Freezing temperatures are in the forecast. These will be the first of many nights below freezing and it is time to prepare your home for the cold winter season. Here are some tips to help you prepare your home for the cold.
1. Insulate Pipes
Any exposed pipe that runs along a wall or is in an unheated area (a basement or a crawl space, for example) is a potential hazard. The water inside can freeze and cause the pipe to burst when temperatures drop below 32 F.
2. Inspect Tree Branches
Scan your property for branches growing over the house, garage, driveway, or power lines. During a storm, those could come down and cause major damage. Branches rubbing together can also lead to breakage.
Look for signs of dead limbs, too: dead leaves that remain attached after the rest of the tree has shed, smooth areas that are missing bark, or spots where mushrooms have sprouted. If you see anything suspicious, call an arborist for an evaluation.
3. Clean Out Gutters
If gutters are clogged with leaves, the debris can freeze into a big, icy mass, which could get under shingles and damage the roof. Get a tall ladder and work gloves, and scoop out the debris so water can drain.
4. Prevent Door Locks From Freezing
If you’ve ever had this problem or you live in a super-cold climate, spray a little powdered-graphite lubricant into each door lock (where the key goes), then turn the key in the lock. The powder (sold at hardware stores) lubricates the pins inside the lock to prevent sticking. Do this once a season.
5. Drain Sprinklers
If you have an outdoor sprinkler system, remove any residual water before the first freeze so it doesn’t expand and crack the pipes. Your best bet is to hire an irrigation contractor to blow out the water using compressed air.
6. Cut Back Perennials
It’s fine to keep some intact. Those with a pretty shape (coneflowers, ornamental grass) look nice even in winter. But most deciduous perennials—plants that shed their leaves annually (like asters, irises, and lilies)—do best with an aggressive trim, says Jennifer G. Horn, a landscape architect in Washington, D.C.
Using clippers or a hedge trimmer, cut plants to 2 – 3 inches above the ground. Not only does this make your garden look tidier, but it also eliminates potential homes for harmful insects, who like to hide out, then surface during spring growth.
7. Mulch Flower Beds
Sometime before the coldest winter temps hit, add a layer of hardwood mulch to all your flower beds. “Mulching at this time of year helps regulate changes in soil temperature,” says Horn. The mulch acts as insulation, buffering the plants from brutally low temperatures to come. Without it, roots are vulnerable to significant damage and the plants could die.
8. Get the Fireplace Cleaned
If you use a wood-burning fireplace more than six times a year, you should have it professionally cleaned and inspected by a certified chimney sweep annually. Otherwise, built-up creosote and soot can ignite, says Paul Sullivan of the National Association of Home Builders Remodelers. If you almost never use your fireplace or have a gas one (cleaner-burning than wood), an inspection every three years is sufficient.
9. Have the Furnace Checked
At the beginning of winter, hire an HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning) contractor to make sure your furnace or boiler is operating safely and efficiently.
10. Check your Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Detectors
As we go into the winter, this is a good time to test your smoke detectors and your carbon monoxide detector. Smoke Detectors and Carbon Monoxide detectors protect you and your family when you least expect it. Every home should be equipped with at least 1 smoke detector and carbon monoxide detector on each level of your home.
These simple steps can help prepare your home for freezing temperatures.
