# How to maintain a household

## You will need tools

Tools simplify [repairs](https://adequate.life/fix/) and improvements, and every household should have an essential collection of them.

Unless you plan to use the tool *once*, only buy high-quality tools.

You won't need *every* tool:

- Get niche tools as required and as your skill improves.
- While you may need some tools for very specific tasks, try to get tools with multiple applications.

Critical Tools:

- Hammer: especially useful when other tools fail
- Screwdriver Set (both Philips and Flathead): various sizes for various uses
- Power Drill and Bit Set: the only universally necessary power tool

Wrenches:

- Crescent/Adjustable Wrench Set: for whatever a fitted wrench won't work on
- Ratcheting Wrench Set (both American and Metric): essential for engines
- Socket Wrench Set (both American and Metric): critical for large engines
- Spark Plug Sockets: vital specialty tool for engines
- Flare Nut Wrench Set: designed to grip soft surfaces

Pliers:

- Locking Pliers: adjusts to any size and locks in place
- Needle Nose Pliers: for small crevices
- Bent Nose Pliers: for hard-to-reach places
- Diagonal Pliers: for cutting vertically
- End Cutter Pliers: for cutting horizontally
- Short Nose Pliers: for more power and control

Saws:

- Hack Saw: for cutting most materials
- Wood Saw: for cutting wood

## Restore things

Chrome polishing:

1. Rub one of the following into it and let sit >15 minutes:
   - Dissolve a teaspoon of salt into a cup of vinegar, then mix in at least 1/4 cup flour.
   - Mix equal parts lemon juice and baking soda.
   - Ketchup or tomato paste.
   - Baby oil mixed with vinegar.
   - Dry baking soda in a damp cloth.
2. Rinse with warm water and polish with a soft cloth.

Jewelry cleaning:

- Soak for 2 minutes in a glass of water with 2 antacid tablets dropped in.

Metal oxidation (rust):

- Rub it with the following, let dry, then gently buff the area with a dry cloth:
  - Aluminum foil soaked in vinegar
  - A cut potato coated in baking soda
  - Mix four tablespoons of Epsom salt and the juice from half a lemon, then add 1 tbsp water to make a paste.
- Soak it in the following overnight to reverse the oxidation:
  - Vinegar and salt
  - A batch of strong black tea
- Rub rust stains with lemon juice to remove them.
- Oil the metal to keep it from rusting in the future.

Nickel cleaning:

- Rub with a mixture of 1 part water and 1 part vinegar.

Silver tarnished:

- To clean it:
  1. Dissolve 1 teaspoon salt into 1 cup vinegar, then mix a paste with >1/4 cup flour.
  2. Apply the paste and let stand for >15 mins.
  3. Rinse with warm water and polish with a soft cloth.
- To reverse the tarnishing process:
  1. Set in a heat-resistant non-metal container where it connects with aluminum.
  2. Mix 1 tablespoon baking soda in 1 liter boiling water.
  3. Pour it in and let sit.

Stainless-steel polishing:

- Rub in a mixture of white vinegar and club soda.
- Rub in dry baking soda with a damp cloth in the direction of the grain, then rinse and dry.
- Rub a thin layer of olive oil into it with a soft cloth.

Canvas restoration:

- Rub clean with a small brush and dry baking soda.

Oil painting restoration:

1. Dust thoroughly, then gently rub with a flat-cut raw potato.
2. Wipe away lather with a soft rag and pare the potato frequently as you work.
3. Rub pure linseed oil on it when done.

