Prep The Inside of Your Home
Check Windows & Doors
Drafts can make your home feel freezing with the cold air blowing in. To see if there is a draft, you can light a candle and hold it near the windows and doors. If it flickers then there’s a draft. You can use weatherstrips, caulk, or draft stoppers to seal off openings.
Insulate Your Pipes
To avoid exposed pipes in your basement, crawl space, or attic from bursting, insulate them with a foam pipe sleeve. To prepare your crawl space for winter, add some thermal insulation to keep your home warmer. This can also reduce your energy costs.
Check & Replace Filters
Replacing your filters is essential to keeping your house warm during these colder months. It’s easy to do, or you can hire a professional to do it for you. Replacing your filters regularly also improves air quality and reduces the price of energy bills.
Test Your Detectors
You should always keep extra batteries for your smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors. Winter is a common time for house fires with the heaters running. Before winter comes, check those detectors to make sure they’re working to keep you and your family safe.
Reverse Your Ceiling Fans
For more comfortable living, reverse your ceiling fans. This simple act helps circulate the warm air from the ceiling back down to your living space, it also helps save on heating costs.
Prep The Outside of Your Home
Clean Your Gutters
Clogged gutters can lead to ice dams which heightens the chance for potential leaks. This can get messy, so grab some gloves and a ladder and clean until water runs smoothly. If you’re not comfortable doing it yourself, contact a professional.
Outside Faucets
To avoid freezing your pipes, disconnect and drain your hoses then shut off the valves to indoor facets. Insulating those faucet covers helps prevent freezing pipes. It’s also a good idea to winterize your sprinkler system if you have one.
Chimney Check
Warming up your house with the warmth of a fire is one of the best parts of winter, which makes it that much more important to make sure your chimney is cleaned professionally. Make sure to stock up the firewood for this winter season so you can warm by the fire.
Check Your Concrete
To make shoveling snow easier over the winter, check to see if your sidewalks are uneven or if there are cracks in the concrete. The cracks allow water to seep in and freeze which can make the damage worse.
