Home improvement projects to tackle before winter

It’s almost past the point of no return. Perhaps that’s a little over dramatic but the truth is that there aren’t many nice weather days left before winter hits and you don’t want to be out in the yard preparing it and your home for the cold season ahead. So before it’s too late, here are a few home improvement projects to get out of the way.

Weatherproof the entire house

It’s expensive enough to keep your home warm all winter long when you don’t have gaps in the roof, doors, and windows. Make life easier on yourself by making sure your entire home is weatherproofed. Start with the doors and windows since they’re easier. For all entry doors, check the weather stripping around the doorway and replace them if necessary. For windows, re-caulk them or have them replaced entirely if they’re just old and not very energy efficient. If your roof is getting up there in age, have a roofer inspect it for gaps in the flashing, cracked or missing shingles, or inadequate insulation. Not only does this result in lost energy dollars, it could lead to costly ice dams in the winter.

Get your HVAC system checked out

Winter is long and miserable enough as it is and you don’t want to add a poorly functioning HVAC system to it. Have your furnace inspected, check your carbon monoxide alarm batteries, clean any HVAC grilles and replace any filters. While you’re at it, outfit your baseboard radiators with baseboard radiator covers.

Get rid of the last of the dead leaves

You weren’t procrastinating, you were just waiting until all the leaves had finished falling, right? Well once they have, clean them all up. If your lawn is to survive winter, they can’t be buried under a pile of wet leaves and possibly snow for three or four months. Don’t forget the leaves that are hiding up in the rain gutters as well since this can clog your system and cause rain and snowmelt to pool up on your roof.

Clean patio furniture, then store it inside

It’s time to bring in patio furniture to store it for the winter. It will last a lot longer if you do that every winter. Make sure to clean it off first however or you’ll regret it when dirt and grime has been allowed to get caked on and you have to try and clean them up in the spring.

Protect against pests

Your family isn’t the only ones trying to stay warm in your home this winter you can bet that all manner of pests will be trying to get in as well. A roof inspection as recommended above will take care of one entry point but you should also seal up any other holes you can find such as the areas around cables or plumbing pipes.

Source: Realtor.com

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