Most Americans react to a situation rather than proactively work to reduce the likelihood of it happening in the first place.
The reason why is probably because of the perception that everything we need is almost always accessible to us in abundance so why fix it if it's not broken? Well, this article will attempt to explain why in relation to cost of repairs versus cost to maintain for the average homeowner.
Let's take as an example the cost of maintaining your garage door at one of the simplest levels.
The garage door seal is so often overlooked that most people do not bother to get it fixed even if it is visibly in need of replacement or repair.
Most people, probably figure that as long as the door goes up and down and the door itself is in tact then why waste the extra money to repair this seemingly insignificant aspect of the garage door..
..
its probably going to happen again anyway, right? Well, the fact that the garage door closes and that the mechanisms that make it go up and down are working just fine is great, however there are some other considerations to take into account that you might not have realized by fixing this one seemingly insignificant issue then a person could also save on so many othere expenditures as well...
some of them not even seemingly correlated.
That seal is not only good at making the door look decent but it also has practical applications such as reducing heat loss and repelling bug infestations.
Not to mention mold mildew, and other elemental damages in the garage door areas, such as rain water buildup.
How about padding for the garage door landing as well? Seemingly minor concerns but any one of these issues can really add up to some serious expenses in the long run.
Lets take a look at how some of these negative outcomes can come about as a result of not fixing that garage door seal.
1)Have you noticed your heating bill going up? Energy conservation is a major problem in the US and we could all use a smaller utility bill, correct? Heat loss due to poor insulation is a major contributing factor that can easily be remedied by suturing up those gaps in seals and the garage door area is one of the biggest culprits contributing to this heat loss.
If you fix this area you could save some serious money on your heating and energy bill.
2)Have you noticed some new uninvited guests in your home? Guests like ants, termites, roaches, spiders, etc? How do you think these creatures get into your home? They come in through the cracks.
They come in through small entry points...
they don't run into the house right behind you when you come home from work.
They make their way in through opened seals and cracks that could otherwise keep them out if they were properly maintained.
Bug infestation leads to pest control expenses, home fumigations, poisonous chemicals and just general aggravation.
3)If your seals at the base of your garage door are worn out, you might start noticing some mold or mildew buildup inside the garage area itself.
This is due to precipitation and moisture buildup in the enclosed area.
You might also start noticing some corrosive damage inside the house due to water pooling.
Rain water has extremely damaging effects on homes especially to wood foundations.
These are irreparable but instead need to be replaced.
Who would have thought that a little rain water could be so destructive, but on the flip side could have easily been curbed if you simply sealed it out? 4)The garage door itself gets to have a longer life if it is cushioned as it reaches the bottom.
Constant banging into cement adds tons of wear to the garage door and greatly reduces its life cycle.
Constant vibration can also effect the mechanisms that work the garage door and the tracks, etc.
Simply adding cushion can help save some serious money here.
So now you see how important it can be to simply take preventative steps that can greatly increase the savings that a typical homeowner can enjoy if they simply tend to the "little" things that creep up before they turn into big problems.
It can all be summed up by that old adage: "an ounce of prevention is worth a mountain of problems.
" Take care of the stuff that you care about and it will last you so much longer.
You'll feel better knowing that you saved some serious cash that you could use towards other luxuries.