14 Things You Absolutely Must Know About Your House

There are about 85 million single-family homes in the United States, which is a lot of houses.

Buying and maintaining a house is a life-long learning process.

In order for that to happen, it’s crucial that you know some fundamental details about your house.

If you dont know these things, find them out ASAP.

Shutoffs

Your house runs on a few basic resourceswater, electricity, and possibly natural gas.

Know where it is and how to turn it off.

Localized valves.Your sinks, outdoor spigots, and toilets will also have shutoff valves.

Knowing where your toilet shutoff is located can be a real lifesaver when it starts to overflow.

Know how to access them in case you should probably turn them off.

And never touch an electrical panel thats sparking or smoking.

Speaking of your electrical panel, you should know more than just its location.

Dont just trust any labeling thats already in therethese are often not updated properly after renovations and repairs.

If the front door was blocked somehow, is there an alternate route out?

If youre trapped on an upper floor, how would youescape?

This might sound obvious, but many people dont realize that there are gas- and electric-powered dryers.

You (probably) didnt just buy a structure, you boughtproperty.

That probably includes some outdoor space around your homeyour lot.

you might soften your hard water pretty effectivelybut only if you know about it in the first place.

Do you know whatsunderyour house?

If you have a full basement, the answer is probably yes.

Crawl spacesespecially very shallow onescan be overlooked, however.

When it comes to whats under your house, ignorance is definitely not bliss.

double-check you know what filters you need and how often its recommended they be replaced.

Just because something seems to be running just fine doesnt mean the filter doesnt need replacing.

Do you know what kind of flooring youre walking on?

What kind of countertop youre cooking on?

Different materials have different maintenance and cleaning needs.

You own the houseall of it.

You should be able to access every bit of it.

And you should be able toinspect your house regularlyas a proactive practice to anticipate problems before they become emergencies.