MAINTENANCE: THE BLURRED SIDE OF OWNING YOUR DREAM HOME

The question most parents want to ask their adult children either directly or implicitly is when are you moving out? For the more evasive ones, the ladies are asked: when are you getting married? Understandably, the dream of anyone after school and the whole nine yards of what life and society expects from us is that dream home we’ve been dying to have, and when that miraculously happens, the question which doesn’t trickle in is: what’s next?

Cultivating the habit of not just literally admiring our new homes in its new state (which is bound to wear off if we don’t get our head out of the clouds long enough) and figuring out how best we can keep it that way long enough to even contemplate renovation is the sure way to go. Time is horrendously a very unforgiving element, which puts to test everything including how long our dream home stands and even our patience.

Maintenance culture in our part of the world is egregiously downplayed in the most disheartening manner. For some just waking up, sweeping, clearing cobwebs and leaving everything sparkly clean is their definition of maintenance. They can’t be faulted; it appears to be a generational heirloom when it comes to ‘keeping house’. On every level that activity is well placed under chores.

Africa's Position in Waste Management

Waiting for the window to break, roof or tap to start leaking or the home to fall apart doesn’t reflect well on the occupants in the home. And that is where maintenance comes in with the expertise. Let’s start with understanding what maintenance is. Generally, it is the process of preserving a condition or situation, and for the purpose of conversation our homes.

Adopting the attitude of home maintenance practices helps you in the detection of problems quite early and fixed before it degenerates into something worse than expected. The only way this can be achieved is by conducting routine checks to familiarize yourself with your home, the aim is to know when something doesn’t look right, fit right or sound right.

For starters you can start with checking of electrical, plumbing, drainage systems and things like the door, roof window etc. in their normal condition before it starts falling apart. The perks in home maintenance are numerous. It definitely allows you to save money. Waiting for something to get damaged can definitely cost you a pretty penny, but proper maintenance and detection of problems can cost you even less especially when you have an amateur handyman in the family.

Similarly, regular maintenance of the home will enhance the life span of everything you keep an eagle eye on, right from the ceiling to the flooring. It helps you preserve your home, and who knows, if you eventually decided to move house, proper maintenance of your home could cause an upsurge in the value of your home and an eventual profitable sale if you consider it.

Most importantly, the reason why consistent maintenance is essential is to ensure the safety of everyone living in the house. You can avoid any form of accidents in the home from burns, shocks, cuts and falls with proper care and attention of the home.

Without any reservations, the maintenance of your home shouldn’t be restricted to just weeding, repainting and general cleaning of your home; adopting and adapting to maintenance culture could spare you lots of money going down the gurgler and time as well. Choose right, choose longevity of your home through maintenace!

By Angela Ashong  - PE  Media

Save