Saturday, November 26, 2011

Winterize Your Home This Upcoming Fall

By Joel Thieran


Once you learn what spring cleaning means, it is likely you have some notion what it means to winterize your home. When autumn arrives you need to inspect your home's readiness for the upcoming winter. Fall, with the attendant dying out of leafy growth, is a good time to examine your house's walls, since it will be easier to spot any shrubs that are becoming invasive. Clinging vines and the roots of plants harm siding and even bricks, so it is good to keep them cleaned off.

Once you're done with watering for the year, you must drain all of the hose, and roll them up to be stored away. The exterior faucets have to have the water turned off, and then allowed to drain dry. When you are done with your garden furniture for the year, clean it up and then store it in a dry spot. All young trees that you have planted, it is best to protect them with mulch, especially if it is their first winter. All water drainage ditches should be cleared so they can cope with any heavy rains.

Cold temperature obviously leads one's thoughts to fireplaces. See your chimney swept just in time, before the first cold spell, because that's usually when everyone wakes up and wants it done. Who knows how the availability of firewood will be, so if you are going to need some, try and locate some in plenty of time. Try outlying areas whenever ot convenient, where natives may sell firewood without the cost of advertising. Although you don't use a fireplace, make sure that any smoke alarms work. If you leave your Christmas lights up for the whole year, check that the cords continue to be flexible. If you use storm windows, they should be installed. Weather-stripping gets drier with the scorching temperatures, so they might all need to be replaced.

Verify the good working order of the cooktop hood filters, since during winter the windows are mostly closed. Confirm that the pitch of the soil around your house will still allow water to flow away. You don't want the issues connected with water getting into the basement or the foundation. To start with it can cause wet rot, which in turn could cause dry rot, which is just not something you want in your home anywhere. You ought to search for seepage on a regular basis.

It appears to be unavoidable that leakages come, and the most likely places are the roof, the gutter and down-spouts, and the inside plumbing. Set a priority to get any leaks you see fixed. You should cover up the air-conditioning machines to prevent drafts, while, particularly with older homes, it is worth cladding the exterior pipes. It's really a wise decision to shampoo the carpets and rugs, since dust is more noticeable in the winter. You might as well use the opportunity to clean the windows.




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