
How to Prepare Your Home for Spring
- CHECK GUTTERS
Look for gutters that are loose, leaky or filled with debris. Make sure all downspouts drain away from foundation and are also clear of debris.
- CHECK CAULKING
Bitter winter cold can cause windows and doors to slightly separate from the frame. This is easily remedied by some painters caulk.
- EXAMINE OUTSIDE SPIGOTS
When you first turn the water on, place your thumb over the opening. If your thumb alone stops the flow of water, there’s a possibility you have pipe damage.
- LOOK UP
From ground level, do a visual sweep of your roof to see if any shingles were lost or damaged during the winter. This is also a great time to evaluate where there was excess snow and ice, to figure out where you may want to add heat tape for better drainage.
- CLEAN & ROTATE
If you changed the spin direction of your ceiling fans over the winter, now is a good time to clean them off and change the rotation to blow air downward.
- REPLACE BATTERIES
Not necessarily a spring home maintenance item, but replacing the batteries in your smoke and carbon monoxide detectors every time the season changes is a good habit to get into, even if the batteries aren’t dead.
- PREPARE TO AERATE AND FERTILIZE
Aerating and fertilizing with a pre-emergent crabgrass control is essential to achieving an envious lawn come spring and summer. Both things need to be done before temperatures reach the 55-60 degree range.
- CHECK YOUR SCREENS
You won’t reap any financial benefits of keeping your windows open and leaving your A/C off if you’re having to call an exterminator to take care of critters getting through your open windows. Remove your screens and give them a gentle scrub with soapy water and patch small holes as needed and reinstall them.
- CHECK YOUR DRYER VENT
A clogged dryer vent not only produces a fire hazard but causes warm air to blow back into your home.
- PATCH UP YOUR DRIVEWAY
Your driveway takes a lot of heat…and cold, foot traffic, ice melt, snow, etc. This is a great time to seal concrete, per manufacturers recommendations.
- INSPECT YOUR EXTERIOR GRADING
The soil around your home should slope away from foundation walls by at least six inches vertically when measuring out 10 feet.