3 DIY Repairs Homeowners Should Leave to the Pros

garage door spring

Before your next DIY project backfires, know that some projects could cost additional time and may be more headache or/and can be dangerous to your health and safety.

Here are three areas homeowners should STOP and call in professionals.

SANITARY WASTE

Anything related to your Potable (sanitary) water and the waste lines (AKA – Sewer System). Your plumbing system distributes safe drinking water. You also use this water to prepare food. Complex pressurized water systems can include welding (copper pipes) and special pipe-fitting. Once the water is used, it must be discarded. Waste line repairs are not only yucky but, in some jurisdictions, may be subject to municipal inspections and/or permits. Leave repairs to your main plumbing system to a Pro.

ANYTHING ELECTRICAL

This is a HUGE no-go zone to the DYI expert. It’s true; electrical work seems rather simple on the surface. Caution! – Things can get dangerous and complicated quickly. So if you find yourself standing in front of an open panel of wires wondering which one connects where you should STOP and leave the electrical repairs to a Professional.

GARAGE DOOR

This is the largest moving object in your home. Garage doors are heavy; most have complicated springs, cables, and pulleys under extreme tension. Serious injury can occur if you deliberately or accidentally loosen or remove the wrong part. It’s OK to maintain safe operation of the door, but leave garage door repairs to a Pro.

Check out this example of the type of repair you’ll want to leave to a Garage Door Repair Professional! A few notables concerning this video:

  • the springs (right and left) are not the same size
  • one side is “torqued” or tightened more than the other
  • when balanced, the door should not move up or down [on its own] when operated manually
  • the most common grade of torsion springs have an expected life of about 10,000 cycles (yes, they wear out)
  • the energy supplied by the springs is 563 foot pounds; that’s like throwing a 50-lb sack of cement up an 11-foot flight of stairs. Or catching a 50-lb sack of cement dropped from 11 feet.

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