If you have ideas, suggestions or hints to share, please click here. 
In this age of litigation, we need to make clear that we have not tested these ideas. A grain of salt is a good idea. And while some might feel comfotable performing much of their own maintenance, others might feel less handy. This is not a sin and while we'd love to tell you exactly who to call when you need help, we can't. What we can do is to provide guidance when looking for help. These links might help.
You might like to check them out before things go wrong. 
Did you know that the faucets and other plumbing fixtures in your house are made by a company named Moen? Click here to contact Moen If you tell them about a failure and that you are the original homeowner, they will replace any defective Moen component in your home. A good company standing behind good products.
Speaking of plumbing. When the annoying inevitably happens, e.g. the bathroom sink drain gets clogged, it can be frustrating. Here in Solera, it's not such a big deal. No tools are required to remove and clean the trap under the sink. A good old wire coat hanger can be used to then release the hair, soap and gunk that builds up over time. Check this link for help. 
Youtube It's not exactly what we have here but it's close. Some residents do this every few months. Black stuff builds up and while not harmful, it doesn't smell very nice.
If this seems too much, you can try this. Vinegar, baking soda and boiling water sometimes works. Click here for more. Wikihow It's easier but perhaps not as effective as cleaning the trap.
Do you know how pure your water is? Many of us have water filtering systems installed in our home, e.g. the reverse osmosis systems found under our sinks. Obviously, changing the filters from time to time is a good idea but how often? Take the guesswork out of the equation and measure the purity of your water. A TDS meter, costing around $10.00 takes the gueswork out of the equation. Click the picture to see a whole page of them at Amazon. 
TDS Meter
Faucet Aerators are used to reduce splashing and provide a more uniform flow of water. They can be found on all of our faucets. Due to the high mineral content of our water supply, they can become clogged and inefficient. They are easy to remove and some of us, on a regulat basis, remove them, soak them in vinegar and reinstall them. These are removed by hand, using no tools other than a cloth that might be useful if they're tight. Replacements are easy to find but they rarely fail.
The recirculating pump. Those of us who have a tank storage type water heater may have a small pump installed. Its purpose is to keep water moving through our pipes. When installed, it means that hot water is available at any faucet in a few seconds. This is important to be aware of since some plumbers, when replacing your water heater, will not reconnect it, either out of laziness or some other motive. This re-circulation of hot water also becomes part of the evaluation process when deciding to go “tank” or “tank-less” when your water heater croaks.
Tank vs. Tank-less – When considering the replacement of your water heater, there is a lot to consider. Sadly, when your current water heater fails, there’s not a lot of time to consider things. So, understanding things in advance might be useful. Efficiency, initial cost, long term cost, and dependability are all considerations. The link, 
Heater is a good place to start in gaining some insight.
Our homes are equipped with GFCI (Ground Fault Circuit Interruptor) protection. These protect us from electrical shock. Click this link for detail, How Stuff Works. Hint -- If you've ever tried to use an exterior outlet and it doesn't work, check the GFCI outlet in your garage. One GFCI outlet can protect several other outlets.
Emergency Flashing of lights is a capability that most of us have. The newest houses built don't have this amenity. Sometimes, after activation of these lights, it becomes difficult to turn them off. Hint -- This condition may be caused by a mismatch of the bulb circuitry and the flasher. Before taking drastic action, e.g. replacing the switch, etc. try replacing the bulbs with incadescent or CFL bulbs. Some LED bulbs have contributed to this issue. It makes sense to try the easiest things first.
The Smart Box identified as Leviton Integrated Networks, is usually located in your closet or laundry room. Most recently built homes do not have one of these. It is roughly 16" wide and 30" high. Inside are connections to each room for TV and ethernet network connections. Telephones can also be connected via this box. What this means is that you can connect both cable and antenna TV to each room, since you'll find each TV plate has two connections. Since many of the earlier built homes were pre-wired for alarm systems, you may also find that wires to each door and window end up here. If you feel like exploring, this is a good place to start.
Free TV is possible by building or buying an antenna and connecting it to your TV(s) via the Smart Box. Here is a guide to building an antenna that works well. 
Antenna. Cost is minimal. Placing it in your attic will get you 120 or more channels. Hint -- The wire sections recommended can be replaced using wire coat hangers. There are a number of these very effective antennas in use throughout the neighborhood.
PC Fan running faster? As many know, the fan, and sometimes fans, in a PC are meant to cool the processor (the heart of the PC) and sometimes the graphic card. OK, this all sounds very technical but, when you can hear the fan running more than normal in your computer, it's prbably too hot. Reason? Most likely just dust. Vacuum cleaning or blowing the dust out of the computer will very often fix the issue. A free program available at Speccy will tell you what your PC's temperature is. 200 deg. was the reported temp. on a recently encountered PC before cleaning. After, it registered 90 deg. Not hard, not majic, just dust. Keep it clean and it will run better and last longer.