[localinsight]

Hi. I have been looking to hire a handyman, for about 1-2 hours, to do some easy things around my condo.
Change light bulbs, change smoke detector batteries (basically things which require a ladder).
Diagnose a freezer problem (freezer burn accumulating on the outside of food containers, freezer is only 6 years old but well out of warranty), examine blinds which don't work and tell me if they can be repaired, repair a shower seal.
Basically, nothing is difficult but I don't have a ladder and should not climb on more than a few-feet step stool anyway. The only item which could challenge someone is diagnosing the freezer problem.

I have researched on Google and Yelp. Two people are "out of town" and one is busy until mid-Dec. Three other people emailed me from yelp but one is a drywall person and one is a tv installation company. I am a bit confused why it is so difficult just to find someone for easy tasks, unless people all want larger jobs.

I can check craigslist but would like a referral.

Thanks.

[WestieJeff]

People who are "good" don't want to deal with 1-2 hour jobs. Small jobs are not worth it when you factor drive time to/from plus overhead of just dealing with any job. Add in a strong economy and this is the end result. It's difficult enough to get people to show up for any trades type job.

[wpcoe]

@localinsight: Are you a member of the online site Nextdoor? It's a neighborhood-specific discussion board and I often see folks asking for handyman recommendations, usually with several replies from folks with personal experience.

[PinkString]

You beat me to it wpcoe. We always have posts from the "handymen" community in our general area on nextdoor. One guy listed all the things he can do, quite a list.

All she has to do is sign up at nextdoor.com and look up her neighborhood. It is a really good resource and she can also see what is going on in her community, crime, etc. I recommend this for everyone.

[oeccscclhjhn]

pm sent.

[WVREDLEG]

Originally Posted by localinsight

Diagnose a freezer problem (freezer burn accumulating on the outside of food containers, freezer is only 6 years old but well out of warranty)

Have your hired person check the rubber seal on your freezer door. If the seal does not "seal" when the door is closed, the air entering the freezer compartment is warmer, turns frozen water (ice) briefly into vapor before freezing again as the freezer tries to maintain temp--creates the frost effect on outside of items.

If your freezer is part of a combo unit with pull out drawer, this is even more likely the issue. Those pull outs are often slightly off-track and the seal will not work as intended. If you have that kind of unit, run your hand along the bottom of the drawer and if you feel ice build up, the seal is not intact when closed.

There are other causes, just offering a possibility to consider.

[Svoboda]

If you don't want to join Nextdoor as has been suggested, there is an app you can download called Thumbtack which is a gig economy app for small jobs.

[localinsight]

Thanks, I will follow-up on the pm. And checkout nextdoor.com

[localinsight]

I joined nextdoor.com and posted that I was looking for a handyman recommendation. Thanks for the suggestion.

[PinkString]

Originally Posted by Svoboda

If you don't want to join Nextdoor as has been suggested, there is an app you can download called Thumbtack which is a gig economy app for small jobs.

I used that app to find our bug spray company. You put in what you are looking for and get a lot of replies, then pick one. Easy peasy.


Nextdoor.com is still a good thing to sign up with. Just do not list your address on the site, just the street name.