Doors

How to Repair a Door Hinge

You get up startled one day because you realized that you woke up late and that you have to get to work as soon as possible. You had your coffee, brushed your teeth, and took your bath all in a rush when all of a sudden; you hurriedly opened your closet doors. And you didn’t just open them, but you took out your entire closet door coz of a loose hinge! Now, how do we avoid these kinds of situations?


How do we properly fix our door hinge?
Door hinges may run loose over time and continuous use. If you thought that you can just tighten the screw, then what if the screw will not tighten? But instead the hole is stripped and it’s now too large, requiring you plug and drill it again. A drill or power screwdriver with screwdriver bits can be used to remove and tighten screws. You can also use a reliable flat head or Phillips head screwdriver depending on the type of screws. Now, if you have gathered everything around you, let me give you some steps on how to properly repair your door hinge.

• Remove door from hinges
Using a screwdriver or drill with screwdriver bits, remove the door from its hinges. Then remove the hinge that is loose from the cabinet frame. The screws can be reused and they can all be matched as well, so don’t discard them.

• Use glue as an adhesive
With a hacksaw, cut a piece of dowel to the length of the screw. Add wood glue to the tip and sides of the dowel and tap it into the hole with a hammer. Wipe off any excess glue with a rag, and trim the plug flush with a wood chisel.

• Remount the cabinet door
Allow the glue to dry. Use the hinge leaf as a guide and drill new pilot holes for the screws. Replace hinges with old screws to cabinet frame and remount your cabinet door.

• Check
Close the cabinet door and observe if it is properly aligned with the cabinet. If it looks uneven, slightly loosen the screws, shift the door, and retighten the screws.

Now that your cabinet or closet is already fixed, opening your closet door even in a rush won’t be a big problem for you anymore. But still, even if it is already fixed, just properly open your closet door next time so it would take a long time for it to loosen once again. But before it does and you know that it would need another repair, do it as soon as possible so you won’t have any problems in the near future.

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Tips

Repairing a Water-damaged Ceiling

Rainy season comes again. You may be having problems of keeping up with the prices of some of your favorite fruits and vegetables, cleaning your yard with all the leaves and trunks of trees that had fallen due to the heavy rains and gusty winds, looking out for your kids and keeping them inside your home since it’s not that safe to go outside. You are so busy doing a lot of stuff until you felt a cold drop of water on your forehead. Looking up, you noticed a crack in your ceiling.


A water-damaged ceiling may also occur if you have a bathroom on your 2nd floor and there had been a leaky faucet in it. Now, what will you do when these situations happen? How will you handle these things in your own way? Like giving first-aid to a wounded person, it’s also very important for us to know how to give the proper “first-aid” to our home, particularly the ceiling. Here are some steps on how you will do it.

• Place dropcloths on the ground
You may also use disposable plastic for this. Remove all damaged ceiling texture. With a putty knife, scrape away loose areas. Clear about three areas around the cracked surface. Lightly spray the ceiling with water. Wait a few minutes for the damaged texture to absorb water and soften for this will make the removal much easier. Scrape away loose areas and allow it to dry.

• Fill in the cracks
Use a drywall compound or putty to fill in small cracks. Lightly skim the surface with a putty knife to fill in holes and cracks. Avoid causing the new plaster to crack by applying it in thin layers about ¼ inch thick. Allow each layer to dry and lightly sand with fine or medium grit sand paper. Examine the area so you can determine if additional layers are needed.

• Apply Texture
Apply texture over the repaired cracked surface. For popcorn ceilings, use a spray-on texture. Lightly spray it onto the surface. Before applying it thoroughly, practice the technique first. For stucco ceilings, you may apply joint compound, using a putty knife. Apply the texture in random strokes to copy the existing texture. If it doesn’t match, remove the plaster immediately and try the technique again. Allow it to dry for 24 hours.

• Paint
Paint the ceiling with a brush or a mini roller. Use existing latex paint that matches the ceiling. If existing paint is not available, repaint the entire ceiling.
Repairing a water-damaged ceiling is quite tedious. It may also take a very long time to finish. That’s why before the rainy season comes, you must check your ceiling for holes and cracks so you can do the repair immediately. Be prepared for everything today so it won’t be that much of a problem in the future.

