Before we adopted our dog, we tried out a few others from the Humane Society. One of them was nervous and tried to “dig” her way out of the laundry room. In the process, she scratched the trim around the door pretty badly.

Instead of buying new trim, I took the trim from the inside of a closet door. But other than removing old nails and staples, the process is basically the same if you were to buy new trim. To get the angle cuts right, use the old pieces as a template.

Start by prying the old trim loose with a flathead screwdriver or pry bar. As you pry the trim loose, insert another screwdriver or pry bar in the space where the trim is tightest. Work gradually along the entire piece of trim. It’s a good idea to use a piece of scrap wood or cardboard to protect any surface you pry against.

Remove any nails or staples from the frame and trim. Note where there is something to nail the trim to. There’s usually a gap between the frame and the wall.

Attach the trim with finish nails (small nails with small heads). Before nailing the new piece of trim in place, you might want to drill small holes for the nails to prevent the trim from splitting or cracking.

“Set” the nails. That simply means pounding them below the surface of the wood with a tool called (appropriately) a nail set. If you don’t want to invest in nail set, a large, stout nail will also work.

To finish the project, cover the nail holes with matching wood putty. You can simply spread it over the nail holes and nail heads with your thumb or finger.

If you’re moving out of an apartment or rented house, you’ll probably want to do some minor repairs and touchups before you check out. You do want that security deposit back, don’t you? Here are a few tips.

For a few small nail holes, you can often get by just filling them with white toothpaste (if you have white walls). But a better way to disguise nail holes in walls is to fill them with spackle using a small putty knife. The spackle will change the color of the wall slightly, even if you scrape it off thoroughly. If you don’t know that the walls will be painted, wipe the excess spackle film from the wall with a damp cloth to make your work less obvious.

The Mr. Clean Magic Eraser is named appropriately. You’ll be amazed at how easily it removes marks from walls and other surfaces. You might want to test the eraser in a spot that’s not obvious.

You can use dish soap and water to remove many carpet stains. Dampen the area with a mild soapy solution, using an old toothbrush to work out the stain. Wipe up the soap with a damp cloth, and wait for the spot to dry before vacuuming.

If you have additional advice for renters, please share it in the comments section.