Proper home maintenance is important year-round. With fall here it is important to ensure that your house will be ready to handle the cold winter months that lie ahead. Here are a few home maintenance tips to help make sure that your home is ready for another Michigan winter.
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Check your heating system-
To ensure your home will be properly heated throughout the cold winter months and to help to maintain the life of your heating system, be sure to perform regular maintenance. Before turning on your furnace for the first time, check the furnace filter. If it’s dirty, be sure to switch it out. Also, be sure to check that the pilot light is still lit so when you fire it up you won’t run into further issues. Your furnace duct work should also be thoroughly cleaned by a heating and cooling specialist. This will eliminate dust and other pollutants from your duct work giving your family cleaner healthier air and help prevent cold weather illness in the process.
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Store outdoor hoses and gardening tools-
Once the weather is cold enough where you will no longer be using your outdoor hoses to water plants or wash your car and your gardening is complete, the best option would be to store them in a garage or shed for the winter. This small tip can help prolong the life of your hoses and gardening tools.
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Prepare fireplaces-
If your home has traditional fireplace it is important to ensure they are functioning properly for the safety of your home. Be sure all of the old ashes have been disposed of from last winter. Next, inspect the damper handle and springs to ensure proper function to prevent smoke backup into your home.
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Check for drafts-
With the cold weather it is important to ensure you are not losing the heat your are paying for to keep your home warm and comfortable. The most common places to check for drafts would be your doors and windows. Be sure to check the seals and caulking around these parts of your home for drafts and damage, repair them if necessary. This can help reduce cost of your heating bill as well.
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Clean and store outdoor furniture-
The cold weather can cause damage to your outdoor patio table and chairs. Be sure that you have space in your garage or a shed to store these items to protect them from the winter elements. Cleaning them before storage will reduce the amount of work it will take to set them back up once spring time comes.
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Winterize underground sprinkling-
If you have an underground sprinkling system, be sure to schedule an appointment with your sprinkler company to winterize your system. Not doing this could cause the water left in your system to freeze and damage your sprinkler system resulting in the need for some major repairs in the spring.
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Clean out gutters and drain tubes-
Before the snow starts falling be sure your gutter system is clear of leaves and debris. If left, this can result in water backing up and freezing causing ice dams. This prevents damage to your roof and shingles.
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Flush water heater-
This should be done once a year and scheduling it at the same time every year will help to not forget about it. Simply drain the water completely out of your heater are refill. This short process will remove sediment from your system and help prolong the life of your water heater.