Your water heater is trying to tell you something
Tank water heaters fail on a schedule, and the failure is a flood. The four sounds and signs that mean it is time, and the two maintenance jobs that add years.
August 30, 2026 · 3 min readMaintenanceHumidity, mold and the musty basement
Mold does not need a leak. It needs air over 60 percent humidity and a cool surface, and every basement in summer has both. What the number should be, how to get it there and when a musty smell is a bigger problem.
August 13, 2026 · 3 min readMaintenanceDecks and fences: a summer of care that adds ten years
Wood outdoors lasts as long as it is kept dry and sound. The yearly inspection that catches the failures that drop decks, the cleaning and sealing, and when it is time to rebuild.
July 24, 2026 · 3 min readMaintenanceIrrigation: watering the lawn without watering the house
A sprinkler system left on its spring settings is the most common cause of a rotten sill and a wet basement that nobody can explain. The heads, the schedule, the backflow preventer and the fixes.
July 14, 2026 · 3 min readMaintenanceGetting the air conditioner through a heat wave
An air conditioner is designed to hold the house about twenty degrees below the outside temperature, and on a 105-degree day it is running flat out. What to do to help it, what not to do, and the signs it is about to quit.
July 3, 2026 · 3 min readMaintenanceSmall leaks, big bills: finding water where it should not be
The leak that ruins a house is rarely a burst pipe. It is a drip nobody noticed for a year. Eight places to look, once a season, and what each one is telling you.
May 22, 2026 · 3 min readMaintenanceWhat a real air conditioning tune-up includes
A spring tune-up is worth it if it is a tune-up. Here is what a Pro should do in the hour, what you can do yourself, and how to tell a maintenance visit from a sales call.
April 7, 2026 · 2 min readMaintenanceDrainage and grading: the yard's job is to move water away
Wet basements, cracked foundations and soggy lawns usually trace back to the same thing: the ground slopes the wrong way. What to look for after a spring rain, and the fixes from cheapest to most.
March 14, 2026 · 3 min readMaintenanceGutters: the cheapest maintenance that saves the most
A clogged gutter is behind more foundation cracks, rotten fascia and wet basements than any other single thing. Twice a year, and here is how.
February 24, 2026 · 2 min readBy trade.
Every trade's page carries the articles that touch it, beside its glossary, guides and the Pros' own posts.
- Roofing · 11 articles
- Cleaning & Restoration · 10 articles
- Siding & Windows · 8 articles
- Landscaping · 10 articles
- HVAC · 14 articles
- Plumbing · 11 articles
- Electrical · 8 articles
- Around the home · 2 articles
- Remodeling · 4 articles
- Painting · 5 articles
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