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Art

How to Repair Canvas

For an artist, there is nothing much more important than his masterpieces, and works of art, from his paintings to his sculptures, and even to the tools that he uses. He takes proper care to make his works live on from generation to generation. That’s why there are a lot of century old paintings today that catches up everybody’s attention. And for these to still be appreciated for the years to come, art restoration must be done.


Art restoration is an extensive field of work. To become a professional, you must go to school for many years. That’s why if you have a valuable painting at home with an extensive damage; seek the help of a professional first. But what if the damage is just minimal? How can you preserve your most valuable painting? How will you take part on restoring these admirable pieces of art? Here are some ways on how to do it.

• Cover the hole
From a fresh roll of canvas, cut a small patch just enough to cover the hole in the painting.

• Apply adhesives
Apply a layer of adhesive on one side of the patch.

• Press the sticky side
On the back of the painting, press the sticky side of the patch to the hole in the canvas.

• Position it
Lay the painting flat on a table or on the floor. Position the hole in the painting so the patch is supported by a raised, flat surface. Use a hardcover book to do so.

• Adjust
Adjust the hole in the painting as needed so that the seams press together and the tear is no longer and obvious damage.

• Press the tear
Lay another book on top of the tear in the painting. This will serve as a weight to press the tear on the patch as the adhesive dries up.

• Trim extra threads
Trim any extra threads protruding from the tear once the adhesive is dry.

• Paint
Apply a matching coat of paint to the area of the patch that is visible from the front, if the hole is large and the seams do not come together.

• Cover with Varnish
If necessary, cover the newly painted area with varnish to match the sheen of the original work. Wait until the paint is dry before applying the varnish.

If the damage in your highly-valued painting is not that big then you may do these steps. Again, for those paintings with an extensive damage it is best to call the help of a professional. But for those who were able to restore their paintings by themselves even if it’s just a small damage, surely, there would still be that feeling of self-fulfillment within. It’s as if you had experienced being an artist, who treasures his work, to further be admired by everyone who looks at it.

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How to repair...

How to Repair Ceiling Cracks

Yes, your new home may look great. It may seem perfect when it comes to ambience, tranquility, coziness, and comfort. All of your furniture, old and new, are properly placed in their respective places. There seem to be no problem in your picture-perfect home. Then all of a sudden you noticed something when you looked up – there is a crack on your ceiling!


When it comes to unsightly crevices and holes, most people consider having them fixed by a professional. If there are a lot of cracks, then you may do so but if it’s not that many, you can do the fixing yourself. Now, are you wondering how you will do it? Are you that eager to restore your beautifully-designed ceiling? For repairing your ceiling, you will need these materials: stepladder, vinyl spackle or joint compound, putty knife, safety glasses, and fine grit sandpaper. Here are the steps on how you will do it.

• Assess the Situation
You must analyze and determine how much vinyl or joint compound you’ll need to fix the ceiling. Visit the closest DIY store to buy what you need. Buy vinyl immediately, not just plain plaster. Vinyl can expand with temperatures and stresses and your ceiling repair will last longer.

• Put on safety gear
The number 1 rule for home maintenance is to always put on your safety gear. And for repairing your ceiling, you must put on your safety goggles. In cases like this, debris might fall down and this will increase the possibility of getting your eyes damaged if you didn’t put on your safety goggles.

• Apply the adhesives
Using a putty knife, apply the spackle or joint compound to the crack. Like using a paintbrush, apply the adhesive in a “back-and-forth” motion with the putty knife. Press the spackle into the putty knife from several directions.

• Feather it!
Blend it with the rest of the ceiling by feathering your patch on all sides.

• Allow it to dry
Allow the patched ceiling to dry thoroughly. Joint compound may take a little longer, while vinyl spackle dries very fast.

• Sand lightly
By using the sandpaper, sand your ceiling lightly until the edges of your ceiling patch are flush with the rest of the ceiling. If you’re already satisfied with what your ceiling looks like, you may paint it already. But if not, you may repeat steps 1-5 until you get your desired outcome.
Now that you already know these steps on how you will repair ceiling cracks, next time you won’t have any problem if you have seen one again in your ceiling. By this, you will feel that sense of fulfillment coz you have done it all by yourself and that you have made your ceiling presentable as it was before.

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