just roll the end with tape (leaving some of the sticky side exposed) and use that. 2) How to fix a doorway that isn't closing properly

A little more difficult, you are look at the strike plate first to see if you get an alignment problem. If you feel you want to all travel the strike plate you may want to use wood dowels or wood golf tees to take the existing holes. The future post to see is the hinges. Sometimes the screws can become loose, causing the threshold to sag a bit. Finally, don't discount the weather - often a door will stay during winter or summer. Sometimes an electrical or manual door planer can fix that and have you some flexibility. Remember, on interior doors it's often good to have a gap of 1" at the seat of the door, and having a close seal isn't necessarily good - this is due to needing adequate return air in each way for your AC system's proper circulation. 3) How to repair drywall

For basic repairs (nail/screw holes) you just want some spackle and some paint. For bigger holes you may involve some mesh tape and some joining compound. Just sand down the area, apply the tape, and dispersed the joining compound very thin. You may want to sand it low and reapply a few times so that it is flush. Nothing is actually worse on a wall (especially with flat paint) than a poorly repaired hole. If you get a very large hole, you can often buy scraps of drywall from your local hardware store. Draw and cut a feather out of the drywall with a razor knife and so cut a new man to march. To make you something to love it to, insert and fasten two pieces of 1x3 furring strips behind the hollow with drywall screws. Then, simply know the new drywall to the inserted wood and do you minor repair to the edge. If the fix is Very large, you might just need to cut out a bit large enough to cross the entire 16-inches to the existing studs and replace the whole section. 4) How to see a stud without a finder

We know dozens of handymen that think they are a walking studfinder. wait, that came out wrong. Anyhow, they tap on a wall (the "rap test") and magically find the studs by the duller sound. We've found that this is more a part of the wall than the person, though some people appear to actually take the knack. If you try this with an old home (lathe and plaster) you'll quickly realize that your knuckles or tied a studfinder may not go so well. The surefire method is to fill your smallest drill bit and start drilling test holes. Studs are normally placed 16" apart. Once you see one, assuming you're in the centre of a wall, you can typically just start measuring. A feeling of spackle will report your drill bit trail and no one will be the wiser. 5) How to get painter's tape to go right

We're not certain what mark of painter's tape they use on HGTV but we're guessing they must make some special supply (or only use the best take). What most people feel is when they draw up the tape either the key comes with it or, more commonly, the key has seeped under the tape, creating a feathered edge. The one thing that we have found really helps is to use a damp towel and really press down on the record when applying. This will help prevent paint from wicking up below the tape. Second, make certain you get the tape off when the key is still wet - dry paint will flake off and give a less than straight edge.

While none of these projects are exactly mindblowingly difficult (especially for the seasoned professional) you get to go somewhere. Right now, there's a tween running round a Home Depot without a hint as to how to fix all those nail-holes from their favorite Emo band posters. If we can help just one of them. well, then we've helped just one of them. If they like Emo music, they're kind of a lost cause anyhow.