Owning a home may be a dream, but all the repair work and
maintenance may seem overwhelming. First, it seems like you have to make sure
that your dry wall is sturdy, but separating the forest from the trees, you wonder
about the insulation, the pipes, the smoke alarms, the gutters, the roof, and
windows. Secondly, preventative maintenance requires an emergency fund that
maybe you’re able to stow away, or you figure you’ll have to get a home
improvement loan when the time comes.
What is your plan for keeping up on maintenance? Is someone
in your home keeping mental notes, or do you keep a maintenance schedule on
your computer to help you stay ahead of any big concerns?
Today’s technology is great for keeping up. One excellent
website that helps you stay on schedule is brightnest.com.[1] After answering a series of questions about
your home, it points out ways to use the website. It helps you put together a
maintenance schedule, and provides an online calendar and an iPhone app with
tips and how-tos tailored to your preferences. It keeps a record of your
completed tasks all in one place. The tips it provides are great and it
provides an estimate of how long it would take to complete that task. For
example, when considering what type of furnace filters you have, if you don’t
know, Brightnest provides you the steps to find out and suggests the task will
take 15 minutes. Good to know if you’ve got a lot of things to do this evening
and don’t want to get consumed into a filter vortex! The best part? They’ll
send you a reminder email!
What about those of you who can’t stand getting online for
another reason when you get home? Here’s a printable household planner that you
should print on post-consumer paper.[2]
Maybe coming up with the checklist for home maintenance and
repair has given you a bad case of writer’s block. No worries. Check out Demesne.[3] They provide checklists for every month.[4]
Keep your home in tip top shape and you’ll feel organized—everything doesn’t
snow ball!
Another option that I found is called Homespot designed to
help you manage and maintain your home with specific insights.[5]
You can have reminders attached to a calendar that you use on Google, iCal or
Outlook. It’s a little less comprehensive than Brightnest.com but that might be
exactly what you need depending on the type of organizing tool that works best
for you. Homespot comes pre-populated with common household chores.
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