Maintenance FAQ

Plunge the toilet to release clog. This may take a few tries to work. If toilet is overflowing, shut off the water using the valve at the base of the toilet, mop up any water and try to plunge the toilet.

Make sure the fan mode on the thermostat is set to “AUTO”. Otherwise your furnace fan will constantly blow air and will be drawing hot air into your home when the A/C unit is not running. Also, If temperatures are extreme, your A/C unit may not be able to keep up with what you have it set to. An A/C can only cool about 20°F lower than what the outside air is. (i.e. 95°F outside, your house will only get down to about 75° inside)

In most cases, Yes. You are responsible to maintain your lightbulbs that can be reached from a step ladder and that can be purchased from any hardware store. If you come across a light that you cannot reach with a step ladder, such as ones on vaulted ceilings or high stairways, you may request our assistance.

Make sure your gas has not been shut off. Check all outside doors for a tag from your gas company. Also, think of the last time you paid your bill. Check your gas meter as well, check for a tag on the meter and to see if the gas valve is turned off on the meter, please see this picture for reference. If your gas has been shut off, we can not help in this matter. You will need to call your gas provider to work this out. Go to our Utility Info page. If your gas has not been shut off, read below for more troubleshooting.

If you have followed the steps above, then make sure the thermostat has power, replace batteries if necessary. Also check to make sure the thermostat mode is set to “HEAT” and set fan to “AUTO”. If you have access to it, check and change the furnace filter. If you live in a single family home, you are responsible for changing (and paying for) your own furnace filter. Generally these need changed every 30 days. If you have neglected to change the filter and your furnace fails due to dirt and dust clogging it, you may be billed for the repair of your furnace. Changing the filter helps out all of us… Your furnace is more efficient (saves you money), you breath cleaner air, and it saves you from having a broken down furnace.

Make sure your curtain is on the INSIDE of your tub/shower. If your curtain has two layers (plastic inside, cloth outside), make sure you are placing the plastic side on the inside of your tub/shower. Otherwise, the water will flow down the curtain and all over your floor. You will be charged if we find this has been neglected and has caused damages.
You may also want to check that your sink faucet or toilet is not leaking. Feel the water lines for any wetness. They may sweat in the summer time. If you do not have an air conditioned apartment, this can cause excessive sweating from your toilet and can create a large puddle of water around it. Feel the bottom and back of the tank to see if it is just sweating or if it’s leaking.

Surprisingly, these tend to go missing quite often. To help us focus on more important tasks, we would ask that you directly contact the appropriate Sanitation company that services you by going to our Utility Info page.

Generally garbage disposals will clog do to improper use. You should not put anything but food peelings and small amounts of table scraps (no bones). You should not put anything that can swell or become sticky when water is added such as pasta, rice, flour, etc. Please think about what you are putting in your drains before doing so. If your disposal is not working, you will need to request maintenance for it. Please be prepared to pay for this if we find that it is clogged due to improper use of someone putting toys, silverware, bones, large amounts of food, debris, glass, bottle caps, etc.

You should call a professional plumber to come take care of this issue. Since drains are generally clogged from mis-use, you will most likely be charged for drain backups. In some rare cases, roots can get in the lines but this is not very common. Most of the times we find that it is feminine products, baby wipes, diapers, paper towel, etc. and these should not be disposed of into the drain system. If we find that this has happened, you will be charged for the plumbing bill. Toilet paper and human waste is the only thing that should be disposed into the drain system.

If power is off to the entire home/apartment, make sure your power has not been shut off. Check your doors for notes left by the power company. Go to the meter outside to see what color tag is on it. For Duke Energy: blue tag is good, red tag is shut off. If you have been shut off, go to our Utility Info page for contact info and call your service provider. If you have not been shut off, check the breakers in your panel box to ensure none of them have been tripped. There may also be a shut off breaker by the meter outside. Check this if you have one. If all this checks out and power is still out for the entire house, call your service provider to see if power is out for your area. If power is out for about half the house, ask your service provider to come check the meter for partial failure. Sometimes one side of the meter will go bad and must be replaced by your power company. If your issue is more isolated (just a few plugs/lights), then we will most likely need to come check it out.

During office hours, call 765-838-8840. For after hours, call 765-201-0521