c/abq-home-maintenance

24

claire_bell•2d ago

I just wasted $150 on a cheap gutter cleaning tool that broke after one use

I saw an ad for a telescoping pole with a brush head that promised to clean gutters from the ground. Bought it online for about $150. The first time I tried it on my single-story house, the plastic joint where the brush connects snapped right off. Now I'm back to using my ladder and a scoop. Has anyone found a gutter cleaning method that actually works without being a total ripoff?

24

danielmason•2d ago

I thought my old adobe wall just needed a new coat of paint.

Turns out the bubbling plaster was from a tiny roof leak I missed for years. Now I'm looking at a full stucco patch job before the monsoon hits. Anyone know a good local crew that won't charge an arm and a leg?

9

paige427•2d ago

My neighbor in the North Valley swears by a 20-year-old water heater, but I think he's playing with fire.

He argued that the sediment buildup acts as extra insulation, but after seeing a unit fail and flood a house in Corrales three years ago, I'm firmly in the 'replace it before it's a problem' camp, so what's your take on pushing old appliances past their expected life?

14

claire_bell•3d ago

Hot take: Everyone's wrong about sealing concrete driveways here

I was at a job in the Northeast Heights last fall and saw a brand new sealant job flake off in sheets after one winter. The contractor swore by his 'breathable' formula, but the freeze-thaw cycle here is brutal. What's a sealant that actually holds up for more than a season?

12

murphy.barbara•3d ago

Appreciation post: My uncle's advice on my swamp cooler saved me a ton of money

Last week, my swamp cooler on the roof started making a loud grinding noise. I was about to call a repair guy, but my uncle told me to check the float valve first. Sure enough, it was stuck, and the pads were bone dry. I cleaned the valve with some vinegar and it started working perfectly again. Has anyone else had a simple fix like that save them from a big bill?

17

nancyramirez•3d ago

Appreciation post: My uncle's advice on my swamp cooler saved me a ton of money

My uncle, who's lived here in Albuquerque for like 30 years, told me to pour a cup of white vinegar into my swamp cooler pan at the start of the season. He said it would stop that green slime from growing. I was skeptical, but I did it about two months ago. I just opened it up to check, and the pan is totally clean, no gunk at all. I was about to call a service guy, which would have been at least $150. Has anyone else tried this trick, or do you use something different?

13

henry_martinez•3d ago

I thought those cheap gutter guards from the hardware store were a total waste of money.

My neighbor in the North Valley put some on his house last fall and they got clogged with pine needles in two months. I ended up paying a local guy $300 to install the mesh kind with a solid top, and my gutters have been clear for over a year now. Has anyone else found a gutter guard that actually works with our Albuquerque mix of leaves and dust?

0

the_angela•8d ago

My brother told me to ignore the small crack in my foundation wall

He said it was just settling and to save my money. Two years later, that crack let in enough water during a monsoon to ruin the carpet in my basement. Anyone in the NE Heights dealt with foundation repair companies that won't try to sell you a whole new system?

15

susana66•8d ago

My old swamp cooler finally gave out during that 95 degree week in July.

Got a new unit from a shop on Central and installed it myself over the weekend, saved about $800 on labor. Anyone know a good place to buy replacement pads in bulk?

13

nelson.wesley•9d ago

Heads up about old Albuquerque stucco and hidden water damage

What I thought was a simple crack repair turned into a 3-week project after finding rotted sheathing behind the wall. Anyone else dealt with this surprise in a 70s-era house?

2

hernandez.emma•9d ago

Switched from a regular garden hose to a soaker hose for my xeriscaping this spring

I was watering my gravel and native plants on Juan Tabo for 20 minutes every other day, but the soaker hose cut that down to 10 minutes and the plants look way better. It puts the water right at the roots instead of wasting it on the surface. Anyone have tips for keeping the hose from getting clogged with our hard water?

13

ray189•12d ago

Vent: My brother-in-law from Rio Rancho told me I was wasting money on my swamp cooler pads

We were having a beer on his patio last weekend and he pointed at my unit, saying 'You're buying those thick blue pads every month, right? That's like throwing $40 out the window.' He showed me the aspen fiber pads he uses, which cost him $15 for the whole summer. He said the thicker pads actually block too much air and make the motor work harder. I switched last week and my cooler is pushing way more air now. Has anyone else found the cheaper pads work better?

21

martin.lee•12d ago

Just learned how much water my old fridge was wasting

Was looking at my PNM bill from last month and saw a tip about appliance age. My fridge is from 2005. Found out it can use over 1,000 kWh a year, way more than a new one. Anyone in ABQ have a good local place to check for rebates on an upgrade?

16

sarah_bennett93•13d ago

My neighbor told me to skip the gravel base under my paver patio and it cost me a full weekend of rework.

He insisted the clay soil in the North Valley was solid enough, but after one heavy rain last month, half the pavers sank and tilted, so I had to pull them all up and add the gravel layer anyway.

