With the holidays and some extra time at home, now is the perfect time to make sure your home is ready for winter weather. Emergency repairs and high heating bills are every home owner’s worst nightmare. Help prevent both winter weather scenarios by following these home maintenance tips:
- Check for gaps in insulation or crawl spaces that expose pipes to cold air and the risk of freezing and bursting.
- Have your heating system checked by a licensed technician before cold weather requires daily use.
- Block drafts around doors, windows and baseboards with weather stripping, window film and caulk to control heat loss.
- Install storm doors and windows to improve energy-efficiency and keep drafts at bay.
- Have a licensed chimney sweep clean your chimney to prevent the risk of a fire from creosote buildup or blockages.
- Spray door locks with powdered-graphite lubricant to prevent freezing and sticking.
- Flush the water heater to get rid of built up sediment that impacts efficiency.
- Check smoke detector batteries and install carbon monoxide detectors.
- Inspect the dryer vent for debris.