Wood furniture restoration:

1. Before anything
   - Try rubbing a walnut on it to remove dings and scratches.
   - For leather furniture marks, apply shoe polish to a paper towel and rub in a circular motion into its surface.
   - If the furniture is wobbly, try gluing pennies to the bottoms of the legs.
2. Scrub any dirt or grime off with an old used toothbrush.
3. If the chair's joints squeak, mix DAP Weldwood with water and apply to the wood joints where they will seep in.
4. Sand the joints to avoid over-application of DAP Weldwood, then sand the rest of the chair following the wood grain.
   - Make sure the surface is even with no rough spots.
   - Stains and marks can all be sanded out.
   - Use a soft brush to remove the fine particles to prevent them from mixing with the varnish.
5. Stain the furniture to your preference.
   1. Sand first with coarse grain sandpaper, then work progressively downward to finer sandpaper.
   2. Wipe the furniture with wood conditioner to help it absorb the stain better.
   3. Apply the stain to the furniture with a rag or sponge
      - Use even strokes to prevent blotching.
      - Leave the stain on for longer if you want a darker stain.
   4. After the stain dries, apply a finish like polyurethane to the furniture to protect it.
6. Paint a coat of varnish, let dry, then paint a second coat.

Faded plastic:

- Rub lemon juice on its surface, then expose it to sunlight.

Sticking scissors:

- Rub the scissors with distilled vinegar.

### Electronics

Filthy electronics:

- Remove any batteries, then run through the dishwasher and let dry.

Plasma TV with image burn:

- Keep the TV on with static on it for a whole day.

Electronic spray:

- Mix 3/4 cup distilled water, a teaspoon of Castile soap, a cup of vinegar, and 1/2 cup vodka in a spray bottle.

Video/computer screens:

- Clean computer screens with coffee filters.
- Rub toothpaste or vegetable oil into scratched mobile device screens.
- Rub an eraser on LCD screens.

Scratched/skipping CDs:

- Rub a banana or toothpaste in it.

Electronics doused in water:

- Immediately unplug and remove any batteries.
- Place in a container filled with silica bags, rice or Damp Rid for a day.

Crashed hard drive:

- Place in a freezer in a sealed bag for it to work long enough to recover data.

## When painting a room

Color-match everything else.

*Never* buy cheap paint because it peels quickly.

For a unique texture, paint with a straw broom.

Paint in a brick pattern to make it look like a wall.

Paint more cleanly.

- Use a drop cloth or old blanket under wherever you're painting.
- Roll a new paint roller across a loosely-secured loop of painter's tape to remove static.
- To apply paint tape in a straight line:
  1. Fish the tape reel through to the paint roller.
  2. Unravel the tape around the outside of the paint roller, sticky side out.
  3. Set the tape where you want to start, then push the roller forward along the surface.
- Avoid paint tray messes:
  1. Apply painter's tape to the can to make a "V" shape.
  2. Cover the paint tray with a plastic bag before dumping paint.
  3. When you're done, wrap the bag up, then trim the bottom with a pair of scissors to drain the extra paint out.
- Cut a hole in the paint can lid or stretch a large rubber band or painter's tape across the top of the can to make a drip guard.
- To avoid ceiling messes, impale and secure a cheap clear plastic umbrella upside down to the paint roller.

To spray paint:

1. Cover the surrounding area with masking tape.
2. Cut a hole in a large piece of cardboard.
3. Hold the cardboard over the area, and spray through the hole.

For more precision, swap a spray paint can nozzle with one from a WD-40 container.

Hold paintbrushes by cutting notches in a pool noodle.

## Improving fixtures

Many hardware stores sell power outlets with USB plugs on them.

Consider ceiling fans or overhead lights.

Lay down new tile or install new carpeting.

- Use pennies to space your tiles.

If you have a weak Wi-Fi signal, use aluminum foil to reflect it away from a wall that absorbs it.

Consider installing centralized heating and air conditioning, or improving the current HVAC with a centralized dehumidifier.

## Updating your fixtures

[Pinterest](http://pinterest.com) has *thousands* of great decorating ideas.

You can easily make unconventional decorations with items you already own, which is critical to add your [identity](people-identity.md) to your home.

When planning, don't neglect closed-off doorways or small storage areas.

