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So many things can go wrong with your home at any given moment—and those problems won’t exactly wait for you to be prepared to deal with them before they hit. Plus, they often happen when it’s difficult or impossible to get a professional to come help you—like during storms, or in the middle of the night.
If you wake up to a burst pipe or a leaking roof and you can’t get a pro to come for a while, you don’t want to be powerless in your efforts to stave off further disaster. Having a basic set of tools is a great start, but you need to keep a few more items on hand if you truly want to be able to respond with a quick fix. Here’s the short list of everything you should have in your home in case you need to do some emergency repairs.
Essential items for plumbing emergencies
Water is incredibly destructive, and leaks that seem minor can do major damage to your house. Making sure you have basic tools like wrenches and knowing where the water shutoffs are in your house is essential, but here are a few more items that can hep you respond to emergencies:
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Snake auger. A plunger will take care of a clogged drain or toilet (and if you lack a plunger, don’t forget you can use a garbage bag on the toilet in a pinch), but if plunging doesn’t stop the water’s inexorable rise, you need to have a snake auger on hand. It’s a simple tool that anyone can operate, and it will break up most clogs pretty quickly, potentially averting disaster.
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Battery powered pumps. You may already have a sump pump installed to keep things dry in your basement and crawl space. If the power goes out, however, your sump won’t do you much good. And battery backup power typically doesn’t last long, so having a cordless transfer pump could be a lifesaver. Even something like a DrillPump (for $17) can stave off a flood long enough to get a professional in there.
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Pipe clamps. Water pipes always seem to burst at the worst possible time—and shutting off the water to the whole house isn’t ideal if you have to wait a few days for a plumber. Having a few pipe repair clamps on hand will get you through those days. These clamps are pretty simple: You just slip them onto the pipe and tighten the clamp until the leak is sealed by the rubber backing. This fix won’t last forever, but it will probably let you keep the water on for a few days while you sort out a more permanent repair.
Handy items for roofing emergencies
Roof leaks often stay hidden until a bad storm suddenly reveals them—and roof repairs have to wait until the weather clears. Here’s what you need if your roof starts leaking at the worst possible moment:
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Roof cement. Roof cement (like the Henry 208R) can be a lifesaver. If you notice that your roof has obvious damage, or it has leaked recently, applying a layer of roof cement to the affected area is a fast, easy repair that will keep the water out until you can do something more permanent.
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Tarp. A durable tarp is useful in a lot of emergencies, but essential for a surprise roof leak. Along with some plastic-cap nails, you’ll be able to quickly cover any damaged section of your roof and keep things as dry as possible until a roofer can make an assessment. Tarping a roof isn’t hard, though you should always use extreme caution when on your roof—especially if it’s raining.
Other items to deal with miscellaneous house emergencies
There are a bunch more things you might not need every day, but should have on hand in case of emergency:
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Spray sealant. Clear waterproof sealant spray can be used to seal off cracked windows, minor roof damage, and anything else that suddenly starts leaking.
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Zip ties. These plastic ties are incredibly useful because they’re easy to deploy quickly, can be linked together, and are strong enough for most temporary repairs when you need to hold things together. They can even be fashioned into a DIY drain cleanout tool in a pinch if you don’t have that snake auger.
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Duct tape and electrical tape. No, duct tape can’t fix everything, but this strong, sticky tape can temporarily fix tools, hold stuff together, stop minor leaks—and, yes, seal up broken ductwork. Electrical tape is essential if you’re going to attempt any DIY electrical repair, whether it’s braiding wires together, covering exposed wire when the insulation has worn off, or securing a loose connection.
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Plastic sheeting. Plastic sheeting is useful when a tarp is too heavy and cumbersome. It can be used in just about any application where you want to keep water or the weather out of a space, like covering a broken window in a storm or on the floors under a roof leak.
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Super glue. Super glue is useful stuff—it can bond just about anything, and it can even be used to seal small leaks in pipes in a pinch.
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Twine. Having some strong twine rope will definitely come in handy. It can be used to lash things down, to reinforce repairs and connections, to tie down a tarp, or in a million other ways.
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Bucket. The classic 5-gallon bucket has so many uses you probably already have one—but if you don’t, it’s time to pick one up. Catching leaks, hauling debris, water, or even tools, mixing—they can even be used as ersatz step stools in a pinch.
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Multitool. You have a whole set of hand and power tools, but when an emergency strikes, you don’t always have the time to gather everything you need. Having a high-quality multitool gives you a range of tools in your pocket, letting you get to fixing things immediately without delay.