When something in your rented home goes wrong, your first thought may be to call maintenance right away. But there are some quick fixes to common household problems you can perform yourself. Trying them out may solve your problem more quickly and keep you from having to involve maintenance.
Take a look at the list below and see if your household issue is something you can try tackling on your own — before you bring in the experts.
Plumbing Problems
- There’s no hot water. First, make sure the thermostat on your hot water tank is set appropriately. Then, check that the pilot light is lit. You can also look at the breaker panel or fuse box to see if they are causing the problem.
- The hot water is too hot. The thermostat on your hot water tank may be turned up too high. Turn it down and see if the water temperature comes down as well.
- My toilet or sink is clogged. For toilets, try using a plunger to clear the block. For sinks, remove as much hair as you can from the drain.
- My faucet or toilet is leaking. This problem is best handled by maintenance. Shut off the faucet under the sink or the toilet at its valve. Then let maintenance know.
Kitchen Problems
- My dishwasher won’t drain. Remove any food or debris from the bottom of the dishwasher and clean the dishwasher’s float. You can prevent this problem in the future by rinsing dishes before you put them into the dishwasher. You should also use jet dry once a month. Doing so helps keep hard water from building up and clogging your dishwasher.
- The temperature in my fridge isn’t right. There are a few things you can try. Make sure the temperature on your refrigerator’s thermostat is set correctly. Check that the refrigerator’s front and back grills aren’t dirty or blocked. Clean out the refrigerator’s drain hole.
- My garbage disposal won’t work. Locate and push your disposal’s reset button. Or, use an allen wrench to move the disposal back and forth to loosen the jam.
Other Common Problems
- I tested my smoke detector, and it doesn’t work. Try changing the smoke detector’s battery. The old one may be dead. It’s a good idea to test your smoke detector’s battery once a month.
- My smoke detector won’t stop quietly beeping. Your smoke detector may be telling you its battery is about to die. Try replacing the current battery with a fresh one.
- My heater seems broken. This problem can have many causes. Check your thermostat to make sure it’s set high enough. Make sure the furnace covers are on correctly or the pilot light is lit. Finally, look at whether a breaker has been tripped and reset if needed.
- Some or all of my plugs and switches have no power. This problem is often caused by your breaker panel or fuse box. Check yours for problems and reset what you need to.
I’ve tried everything…nothing works!
If the suggestions above don’t solve your problem, it’s time to call maintenance. You’ll find the number for our maintenance hotline and directions for submitting non-emergency maintenance requests here. The page also includes a summary of the information above in a handy chart you can bookmark for easy reference.
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