Im moving into a new place soon that needs some work.. i want to paint some rooms and the inspection report said the major concerns were unclogging bathtub and 2 sinks, fixing/installing CGFI's in kitchen and bathroom, and removing 2 wall furnaces.. dont know if i should get a person that can handle all that or get individual specialists.. dont know which would be cheaper or better work.. lmk

 

been watching to see for any replies.
1. remove under sink trap to see if thats clogged. the waste line clog could be beyond the fixtures and located in the main sewer/waste line of the house. that one would need to be snaked, not sure a handyman would do that, may need a plumber.
2. the gfi outlets. a good handyman could install them and or test the existing ones. do the existing gfis work?
3. gas wall heaters? again a good handyman could do the replacement.
4. good handyman better know how to paint.

 

Personally, I'd go with specialists. Installing additional outlets requires somebody knowledgeable about that kind of stuff, and they should also be able to tell you if you need to file for a permit. Same for the furnaces, particularly if they are gas.

As for unclogging the drains... seems like you should be able to just go buy a snake from Lowe's or Home Depot and take care of that yourself. I could be wrong, though.

 

?s
is this a purchase? if so, were you present during the home inspection?
sink clog. take out the chrome drain stopper to see if its gunked up.

 

plumbing was a quick fix.. just hair clogged up in the sink and bathtub.. plumber told me for some reason vacant homes (this was just purchased) tend to have their sinks and tubs clogged up.. even newer homes..new gfi's are installed.. probably going to get a specialist to remove the furnaces and patch it up so i can paint over it.. what kind of specialist do i need for this though? Heating and A/C specialist? ill call around..

side note: are electric mowers any good? i got a recommendation from a friend saying i should get one since they require less maintenance and i can mow the lawn pretty much at any time w/o disturbing neighbors.

 

Checking CGFI's should be done by an electrician. If any trouble shooting needs to be done, they can do it. You may just need to replace them. I have changed them before and was lucky, the CGFI's were just bad. Just be sure to turn the entire power off to the house. For some reason, I have never found a power panel labeled correctly.

Here is a link I found for reseting, trouble shooting a CGFI, it may help you out.
http://www.thecircuitdetective.com/gfis.htm

As for the lawn mower. How much lawn do you need to mowe? A gas should be fine, I don't think you will be mowing the lawn at 2 AM with a flashlight to disturb the neighbors.
A self propelled lawnmower works great. They don't use up a lot of gas.

 

My sister had a corded one. I used it when I stayed with her one summer and I hated it. You have to plan your path so you're not running over the cord, otherwise you're constantly picking it up and flipping it out of the way. As far as cutting ability, though, it seemed to do fine.

I'm guessing they have cordless ones by now, but I'm not sure what size yard you can cut with them. Still, I don't think I'd be interested.

If you want something that you can use any time, and that's a truly 'green' option (and better for your lawn if you keep the blades sharpened), look into a reel mower. I think I'm going to try one for my lawn if my current mower ever dies. However, my yard is pretty big for a suburban lot (about 1/4 acre), so I'm not sure if it's a good option for me. You have to be able to mow at least once a week to make these feasible, since they're people-powered and may be difficult to push when the grass gets higher. However, you could always keep a cheap gas (or electric) mower on standby in case the grass gets too long to handle with the reel mower.

Oh, and keep in mind you're still going to have to do trimming/edging, too. I don't think there's a good low-noise option for that. Even electric line-trimmers & edgers make a decent amount of noise.

 

what kind of maintenance do i have to do on a lawn mower besides oil change? how often?

 

For mine (and most any Briggs & Stratton motor), there's a simple kit that you can buy at Lowe's or Home Depot that includes air filter, sparkplug, and oil. I do that once a year. People say that you should put some fuel stabilizer in your tank over the winter, too, but I haven't been doing that. It's probably a good idea, though. I try to sharpen my blades once every couple of years, too (or whenever I think about it).

If you buy a reel mower, just sharpen the blades regularly, and you're golden.

 

Being in SoCal, you will be mowing your lawn all year long.

You might want to invest in a mulching lawnmower, or putting a mulching blade on your lawnmower. It reduces the amount of grass you put in your trash can.

Use to mowe my dad's lawn a lot, and the mulching blade camin in handy. He had an 1/2 acre to cut.