Homeowners warned against viral TikTok home hacks that could damage your house this winter
Homeowners are being warned against viral TikTok hacks that could damage your property. Maintaining your home is crucial to ensure it remains safe and undamaged, especially during the winter months.
Due to the impacts of the cost-of-living crisis, many homeowners are opting to carry out essential maintenance themselves. TikTok searches for ‘home maintenance tips’ have risen by a staggering 3,700 percent in the past 12 months, suggesting homeowners are seeking more DIY maintenance advice.
Intasure has reviewed viral home maintenance TikTok videos to determine which hacks can cause damage to a property and invalidate the homeowners' insurance.
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Andy Hale, Home Specialist at Intasure commented: “Carrying out maintenance on your home is encouraged to ensure that the building is kept in working order and no unexpected damages occur, especially over the colder months.
"TikTok maintenance advice might seem simple, but these videos should be approached with caution, as many are not beginner-friendly and require skilled tradespeople.
"In fact, the homeowner could risk causing greater damage to their property when attempting to fix plumbing or boiler issues, for example, leaving the homeowner out of pocket for damage that they have caused. If a homeowner is unsure on what maintenance is safe to carry out themselves it is best to seek professional advice and guidance.”
Here are the TikTok home hacks that property owners are being urged to avoid:
Carrying out maintenance on a boiler
The cold weather can cause boilers to lose pressure as the pipes leading from the boiler may freeze and cause a blockage. A TikTok creator showed viewers what to do if their boiler loses pressure in a video that has amassed 144,000 views.
Homeowners are advised not to tamper with their boiler as this could lead to further, more serious damages. Intasure advises that homeowners should contact a plumber when experiencing any issue with their boiler.
Even if they think that the issue could be a simple fix, it is not worth risking causing more damage in the long run and invalidating the home's insurance.
Repairing a window
Issues with a window can occur at any time of the year, whether that be a crack or there is a fault with the window’s mechanism. There are 19 million TikTok’s covering ‘DIY broken window fix’. One video in particular gained 237,000 views, with the creator showing viewers how to open a window that has a faulty handle.
Viewers are shown how to open and close a window by sticking a card into the handle to release the catch. Intasure advises people not to follow this advice and instead contact a professional as soon as a window stops opening or closing properly.
Tampering with a window could invalidate a homeowners' insurance, as it may deteriorate the mechanism over time and prevent it from closing. Without evidence of forced entry, a faulty window can invalidate the claim, as there is no proof that the home was fully secured.
Repairing burst pipes
During cold weather, water pipes are more likely to burst as water freezes and thaws, causing the pipe to crack. With almost 80 million videos on TikTok offering ‘water pipe repair’ advice, one particular video has amassed 179,000 views showing viewers how to fix a burst water pipe.
It is advised to turn off the stopcock immediately if a burst pipe is discovered, however homeowners should seek professional help from a plumber rather than attempting repairs. By carrying out repairs on the pipe themself, the homeowner risks damaging the plumbing further and causing a more serious issue.