Fall marks the transition to shorter days, cooler weather, and the imminent winter season. Getting yourself ready for winter is pretty easy. You just need to dig your gloves, hat, and puffy jacket out of the closest. However, preparing your home for winter takes some time! It’s important to protect your investment across all the seasons, because homes can deteriorate over time without attention from their owners. So, what are the MOST important steps you can take to prepare your home for winter? Check out the tips below!
Tip #1 – Clean your gutters
The first step in preparing your home for winter is cleaning out your gutters. This is extremely important if you want to keep your home nice and dry during the wet winter season. When your gutters back up, they overflow, and all that water ends up running down your home. This can lead to the deterioration of your foundation, water infiltration in the basement, and water settling under your concrete porches and walks. You wouldn’t believe how many basements flood every year because of clogged gutters. If you can’t get on a ladder to clean out your gutters and prepare for the winter yourself, hire someone to come to your home and do it for you. Pro tip: Wait until all the leaves have fallen, then you’ll only have to clear your gutters once before the arrival of winter.
Tip #2 – Hire a chimney sweep
The second step in preparing your home for winter is cleaning out your chimney. A good chimney sweep company will make sure your fireplace is safe to use and identify any maintenance problems. We recommend cleaning your chimney once a year. Pro tip: This is also the time to order firewood to prepare your home for the winter. Take the time to stack and cover the wood in a good location in your yard, away from the house. You’ll also want to make sure any old firewood isn’t rotten.
Tip #3 – Inspect your furnace
The third step in preparing your home for winter is getting your furnace inspected. Instead of begging for someone to come out to your house when your heat stops working on a freezing January night, get a reputable HVAC company out to your house now. You could even look into an annual maintenance agreement that will prepare your home for the winter every year. At the very least, you should change your filters at this time.
Tip #4 – Turn off exterior faucets
The fourth step in preparing your home for winter is turning off all exterior faucets. Undrained water in pipes can freeze, which will cause pipes to burst as the ice expands. To prepare your home for the winter, start by disconnecting all garden hoses and draining the water that remains in the faucets. If you don’t have frost-proof faucets (homes more than ten to 15 years old typically do not), twist the shut-off valve inside your home. Additionally, if you have a sprinkler system, make sure this is properly shut down for the season as well! Most sprinkler systems require the lines to be blown out.
Tip #5 – Prepare for an emergency
The last step in preparing your home for winter is getting prepared for an emergency. Blackouts and snow-ins can be fun, but they can also be dangerous. Take a moment to prepare yourself and other members in the home for such emergencies over the winter. Have the following items ready to ensure that your family is prepared and safe in your home over the winter season.
1. Flashlights
2. Bottled water
3. Nonperishable food items
4. Extra Blankets
5. Phone numbers for your utility companies
6. Battery backups to protect your computer and other important electronic equipment
7. First-aid kit
8. If you have an emergency generator, make sure you have gasoline stored and available to fuel it
