When cold weather arrives, you dust off your own hot shoes and jackets and turn up the heat in your house. But have you ever thought about getting your house ready for the cold season? Following Is a fall and winter home maintenance checklist each homeowner should follow:
- Get Your Heating System Serviced — Before cranking up the heat, employ a technician to inspect your furnace and heat pump. This ensures your heating system works at the recommended efficiency and that carbon dioxide leaks are prevented.
- Reverse Ceiling Fans — Since heat rises, turning your ceiling fans in reverse could help heat your rooms. This may allow you to turn off your thermostat by a couple of degrees and save energy.
- Clean the Gutters — performing this job frequently prevents water from draining on your house, causing damage. When temperatures drop below freezing point, having clean gutters also helps prevent ice dams. Ensure that gutters and downspouts are not damaged or worn.
- Divert Water Away from Your Home’s Foundation — While you’re checking the downspouts, be sure that they divert water at least three to four feet away from your base. When they don’t, add extensions to downspouts.
- Prevent Ice Dams — Ice dams on your roof are an indication your attic is not properly insulated. Your loft must be trendy to prevent snow on the roof from melting, which causes ice dams. Make sure your attic has sufficient ventilation and there are not air escapes that heat your attic.
- Inspect Your Roof — Carefully look for missing, loose, or damaged shingles. Better do it now before it begins snowing to prevent leaks and water damage when the snow thaws. Have a look at more roof maintenance suggestions for the autumn.
- Seal Windows and Doors — Moisture and cold air can get inside your walls through openings around windows, door frames, and where pipes enter your house. Caulk up the gaps that are larger than the width of a nickel.
- Turn off Exterior Faucets and Sprinklers — The water in outdoor pipes can freeze and cause the pipes to burst as the ice inside them expands. To prevent that, disconnect garden drains and drain all the water in outside pipes. Alternately, replace exterior taps with freeze-proof taps.
- Drain Your Sprinkler System — Buried irrigation lines may also freeze, resulting in burst pipes and damage to sprinkler heads. To best drain, the sprinkler system, seek the services of an irrigation technician to blow the systems out plumbing with compressed air.
- Mulch Leaves — Rather than raking the leaves on your lawn, mulch them. The resulting compost provides nourishment to your lawn. Also, when stowing your mower for the winter, add a stabilizer to the fuel tank to protect the engine in the event the tank still comprises a gas.
- Inspect Your Fireplace — To ensure that your fireplace is in good repair during the cold season, make sure the damper opens and closes correctly. Look up into the flue to make sure it’s free of obstacles. Also check your firebox for missing or damaged bricks or mortar, or hire a chimney sweep to perform the job.
During the cold months, it’s also important to be aware of heating security concerns. Take a look at our home heating safety tips and electrical heater security rules. For skilled smoke remediation or fire damage, contact your regional PuroClean Coral Gables office. Click here to find out more.
