Home Maintenance: The Circle of Effort

Sometimes I really enjoy working around the house. It solicits a feeling of accomplishment, while enjoying the fruits of the labor goes without mentioning. Other times, though, it just wears you down. That is under the assumption you are doing the work on your own home, of course (or it would simply wear down your pocketbook). But I am not writing about whether it is enjoyable, tolerable, or horrible: I am writing about the necessity and importance in the long run.

Homes here in St. Thomas, or anywhere in the Virgin Islands, need routine maintenance, and there is no way around it. Some homes need more than others, but none are exempt.

Take this home for example: http://stthomasre.com/st-thomas-real-estate/luxurious-water-point-home-i...

It probably needs less maintenance than any home I know of on the island. You don't have to recoat the entire roof on a regular basis. There is a lot of stone work that doesn't require painting. It is solid poured masonry, not wood. And it is built to the highest of standards, both structurally and for visual purposes. But that doesn't mean it doesn't need any maintenance, as landscaping doesn't tend to itself, the gutters do need to be treated every five years or so, and there are an assortment of other projects that become necessary over time.

Now my house is a different story: It has a plywood coated roof that needs to be treated every couple of years. It has large wood decks that need occasional staining or paint. Until we plastered the pool last year, it was my responsibility to powerwash, clean, treat, and repaint the pool every two to three years. It sits on a lush part of the island that requires powerwashing the driveway and stairs on a semi-frequent basis to keep the mold away and prevent them from being slick. (for the record, I love powerwashing, so long as my IPOD is cranking Bob Marley or Led Zeppelin)

So the circle of effort is because these things don't need to be done just once. It comes back around over time. If you fall behind on one of the major projects, then it is difficult to catch up. For the record again, I am very good at falling behind, so I know the difficulties it causes thru experience.

If you "forget" about the necessary maintenance, then expect it to come back and bite you on the ass. If you don't have your wood decks painted or stained, then the wood will eventually rot. This will cost you more time and effort in the long run when you finally get things back to order. If you don't coat your roof, you may get leaks, or God forbid, start letting the roof rot away. So in the long run, the roof repair or the new deck will cost you more.

So let this be a lecture to you: keep up with your maintenance, especially here in St. Thomas, Virgin Islands. We live in a salt water environment. It is hot. The sun bakes your house. Things break down faster in such a situation. And the more effort you make now, the less you will have to make when the time comes to sell- while you get to enjoy the fruits of your labor if you do things right when you should.