Although we might want to deny it, winter is just around the corner for many people. If you want your home to survive the winter months reasonably unscathed, then you need to make sure you have a plan to complete all of the necessary fall home maintenance tasks. It’s worth putting the effort in to make sure that your home is protected during the winter, and make the spring maintenance work a lot easier.

If you lead a busy life, and need some help keeping up with a maintenance schedule, you can always hire professionals like AG Williams Painting to make sure tasks like exterior painting are done right and you can mark those necessary fall maintenance tasks off your to do list.

And my friends in the south where it doesn’t snow? Well, many of these tips will also keep your cold air indoors in the summer, and

So what actions do are the most important when it comes to considering the maintenance of your home in the fall?

Making sure your home is protected against the weather

If you live in a part of the country where the winter brings extreme weather then protecting your home is essential. You need to check that all the weather proofing strips around your windows and doors are in good condition and working efficiently. You also need to check if your insulation is as it needs to be. Remember that even if your home has been insulated in the past, this insulation can become damaged, may shift or might just need replacing. If you are likely to experience cold weather during the winter then you also need to wrap pipes in heat tape, to help protect against potential bursts.

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Checking for cracks and leaks

One thing that you don’t want is for water and cold air to enter your home during the winter. Of course, if cold air can get in then warm air can also escape, and you could end up losing money on your heating costs. In addition to checking your weather proofing strips, check around all windows, doors, and in your roof space to identify and repair any cracks or holes.

Cleaning the gutters

The job of your gutters is to direct water down the drainpipes which then direct it away from your home. If your gutters are blocked by debris, or leaking, then this doesn’t happen. Water can flow over or through the gutters and down the walls of your home where it can gain entry, and cause problems with damp and mold. Couple with this cold and you’ve got ice and eventually more water coming in all over.

You can’t see whether your gutters need cleaning from the ground, so you need to get up close and personal. You should clear out all of the debris and fix any splits or cracks in the gutters.

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Cutting back and clearing up in the garden

If you cut back your garden in the winter then it makes it a lot easier for new growth to appear in the spring. It also means that dying leaves do not fall and accumulate around the exterior walls of your home. If leaves do gather this can cause water to pool around the base of your home, which in turn can cause problems with damp and can even cause issues with the foundation  of your home.

You can see why carrying out maintenance on your home in the fall not only makes things easier for you when Spring comes around, it also helps to keep your home in better condition.