Winter is here and it’s time to make sure that your home is ready for the cold weather. We’ve put together a to-do list for you to ensure your home is in tip-top shape for the winter season.
Check Your Home’s Heating and Air Conditioning System
Take time to change your filters. If you system is older, we recommend having it inspected by a reputable HVAC contractor.
Paint, Caulk and Seal Exterior Wood
If you have wood trim on the exterior of your home, it needs to be protected from the elements. The wood used on your deck is typically a pressure-treated or rot-resistant. But the wood trip around your exterior doors and windows is just a one-inch thick pine board that deteriorates very quickly if not protected. If the wood is not protected and rots, it requires replacement which is much more costly than keeping it protected.
Check Your Drainage
Make sure the soil around your foundation hasn’t settled, creating areas for the water to pool at your foundation. If you find a low spot, simply fill it in with some soil. Then go around and check your rain gutter downspouts. Make sure water is getting moved away from the home. Add downspout extenders if necessary. Saturated soil around a foundation can create big problems as it freezes and thaws throughout the winter months.
Clean Your Gutters
Once the leaves are pretty much off of the trees, it’s time to clean those gutters. When your gutters back up, they overflow. When they overflow, that water runs down your home, speeding up the deterioration of your exterior. It can also lead to deterioration of your foundation, water infiltration in the basement and to settling under your concrete porches and sidewalks, which creates all kinds of problems.
Clean Your Chimney
Have your fireplace cleaned and inspected before you start building fires in the next couple of months. A good chimney sweep company will make sure the fireplace is safe to use.
Test Your Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Detectors
Winter brings a lot of home fires. Furnaces are blasting, fires are being built – and you more than likely have your home shut up tight, making carbon monoxide a much bigger risk. Check all of your smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors to make sure they are working and that they have good batteries.