#1 Get Rid of Your Only Tub

If resale value is important to you, don’t get rid of your only bathtub. It doesn’t matter how breathtaking that walk-in shower is, tubs bring up the value of your home!

#2 Leave Cabinet Doors on While Painting

Painting your kitchen cabinets pays off big at resale — even though it seems like a small investment it still woos. The job’s time-consuming, so it’s tempting leave the doors on – but the value of your home will go up if you resist.

#3 Put Starchy Food Down the Disposal

Today’s garbage disposals are able to handle more difficult food to process than in the past, but even with the upgraded tech, starchy comestibles like potatoes, rice, and oatmeal still give them problems.

Fun fact: Every Halloween, plumbers see an increase in calls because people are dumping pumpkin guts into the disposal.

When starchy foods combine with water they can clump together, clogging up your disposal and pipes. Instead, put them in the garbage can or, even better, your compost pile.

#4 Plant a Tree Close to Your House

That young sapling just a mere few yards from your door seems so harmless. Until it becomes a full-sized tree.

In addition to the danger posed by falling branches, deep seated tree roots from older trees can weaken your home’s foundation.

Plant medium and large trees at least 30 to 50 feet from the house. Put small trees (30 feet tall or less) at least eight feet away.

#5 Flush “Flushable” Wipes

Sewer systems are facing a growing menace: flushable wipes. Despite the name, most are not actually safe to flush down your drain. Stay away from flushing them and you’re plumbing and sewage systems will thank you.

#6 Cover Wallpaper with Water-based Paint

You don’t have to remove that dated wallpaper – simply paint over it. Just don’t do it with water-based paint. It can reactivate wallpaper glue and cause the paper to peel. Instead, use oil-based primer, let it dry completely, and then apply latex paint over it. Oil-based primer has long been the industry standard and works well with oil and latex paints.

#7 Paint Exterior Brick

Paint can destroy the brick and mortar and even cause the foundation to crumble. Take that for a hidden cost!

If you’re itching for a new exterior look, try new shutters, paint the front door, or update your landscaping. Those moves can scratch your itch and boost your curb appeal. If you just can’t live with your brick color, try brick stain, which bonds with the brick, allowing it to breathe.

#8 Skip the Last Mow Before Winter

Tempting as it is to give into our lazier selves and skip that last mow before winter, leaving the lawn long can provide unwanted shelter for rodents and other animals. This means they’ve got safe passage to work their way into your warm and cozy home for the winter. Plus, keeping grass short keeps it healthier.

#9 Let Ceiling Fans Run Forever

Ceiling fans don’t decrease the temperature in a room; they increase how quickly your sweat evaporates, making you feel cooler.

Since it’s only beneficial to run ceiling fans when people are in the rooms to enjoy their breeze, save money by turning them off when you’re out. Not only will you save on your electric bill, but the ceiling fixture itslef will stay in a better state.

#10 Tear Out Original Architectural Features

Image: House Beautiful

Custom millwork, tin ceiling tiles, and mid-century modern brick give your home its character, so keep them if you’re remodeling (assuming they’re not in awful condition). Buyers will fawn over these unique and authentic details. They can put your house at the top of house-hunters’ lists when it comes time to sell.

#11 Change Your Mailbox Without Checking with Your HOA

Or make any other change to your home’s exterior, such as replace your front steps, add shutters, etc. HOA’s are notorious for being sticklers for procedure and guidelines, so even something as innocent seeming as a mailbox can land you in hot water

#12 Leave Hoses Connected in Winter

When you retire your lawnmower each fall, disconnect and store hoses, too. Leaving them attached during cold weather can trap water in the pipes, causing them (and possibly the faucets) to freeze. Not only does this ruin the hose, but it can cause damage to your pipes as well.

#13 Keep an Old-Fashioned Thermostat

Everyone loves a cozy home during winter, and although we just said not to tear out any original features, some of them need to go!

Install a programmable thermostat, stat. One in the $150 range saves a typical household $131-$145 annually, so it’s practically free.

Related: 7 Time-Sucking Remodeling Mistakes That Are Soooo Easy to Make

#14 Put a Brick in Your Toilet

To decrease water use and save money, many people put bricks in their older, high-water-use toilets. But bricks crumble in water and can damage or clog pipes.

Replace the toilet ($350 or less) or fill a half-gallon milk jug with sand and drop it in the tank instead (saving about half a gallon per flush).

#15 Water Grass at Night

Image: thespruce.com

It may seem smart to water in the evening – especially if you have a sprinkler system, because electrical rates are lower. But without sun to evaporate it, water is more likely to cling to grass at night, promoting fungus. Instead, water in the morning when the air is cool, the sun is arriving, and there’s less wind than midday.

#16 Clean Windows on a Sunny Day

Doesn’t a warm, sunny day seem like the perfect time to wash windows? Counter-intuitively, it’s the worst because the sun dries windows too quickly and causes smears. Instead, save this chore for a cloudy day.

#17 Pour Bleach or Drain Cleaner Down Pipes

Bleach can seemingly do it all!

Unfortunately, bleach can react with substances in your pipes and cause more clogs than it prevents. Even drain cleaner is rough on pipes — and both are environmentally awful. (Plus, as little as a teaspoon of drain cleaner can destroy a septic field.)

Instead, use a pipe snake (also known as an auger) to keep pipes running smoothly.