You’ve just settled in for a nice, relaxing evening at home. As the hours pass, you notice that your house starts to feel a little chilly. You grab a blanket and make your way over to the thermostat, which is still set to a very comfortable 70 degrees, but the temperature in your home is anything but comfortable. And then you think: “Uh-oh, now what?!”

Well, before you automatically assume that the problem can only be resolved by a home heating professional, here are a few self-help steps you can follow first:

Your home just doesn’t seem warm enough.

• First, check your air filter. If it’s clogged with dust, pet hair, and other debris, it’s time to clean or replace it. In fact, furnace filters should be cleaned or replaced monthly during the heating season to ensure proper airflow and help your system work more efficiently.

• Could you have leaky ducts? A crack or gap in the duct work is like leaving a window open. It’s definitely worth a look before you pick up the phone and ask for help.

• If the problem is isolated to one room or area of your home, you might need an airflow analysis and balancing to take care of those mysterious cold spots. If so, at least you’ll be better prepared when calling for help so you can explain exactly what you’ve discovered.

The furnace isn’t heating at all.

• Check the power source. Have you blown a fuse or tripped a circuit breaker? If so, that’s an easy fix that will get you back to a nice warm house in no time. If, on the other hand, this is a frequent occurrence, then professional assistance is probably required to help create a permanent solution.

• Check the thermostat to make sure it’s on. Sounds blindingly obvious, right? Well, we can’t tell you how many times we’ve gone out on service calls to fix a heating “problem,” only to discover that the thermostat had accidentally been turned off.

• Could it be a problem with the ignition or pilot light? A pilot light can go out for any number of reasons, including a draft. If the furnace is located near a window or drafty door, make sure that they remain closed during the heating season. If a draft is not the culprit, your best bet is to contact a professional who can identify and repair the problem.

So, are you plenty warm in your home right now or trying to figure out why you’re not? If your troubleshooting efforts bear no fruit and there’s still either no heat or not enough, simply pick up the phone and give us a call: Boden Plumbing Heating & Air. Keeping you and your family warm and comfortable, all winter long, is one of the things we do best.

Cleaning the bathroom is nobody’s idea of a good time. But between the teeth brushing, shaving, bathing, and everything else that goes on, it’s a chore that begs to be heeded, and in timely fashion at that.

So isn’t it nice to know that with a few easy shortcuts, you can get your bathroom sparkling clean and guest-ready in no time flat? Best of all, you can do it without the use of harsh chemicals.

Here are 5 simple tricks for removing (and preventing) soap scum, disinfecting the toilet, and making your fixtures shine without breaking a sweat.

1. Showerhead – Easily remove mineral deposits from your showerhead by soaking it in vinegar overnight. Simply fill a plastic zip lock bag with white vinegar, wrap it around the showerhead, and secure it with a rubber band. In the morning, wipe the showerhead down with a clean cloth.

2. Mirror – Fill a clean spray bottle with a 50/50 solution of water and white vinegar and keep the bottle in your bathroom cabinet. After you brush your teeth in the morning, spray the mirror down and wipe with paper towel.

3. Toilet bowl – Before jumping in the shower, flush the toilet and sprinkle the bowl with baking soda or Borax. Let it sit while you shower, then give it a scrub with a toilet brush.

4. Chrome fixtures – Remove cloudy stains from chrome fixtures with lemon. Use half a squeezed lemon to polish away mineral and hard water deposits, them wipe clean with a soft cloth.

5. Soap scum – Prevent soap scum build-up by wiping your shower walls down with a squeegee after each use. Use a terry cloth towel to wipe down the bathtub as well. If soap scum does build up, spray it with a 50/50 mixture of vinegar and water, let sit for a few minutes, then rinse clean.

Of course, if all the cleaning in the world still doesn’t get your bathroom looking the way you’d like it to, maybe it’s time to spruce things up with a new sink, faucet, shower, tub, and so on.  For help with your bathroom make-over project, contact Boden plumbing.  We offer great advice, superior products, plenty of options, and skilled installation service.  In short, everything it takes to make your bathroom look and feel like new.