With Old Man Winter on the way, you’re wise to perform a bit of preventative care on your house. Snow, sleet and freezing temperatures all take a toll on your exterior, and sometimes, your interior. What do you need to do? Here’s everything you need to know to prepare your home for winter.
1. Clean Your Gutters
You should inspect your roof once per year — and the fall before the dead of winter hits is the ideal time. That way, you can take care of matters like shingle repair before it gets too cold for the seal to set.
While you’re up there, please clean out your gutters. Accumulated debris can send rainwater down your exterior and interior walls, causing costly damage. Please wear a hard hat and consider hiring a professional if you have a two-or-more-story dwelling.
2. Maintain Your Deck
Your deck can take a pounding from snow and ice. Now is the time to seal your wood — unless you got smart and used a composite material with a polymer coating that protects it from the elements and spills alike. Your final option is to cover it with a thick, plastic cloth, but such measures might meet with displeasure from your HOA.
3. Insulate Your Garage
If you’re like most people, you enter your home through your garage when you come in laden with groceries. However, doing so is like opening your front door to the elements if you lack sufficient insulation. Take time to install it and watch your home heating bills drop. At a minimum, insulate your ceiling so that the room above doesn’t stay subzero and drain your thermostat.
4. Caulk and Weatherstrip
If you catch a chill while sitting by a closed door or window, your home is bleeding energy. Stop the loss and save money with a little caulk and weatherstripping.
If you never applied caulk before, make sure you start by cleaning the area. Hold the gun at a consistent 45-degree angle and draw one straight, continuous stream.
5. Protect Your Flooring
Finally, snow, sleet, ice and all the stuff used to melt them can damage your hardwood or carpeting. Take measures to protect your floor.
If you don’t have a mudroom, install a shoe rack near your door and have family and guests alike doff their dog covers before entering. When it gets sloppy outside, put down absorbent doormats to give people to clean up before coming further inside.
Prepare Your Home for Winter With These Tips
Once you complete these five steps, congratulations — your castle is prepared for the season. If not, you now know everything you need to get your home ready for the winter.
Author bio: Rose Morrison is the managing editor of Renovated, where she offers advice on home renovation, maintenance, and organization.
