Super Handyman: Get water ready for the summer

Spring has sprung, and let’s hope that’s all! But if you find you also have sprung a few leaks in garden hoses and sprinklers, pay attention. We’re fixin’ to tell you how to fix them.

Hoses are easy and inexpensive to fix. If the leak is located at one of the two ends, you can just cut off the damaged end and install a replacement. Make sure you get the correct (male or female) repair kit and the correct size to fit your hose.

If the leak or damaged area is anywhere else along the hose, use a utility knife to cut out the damaged area. Now buy and install an inline repair kit. This usually includes a replacement sleeve to bind the two pieces of hose together and clamps of some sort for either side. You could think about skipping this and installing two ends on these pieces of hose so you can create two smaller hoses. This might be more useful in your landscape.

Always install new washers on all outdoor faucets, hoses, sprinklers and everything else that uses a washer. It’s worth every cent it will cost! If you want to upgrade, choose washers that have built-in screens.

Sprinklers have moving parts and need to be cleaned and lubricated every year. You can clean any debris from the water spouts and holes with a straightened-out paper clip. WD-40 is a pretty good lubricant for the moving parts.

Keep automatic sprinklers in good working order by testing them once a month. Look for a damaged head that needs to be adjusted or replaced. Install a rain sensor if you don’t already have one.

Soaker hoses are a great way to water your landscape, and they waste very little, if any, water. Another big advantage is they have to be beaten up pretty badly before you could consider them damaged. Plus, they are made from recycled materials.

Other low-pressure “mini” sprinkler systems can be installed in smaller gardens. These do a good job of delivering water with little or no waste. Just keep them in good repair.

