It’s easy to postpone chores and house maintenance tasks when it’s cold outside and incredibly comfortable on the sofa, but taking care of the list is essential to keeping a home running smoothly and safe for your family. Especially with severe weather on the rise, there’s no time like now to make sure you are ready for the next big storm.
Here are some of our top winter house maintenance tasks that are best not delayed.
Storm Prep: Generator
As weather becomes more extreme, the likelihood of losing power increases. That can manifest itself as a minor inconvenience and having to use cellular data for a while or it can be a failed sump pump and flooded basement. I recommend looking into a generator and/or a transfer switch. Neither is inexpensive, but both can be essential to keeping temperatures regulated when heat or AC goes down.
And, not all generators are created equal. A good option–because generators are expensive–from a few thousand dollars for a good, portable generator (which can also be used in other venues if need be) to many thousands of dollars for a whole house generator.
In the case of the smaller generator, it should be an inverter generator. This means that it provides a “clean” current that electronics depend on versus “dirty” current that a generator uses for more basic electronics like power tools provides.
A transfer switch is a switch mounted outside the home where the generator would operate that is wired to the breaker panel. So, rather than run cords into the house to keep the fridge, router, office, portable lights on, a transfer switch powers 6 to 8 circuits and all you have to do is plug it in once and you can keep the kitchen, bathroom, office, TV going without extra cords.
Storm Prep: Sump Pump
If your house has a sump pump, it cannot be overstated that it should have a battery back-up in case the power goes out. Even if you have a portable generator, you still have to be home to deploy it. If you’re not home and the power goes out, your basement will be best equipped with a sump pump to pump out the incoming water.
Mower Prep
Another house maintenance task involves your lawn mower. If you have a lawn tractor or zero turn mower that runs on gas, the best time to make sure it fires up, the deck is clean, blades are sharp, and the fluids are topped off is now. Get it ready before the mower shop or dealer is inundated with mower owners late to the party with mowers that won’t start. Have it done early and be ready when the grass starts growing again.
Snow Thrower
The time to make sure your snow thrower starts next year is this year. Check your owners manual about “summer-izing” your snow machine. Typically that’ll require adding a little fuel stabilizer to the gas. Throughout the year, I like to start it a few times to make sure it fires up on demand. It’s a regular house maintenance task that doesn’t take a lot of time to do.
Check Your Deck
If you have a wood deck, which millions do, check the guard post connections. Check the finish and if it has been a couple of years since it was stained, make a plan, gather supplies, and have them ready to do the staining when the weather is agreeable. Separating the errands of getting all the stuff and the actual staining will make a job lots of people don’t like doing a lot less onerous. If your deck is 20+ years old, it’s likely a good idea to pay a contractor a few hundred bucks for a professional deck inspection.
Filters and Batteries
Season changes are good times to update furnace filters and smoke/CO batteries. A fresh furnace filter maximizes furnace efficiency after months of heat sucking everything from pet dander to dust through it during the heating season. Batteries are easier to change when you plan to, not when you have to drop what you’re doing because they are beeping every 60 seconds and driving you mad.
Radon Fan
If your house has a radon fan (there is a unit on the outside of your house with a pipe going all the way up past the gutters that may look like a downspout, but isn’t and, if your basement is unfinished, there will be a PVC pipe going into the floor slab) and it is more than a few years old, check to make sure it is actually operating. If you can’t see the fluid gauge on it, put an ear to the fan. If it’s not making any noise, it died. Replacing a radon fan isn’t that difficult assuming you can find a suitable replacement. Or, check with a pro. They may have other options that better suit your needs.
Gutters
Gutters are commonly added to many house maintenance task lists, but not many like cleaning them. Even if you don’t have a lot of trees or you don’t see leaves sticking out of them, gutters can still be clogged. As any gutter pro and they’ll give you a list of balls and toys they’ve found in gutters that shouldn’t be there. Clogged, overflowing can breech flashings and siding and get inside the house.
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