There are a lot of things that a homeowner can fix on their own. There are a few that should only be done by licensed repair people who understand the dangers. Here are three home repairs that should be done by the professionals who have the skills and tools to work with these risky situations.

Garage Door Repair

Being able to open your garage door easily is the result of a delicate balance of springs, cables and pulleys working together to counterbalance a heavy garage door. Should any of these components fail, neither you nor your electric garage door opener will open that door.

What makes this a dangerous repair is that those springs are under a lot of tension. If a spring or cable breaks, the spring can fly across the garage and punch a hole in a wall. Safety cables are installed to prevent that, but even they can break. You have to know how to work with these high-tension springs and a heavy garage door safely to do any repairs. If your garage door won't open, contact a garage door spring repair company such as America's Garage Doors LLC to troubleshoot and fix the problem.

Water Heater Thermostat Repair

Your water heater is like a big pressure cooker. Water is heated in a steel tank. Steam is produced which increases the pressure in the tank. On the top of your water heater is a pressure release valve. Should your water heater thermostat malfunction and the temperature build up to a dangerous level, this valve will open and let the pressure escape.

If you take a shower some morning and notice that the water is unusually hot, carefully touch the sides of the water heater. If it's too hot to touch, you have a bad thermostat. An even worse case is coming home from work to hear the hissing sound of the triggered pressure release valve. In either case, find the right breaker in the circuit box for the water heater and turn it off. That cuts the power off to the water heater and it will begin to cool down.

Call a plumbing services company to look at the water heater. You could buy a new thermostat from a home improvement or plumbing supply store, but knowing how to adjust it properly takes training. A licensed plumber knows how to install and adjust the thermostat so that you have hot water at a safe temperature. They will make sure your pressure relief valve is working correctly to prevent a burst water tank from high pressure.

Electrical Circuit Box

You should have a licensed electrician do any work on your circuit box because of the risk of electrocution. The circuit box in a new home has all of the right breakers to manage the amount of electricity coming into your home. Over the years, breakers can get replaced and switch around by homeowners, causing an overloading situation. If someone uses the toaster in the kitchen and someone on the other side of the wall in a bathroom turns on a hair dryer and the power goes off, you have a circuit overload.

An electrician needs to look at the circuit box to make sure the right breakers are in place. In the kitchen/hair dryer scenario, a breaker that is too small for the load could be the problem. Sparks and fire can happen in an overloaded circuit box. If this happens when you're not home, the results could be devastating.

High-amperage appliances, such as a stove or clothes dryer, usually have a large three-prong plug that goes into a special electrical outlet. If you replace any of these, have an electrician check the circuit box to make sure your breakers are able to support the new appliances.

There are many projects to keep you busy as a homeowner. Know which ones are beyond your skill level and call the licensed professionals who can do the work safely and leave your home safe for you and your family.

Share