Watch for a wood palletWooden pallets are trash to most businesses; they#146;re something they have to find a way to recycle or pay someone to haul off. If you ask nicely, they might give one to you. There are lots of useful things you can do with a wooden pallet. One of our favorites is to use it to store and organize garden tools. Stand it up so the open side is on the top. Lean it against a shed or garage wall, or against the side of your fence, and secure it if you can. The open top is a perfect spot for storing shovels, rakes, hoes and other long-handled garden tools. Hooks installed on the side can hold smaller tools. Handy hangers for pegboardPegboard storage panels are super for the shop or garage. They make it easy to hang tools and supplies where you can access them easily. You can hang even more items on pegboard hooks by slipping a rubber band around an item to create a hanger. Fold the rubber band in half, lengthwise, and slip it around the item you want to hang. Slip one end of the rubber band into the other end, pull up the inside loop and open it to create your hanger to slip over a hook. You can hang a wide variety of things on a wall this way. See how creative you can get.Super hintsŸ We#146;re not big on garage sales, so we donate stuff. If you are a pack rat, donations are much easier to do than garage sales. You can clean up stuff and get rid of it before you have a chance to change your mind. And you get a tax deduction if you donate the right stuff to the right places.Ÿ I have a secret for remembering my combination lock#146;s numbers: I write them down on a nearby fence post or somewhere else close so I can look them up when I need to. To avoid the obvious security risk involved with that, I add the same number (3, for instance) to each of the numbers before writing it down. Then all I have to remember is the math, and I can get into my own backyard!Ÿ Lemon oil, normally used to polish furniture, also can be used to clean glass shower walls, leather furniture, silver and brass items, countertops #8212; including granite #8212; and a lot more. See how many things you can use it for.Q. We have a problem. Some tiles are starting to fall off around the top of our built-in hot tub. How can we secure them, especially in this wet environment?A. Drain the tub enough to dry out the tile area. Clean it off thoroughly, and remove all traces of the old adhesive. Now use a tile adhesive made for exterior/pool use to stick the tiles back down. Follow with a matching exterior grout. Q. I have a real problem on my wood siding. The north side of the house, wood painted white, has yellow streaks down the side. I have no idea what is causing it, and it is very hard to wash off. Please, can you help?A. We suggest using half bleach, half water to clean off the marks. If that fails, try TSP (trisodium phosphate). Once you get it clean, apply a wood sealer to prevent moisture and other stains from soaking into the wood. A little extra ventilation or sun also might help keep the stains from coming back.Q. How do you restore a marble finish? I have an old sideboard with a marble top, and the rest of the piece looks pretty good, but the marble, not so much. What can I use to bring back the shine?A. You can buy marble polish at a hardware store or home center. But you also can use automobile paste wax to clean and shine up older marble. Use a buffing wheel on your drill or a rotary tool to really bring up the shine. A powdered abrasive also could be used to help remove any scratches and bring up the shine even more. Check with a marble dealer to see what special marble-polishing kits it might have.Reader tipsŸ The wife and I have a basement with a suspended ceiling. We had to replace some tiles because of a leaky pipe and the damage it caused. To hold the tile so we could position it easily, my wife used the vacuum cleaner. She flipped the switch and the tile stuck to the end of the hose so we could lift it into place and set it down. Then we flipped the switch off. That was so easy. We did all six in just a matter of minutes!Ÿ Now that our house is sealed up really tight, we are starting to see some lower utility bills. But one of the weird side effects is that when you close and open doors around the house, others rattle or open and close, too. I guess the pressure is higher. The rattling doors really bothered my wife, so I had to find a way to make this stop. I put small pieces of leftover foam weatherstripping on these door frames. Now when the doors open and close, they fit tighter, so they don#146;t rattle. It was so easy to fix, and I know we#146;re not the only ones plagued by this annoying problem. Maybe my solution will work for others.Ÿ I had to cut through some heavy-duty nylon cord, and it was unraveling faster than I could cut it. By the time I was finished, it was a huge, hairy mess. Before cutting the other side of the cord, I wrapped it with electrical tape. Then I made the cut through the tape. The tape held the cord together, and I decided to leave it in place to keep it from unraveling. I plan to melt the ends together eventually, but the tape is doing a great job for now.Ÿ My wife really gets into #147;spring cleaning#148; mode. This usually means I have to do the same. She makes it easy for me. She keeps cleaning supplies in small baskets so all the cleaner containers are together: window cleaners, floor cleaners, etc. When she gives me an assignment, it comes with a basket, loaded with everything I need to do my job. It really is faster and easier that way. I#146;ve even started doing something similar in my shop by keeping all the woodworking supplies together, paint stuff, garden stuff, etc. I guess she really is smarter than I am!Ÿ I try to save money by buying products in bulk, but sometimes they go to waste. I have found this to be the case with cooking oil. I have discovered, though, that you can use old oil in the workshop for lots of things. It can be used to clean and prevent rust on yard tools like shovels and hoes. It even helps keep the wooden tool handles from drying out. Using it is better than throwing it away.Shop talkŸ Baking soda isn#146;t just for baking anymore. As a matter of fact, it can be used for all sorts of things in the shop and home, and even in the garden. Baking soda doesn#146;t cost very much, and just about everybody has a box or two in the house, so why not use it to its full potential? We have put together a list of some of our favorite uses on our website.Ÿ The SmartPower Propane Trimmer uses a small, inexpensive propane tank to power its four-cycle trimmer. It has more power and lasts longer than gas, electric and battery-operated trimmers, and at a fraction of the cost. Your garden won#146;t be the only thing that#146;s green! Check it out at www.fiskars.com. Clean, economical and super smart!Ÿ JAWS will take a bite out of your cleaning-supply costs. This new line of assorted cleaners gives you concentrated, eco-conscious cleaners that you mix in the supplied sprayer to clean glass, bathrooms, kitchens and just about everywhere else. Once you buy the spray bottle, all you have to do is buy the refills when you run low. It#146;s the best way to live a greener, and cleaner, life. Check it out at www.jawscleans.com and find a dealer in your neighborhood.Ÿ Write to Al and Kelly Carrell in care of the Daily Herald, P.O. Box 280, Arlington Heights, IL 60006, or visit the Carrells#146; website at thesuperhandyman.com.$PHOTOCREDIT_ON$© 2011, Cowles Syndicate Inc.$PHOTOCREDIT_OFF$