To keep your home in good shape throughout those chilly winter months, follow our fall home maintenance schedule. Ensure your home can handle an onslaught of ice and cold, and avoid costly repairs.

Tasks for Mild Weather

Take advantage of those beautiful fall days by tackling outdoor tasks. Unclogging gutters is never fun, but it’s much less fun when the temperature is freezing. When your lawn begins to go dormant, use the time saved from mowing to handle this to-do list.

Roof

First, if you notice any missing shingles, replace them. If you have an older roof, you might consider having a professional check for and replace loose shingles.

If water does not flow easily out of your gutter drains, unclog your downspouts and gutters. Otherwise, water might leak into your foundation or exterior walls. Water leaks can lead to wood rot and pest infestation.

In addition, have your chimney professionally cleaned and inspected if you have a wood-burning fireplace. Cleaning removes creosote that can cause fires when built up.

Next, clean out your soffit vents. Clogged vents cause your roof to warm, which allows ice dams to form on your roof. Ice dams, in turn, causes water to back up and sit on your roof, potentially causing damage.

Yard

Rake up those leaves, and give your grass a clean surface from which to sprout in the spring. Then, fertilize your grass to give it the nutrients it needs to survive the winter.

After taking care of the grass, clean up your shrubs and flower beds. Remove dead limbs, and prune overgrown areas. Next, flush out those hoses, and bring them inside. If you have a sprinkler system, flush it out to remove any water.

Tasks for Chilly Weather

You can save the following tasks for when “jacket weather” arrives. 

HVAC Prep

Have your furnace inspected and cleaned annually. A professional can catch and correct any issues early before they become bigger problems.

Safety Systems

October is National Fire Prevention Month, so take this opportunity to replace the batteries in your smoke detectors (and carbon monoxide detectors). Ensure you have fire extinguishers in the kitchen, laundry room, and garage. You might also consider buying escape ladders for second-story bedrooms.

If you have a security system, consider applying a hydrophobic surface-applied product to any cameras to prevent snow and ice from covering the lens. 

Air Leaks

Now that it’s chilly out, audit your home for air leaks. Check all exterior doors, windows, air ducts, fireplaces, pipes and connections, and light switches and wall outlets. Feel for drafts in each of these areas, and make a list of any problem areas. 

Then, visit your local hardware store (or shop online) for insulating or weatherizing products. Patching air leaks can help save money on energy bills.

Of course, our Positive Energy Homes are built with energy savings in mind. While some new weather stripping can certainly save money, the best way to keep warm air in and cold air out of your home during the colder months is to have built-in energy efficiency. Learn more about how we build homes with a higher standard of efficiency.