While the majority of home owners spend countless hours planning and executing their interior decor plans, many are unaware of how to fix common household issues. Creating feature walls, hanging mirrors and selecting soft furnishings will make your home feel warm and personal, but you’ll also need some valuable DIY skills to maintain your property.

So, whether you live in a small studio or a massive mansion, here’s some easy DIY solutions.

Slow Showers

If you find that your shower just isn’t as powerful as it used to be, it’s usually due to a very common and easy-to-fix problem: lime scale. Simply use a screwdriver to detach the shower head from the hose, then unscrew the spray plate, immerse and leave to soak in a de-scaling solution before reattaching. Et voila! You can enjoy a power shower once more.

Welded Sash Window

When you encounter a problem window, you may think it’s best left to the professionals. However, most stuck windows are caused by too much paint or weather changes and are usually easy to solve. For sash windows, all you need to do is gently push a wallpaper scraper into the cracks and apply some WD40. If the window doesn’t yield, purchase replacement sash window parts and follow an online tutorial to replace the internal pulley system.

Problem Plumbing

A leaky pipe is a common occurrence and is therefore an issue that most home owners have to contend with. These leaks are most likely to crop up in the kitchen or bathroom, but as they’re usually caused by a broken washer or nut, they’re incredibly easy to solve.

Before you begin, locate your shut off valve to turn off the water supply to the offending pipe. Next, place a bucket underneath said pipe – just in case. Then unscrew the nut (these are the wide connecting plastic bolts), remove the pipe and replace the broken part.

Curing Condensation

Condensation is a troublesome issue that occurs when the air’s moisture levels increase. This pesky problem often worsens during colder months, when warm internal air collides with cold exterior walls. Unfortunately, condensation tends to bring other problems, such as black mould and damp, both of which cause serious health implications.

To eliminate condensation, improve your home’s ventilation by opening windows, turning down the heating and installing plastic vents in problem areas.

Hide Holes

You spent ages finding the perfect spot to hang your art, but now that you’re redecorating, you’ve been left with a wall full of holes. Filling in holes from nails and screws is an incredibly quick and easy DIY fix. Simply purchase a readymade filler, apply with a putty knife, allow an adequate amount of drying time and smooth using sand paper.