Your water heater is leaking
Find where the leak is coming from, shut off the right valve, and learn which leaks are a cheap fix and which mean the tank is finished.
The homwarden guides
When something in the house stops working.
Fifteen guides to the problems homeowners search for most — written to be read while you’re standing in front of the thing that has gone wrong. Safe checks first, honest about when to stop and call someone, and always ending with the detail worth writing down before you forget it.
General guidance, not a substitute for a licensed professional, an inspection, or the manufacturer’s instructions.
Contents
Every guide, by system.
Plumbing
Slow drain, or something worse
One clogged sink is a Saturday job. Several fixtures backing up at once is a main line problem. Here is how to tell which one you have before it gets expensive.
The toilet won't stop running
A running toilet wastes water continuously and is usually one worn rubber part. Diagnose it in ten minutes with food colouring and fix it without a plumber.
Frozen pipes, before and after
The freeze prevention that actually matters, how to thaw a frozen pipe without causing a burst, and the one thing to find before winter: your main shutoff.
The water pressure dropped
That single question splits the diagnosis in two. One fixture is a five-minute clean. The whole house points at a valve, a regulator, or something you need to know about.
HVAC
The AC runs, but the house won't cool
A short, safe checklist that solves a surprising share of no-cooling calls — and the specific symptoms that mean stop and call an HVAC tech now.
No heat — the furnace won't start
Six things to check before a cold night turns into an emergency call, plus the furnace symptoms that mean leave the house and phone the gas utility.
How often to change the air filter
Why the number on the box is wrong for most homes, how to pick a MERV rating without choking your system, and how to never guess the filter size again.
Roof & exterior
Finding the source of a roof leak
Water travels before it drips. Learn to trace a leak back to its real entry point, why flashing is the usual suspect, and what to document for your insurer.
Water in the basement after rain
Most wet basements are a roof drainage problem, not a foundation problem. Work outward from the gutters before anyone quotes you for waterproofing.
Appliances
The dryer needs two cycles
A dryer that runs hot but dries slowly is nearly always a blocked vent line — which is also a genuine fire risk. How to check it and clear it yourself.
Water sitting in the dishwasher
Standing water after a cycle is usually a clogged filter, a blocked drain hose, or a garbage disposal knockout plug nobody removed. Check them in this order.
Electrical
An outlet stopped working
Dead outlets are usually a tripped GFCI somewhere else in the house, not a wiring fault. Here is the order to check — and the symptoms that mean call an electrician now.
Moisture & air
That musty smell
A musty odour is microbial growth, and growth means moisture. Find the water source rather than masking the smell — plus when testing is worth paying for.
Safety
The smoke alarm keeps chirping
Why it always starts at night, how to tell a chirp from an alarm, when an alarm has simply expired — and why a CO alarm sounding is never a battery problem.
Everything your home needs.
The fix is the easy part. Remembering it is the hard part.
homwarden keeps maintenance, appliances, warranties, receipts, and home records together — filed with the equipment they belong to.