Winter brings cold, potentially snow or heavy rains. Each of these elements can have an effect on whether your home in functioning properly. Now is a good time to get outdoor areas prepped for extreme weather conditions. And it is a great time to get indoor tasks completed while you are escaping the outdoor elements. These inside home maintenance tips for winter are easily completed by any homeowner. However some of the outdoor home maintenance tips for winter might be best served by working with the pros. As pros are experienced in managing these types of activities.
Remove snow from your roofs and trees
Snow can weigh a lot and a significant amount of snow can cause structural damage to roofs and trees. Carefully remove snow from your roofs and trees to prevent weight damage or sagging of the roof and prevent large branches of trees from crashing down. Tree branches can cause damage to your home by breaking windows, removing siding and more if they break. This structural damage could be expensive maintenance of your home. If you do not feel confident doing this work, then this is an opportunity to work with a professional.
Clean your stove’s ventilation hood
Now it’s time to stay out of the cold and get to cleaning those forgotten places in your home. Many stoves have ventilation hoods that require cleaning but most people forget to clean hoods. To remove grease build up on your ventilation hood, remove the parts of your hood and soak them in soap and water and then put a little elbow grease into removing the dirt and grime. Cleaning this area is important as a grease build up could cause a fire that causes even more home damage.
Clean your refrigerator grill
We are still cleaning some major appliances in your kitchen by moving onto the refrigerator. Your refrigerator typically has a grille at the top or bottom that sucks in air. You need to remove this grille to look for cooling coils and a fan that needs to be cleaned. These pieces of the refrigerator typically collect a lot of dust and dirt. When these coils are not cleaned, your refrigerator has to work harder to keep things cool. Which means expensive parts of your refrigerator may fail sooner than their expected life and your energy bills could increase.
Check your Attic for Leaks
It is a great time to check your attic for leaks. This time of year brings rain and snow and during these types of storms you can easily check for leaks in your attic. If you have vented areas, definitely check around them for water seeping into your home. If you do not repair leaks than you risk water damage to your home which can result in structural rot or mold. Water damage can also cause damage to insulation or equipment causing shorts and therefore non-functioning household equipment.
Change your air filters
Making sure you have clean filters prior to use in the winter months will give you a safe and healthy home with clean air filtering through clean filters. This task is simple and can easily be completed by members of your household. Securing the correct size air filter will be important as the filter catches the particles that you do not want your family breathing and any gaps based on air filter size can allow these particles to become lose in the air.
Clean your exhaust fans in your bathrooms.
The ceiling in your bathrooms probably have a ceiling exhaust fan. Over time, these fans get clogged with dust and this dust can prevent the fans from working properly or potentially burn out faster than they need to because they are working harder. It is important to periodically clean these exhaust fans. This can be a fairly easy task by simply removing the vent cover and using a vacuum cleaner and its hose attachments, vacuum the dust in and around the vent openings. Wipe down any additional areas and then replace the vent cover.