Use a sewing machine to create decorations with bolts of fabric, towels, blankets, old clothes, and rags:

- Make curtains yourself:
  - Use blankets or towels.
  - Make weights by using glue and paperclips to slide pennies into curtain hems.
  - Improvise curtain ties with chip clips or clips.
- Make pillowcases:
  - Use towels or old t-shirts.
  - Take a plane ticket to a print store for them to print it blown-up on fabric to sew into a pillow.
- Make blankets from old clothes.
- Use rags and fabric remnants to repair old clothing and make new clothing.
- Mind how you secure things on walls:
  - If something weighs more than 1-2 lbs, secure it into a drywall anchor or stud.
  - If you don't have a stud finder, knock on the walls until you hear a hard sound or use a strong magnet to find the stud's nails.
- Hang things easily:
  - Apply toothpaste where you want the nails.
  - If you need precise holes, photocopy the back of the device and tape it to the wall as a template.
  - Attach a folded sticky note to the wall to collect dust when drilling.
  - To improvise spackle for a hole, mix 2 tablespoons Epsom salt and 2 tablespoons cornstarch, then make a paste by adding 5 tablespoons water.

Front entryway:

- Get or make a memorable welcome mat with something funny or enriching:
  - Some mats have a font style that says "Go Away" or "Come In", depending on which way it's turned.
- If you are concerned about privacy from a peephole, cover it with a decoration.
  - Hang a stuffed animal or seasonal wreath.
  - Make a barn door with popsicle sticks, glue, and duct tape.
- Make a fun keyholder.
  - Attach Legos to keychains, then secure a flat piece against the wall.
  - Secure a relatively strong magnet behind a light switch plate.
- If you're updating a wide stairwell, add a slide next to it.
- For [security reasons](safety-security.md), do *not* show your family name on the front of the house.

Living room, kitchen, and family room:

- Replace the fake drawer underneath the kitchen sink with a paper towel holder.
- Enlarge your favorite picture and frame it inside an old window frame.
- Attach a tablet computer to the wall with wall hooks.
- Convert a rake head into a wine glass holder.
- Use ladles to hold candles.
- Make an invisible bookshelf:
  1. Attach a bracket to a wall.
  2. Glue the inside back binding of a book below the bracket.
  3. Stack books on top of it.
- Paint the lock of a sliding door white to see if it's locked from a distance.
- Attach aquarium tubing to a large container of suap underneath the sink to the soap dispenser to save the trouble of having to refill it manually.

Bedrooms:

- Consider [an alternative bed](sleep.md), like a Japanese-style mat.
- Hang a hammock in a room to add another bed.

Bathrooms:

- Convert a rolling pin into a towel rack.
- Attach rope lighting under the bathroom cabinets to see in the dark.

## Outdoor improvements

Make a simple gate latch by cutting out a half-circle and then hammering it into the edge of the gate.

Consider building a patio or deck:

- A balcony or porch must be at least 6 feet (2 meters) deep to be useful.

Avoid the door-to-door solar panel installations and build one yourself by purchasing the parts and hiring an electrician.

### Creating outdoor furniture

Convert an old bunk bed into an outdoor lounge.

Place flat mats on pallets to create a sofa.

Make an outdoor bed:

1. Connect a wood tripod about 8 feet above the ground.
2. Attach it to a cloth tarp and an old trampoline.
3. Hang it somewhere secure.

Improvise a hammock with 2 long pieces of wood, two ropes, and plenty of reinforced duct tape throughout the center of it.

Make a fire pit:

1. Dig a hole 4 feet wide and 1 foot deep, with the sides slightly angled.
2. Fill the hole with three five-gallon buckets of lava rocks.
3. Set slightly tilted bricks on the sides and even with the top of the hole.
   - Alternate colors if you want for a more creative feel.
4. Shovel grass sod away from the rim of the pit.
5. Gather large, flat rocks that are at least 150 feet from a body of water (so they won't explode when the absorbed water turns to steam faster than it can escape the rock).
6. Place the rocks around the rim on the tops of the bricks.
7. Fill in the top area with dirt around and between the flat rocks.

Make an in-ground trampoline by digging a hole and securing poles around the edges of the hole.