19

samwalker•14d ago

My old house near UNM had a stuck window that wouldn't budge for months.

I rubbed a bar of plain soap along the wooden track and it slid open like new. Has anyone else found a simple fix like this for a stubborn window or door?

22

the_sam•15d ago

Finally got my swamp cooler working after a $200 mistake

I bought a new pump from the big box store on Coors for my roof unit, but it was the wrong voltage and fried the motor. Had to call a guy from the Heights to fix it, cost me double. Anyone know a good place in town to get the right parts without getting ripped off?

8

grant.nina•15d ago

Just realized how much water my old toilet was wasting after seeing my bill

I got my water bill from the city last week and it was almost $50 higher than normal. I thought maybe I had a leak somewhere, so I started checking everything. I found this online calculator from the water authority (you know, the one on their website) and put in my toilet's age. Turns out my toilet from the 90s uses about 3.5 gallons per flush. The newer ones use less than 1.3. I did the math, and with my family of four, we're flushing over 100 gallons a day just down the toilet. I had no idea it was that much. I always thought it was the showers or the lawn. Now I'm looking at replacement costs and it's a whole thing. Has anyone in the area swapped out an old toilet recently and have a good plumber they'd recommend?

5

the_anna•19d ago

Showerthought: I tried that 'no dig' landscaping method on my west side yard

Everyone online said it would save my back and kill the weeds. I laid down cardboard and three inches of mulch over my gravel patch last spring. By August, the bindweed had pushed right through it and the cardboard was a soggy mess. It just held moisture against the ground and made a perfect spot for more weeds to start. I spent more time pulling weeds than I would have just tilling the area once. Has anyone here had a different result with that method in our dirt?

7

parkera61•19d ago

My neighbor's 'quick fix' for his roof leak just cost him $4,000

Three years ago, he tried sealing a leak near his chimney with some tar from a tube. Last month, the whole section of roof decking around it was rotten and had to be replaced. Has anyone else in the Heights seen this kind of damage from a small, ignored leak?

10

henry_martinez•20d ago

Bought a $40 gutter guard kit and it saved my foundation

I put it off for years, but after the last big rain I saw water pooling right by the house. The kit was cheap and took an afternoon to install on the front gutter. It stopped the main clog from leaves off my cottonwood. Now the downspout actually sends water away from the slab. Has anyone else had good luck with a specific brand for our sandy soil?

11

lee.stella•23d ago

Tbh, I finally tried using a cheap paint additive to stop my stucco from cracking and it actually worked

I've got a 1950s house near UNM, and every year I'd get these hairline cracks in the exterior stucco after winter. Last fall, I spent maybe $15 on a bottle of acrylic bonding agent from the hardware store and mixed it into my patching mortar like the label said. Did a small test patch first. It's been through a whole freeze-thaw cycle now, and that spot is still solid while the old patches nearby are cracking again. Has anyone else used something like this for older ABQ homes? Wondering if it holds up long-term or if I just got lucky.

12

elizabethn56•23d ago

Warning: don't ignore a slow kitchen drain in an older ABQ house

Our kitchen sink started draining slow a couple weeks ago. Figured it was just grease and tried a basic cleaner. It got way worse, so I finally took the P-trap apart yesterday. Found a solid clog of sand and what looked like tiny roots, probably from our old clay pipes. What I thought was a 20-minute job turned into a 4-hour mess of snaking and flushing. Anyone else in the UNM area have this happen with the soil here?

8

brooke_hernandez•23d ago

Question about patching old adobe walls in the South Valley

I finally got around to fixing some cracks in my old adobe wall last fall, using a modern pre-mixed stucco patch from the hardware store. I figured new stuff had to be better, right? Well, after the first real rain this spring, the new patches looked fine but the original adobe right next to them started to crumble a bit. I talked to an older guy at Garcia's hardware, and he said the new material was too hard and didn't let the wall breathe like the old mud and straw mix. It basically pushed the moisture into the softer, original stuff and caused damage. I had to chip out my 'repair' and learn to make a proper mud plaster. Has anyone else run into this with older homes around here? What mix do you use?

9

dianaw89•23d ago

Question about the new city water pressure in the Northeast Heights

My pressure regulator failed last month because the incoming pressure from the main spiked to over 100 psi, which my plumber said is happening a lot now. Has anyone else had to replace theirs recently?

3

kim373•24d ago

Finally got my swamp cooler dialed in after comparing two pad types

Okay so this is a small win but it feels huge right now. My swamp cooler was just blowing warm air last week, and I was about to call someone. I decided to try the blue aspen pads from the big box store first, the ones that come in a big sheet. They were okay for maybe two days, then the airflow dropped again. On a whim, I grabbed the more expensive rigid media pads from a local place on Menaul. The difference is NIGHT and DAY. The rigid pads are way thicker and feel almost like a stiff sponge. My cooler is pushing out air that actually feels cool now, and the motor doesn't sound like it's straining. I should have done this weeks ago. Has anyone else made the switch and noticed their unit runs quieter too?