Smart Tips

For more than 200 years, French-Canadians have celebrated Saint Jean Baptiste Day. There are some simple ways to meld traditional Saint Jean Baptiste Day customs with contemporary celebrations that can bring authenticity to your event.

Few things are more frustrating than when your bathroom’s most important fixture starts acting up. Try these diagnose-and-fix tips before calling a plumber.

Location, materials and configuration are all different in mobile homes. Here’s a guide to what you can repair—and where you might want a pro.

When hot water comes out of the cold side of the tap, it can be a real problem. Here's what is likely causing the problem and what you can do about it.

Prolong the life of your home’s water heater by making sure to occasionally remove sediment from the tank. This is a maintenance task you can easily complete yourself, saving you money on a plumber—both now and later!

Some plumbing repairs are quite simple and don't require any plumbing expertise. Here are a few fixes that the average homeowner can tackle without professional help.

Drain cleaners come in four different varieties — acids, alkalis, oxidizers and enzymatics — and their job is to get rid of blockages in drains, most commonly in kitchens and bathrooms.

Unless you live in a hard-water area, the cleaning and maintenance of your hot-water system is straightforward.

Before you take the costly step of digging under your house to replace the sewer, make sure you've done all you can to keep the existing pipe alive.

A running toilet is not only annoying to listen to, but it's also a waste of water. The most common causes of running toilets are easy to fix without calling a plumber or replacing the toilet.

Bathrooms suffer from the combined effects of humidity, which can cause mildew, and lime, which clings to shower doors. These issues can be fixed with common household materials and a little know-how

When a plunger won't remove a blockage in a drain, you need to brace yourself for an unglamorous job. Clearing drains may be dirty, but it could also save you lots of money in professional service fees.

Most faucet valves can be repaired by a householder armed with the right tools. Here are a few tips on fixing a faucet.

Radiators can be difficult to handle, especially when a small problem turns into a huge expense. Before calling a plumber, for an easy fix, check out these handy tips for resolving small radiator problems.

There was a time when professionals had to do all septic tank installations. Now, there are several DIY kits available to install septic tanks yourself.

If you’ve noticed low water pressure problems in your home, you don’t always have to call the plumber. There are several common causes of low water pressure that you can troubleshoot and even repair on your own.

Got a toilet with a weak flush? Here are four common slow-flush plumbing problems and their easy-to-fix DIY solutions.

Since your well provides you with your drinking water, it's important that you keep it maintained. Here are eight tips to keep in mind.

Having problems with your shower or tub? Here are three quick fixes to get it back up to par.

While tap water in Canadian municipalities and cities must undergo continuous testing and meet high standards, it's a good idea to know what's in your tap water. If you use well water, knowing its quality is especially important since you need to mak