When winter comes, people tend to stay indoors more, focus on spending time with family, and planning for the holidays. Home maintenance tends to take a backseat to the hustle and bustle of shopping, cooking, and holiday traveling. But winter is an important time to give certain parts of your home a once over. In this post, we’ll discuss a few winter home improvement projects that can help keep your home and its components running smoothly until spring.
1. Clean fireplace
Before the severe cold sets in and you throw a few logs in the fireplace, be sure to have it professionally cleaned and inspected. HGTV.com has some helpful suggestions on fireplace maintenance and safety and you can also get valuable info from the U.S. Fire Administration.
2. Give your heating system a tune up
For around $100 you can have a professional technician come out to inspect your heating system and check for any potential problems. Trust us, it’s better to spend $100 upfront than wait until your system fails mid-winter and have to drop thousands for a whole new system. Whether you use a furnace or heat pump, it’s important to make sure your heating system is running safely and effectively. You can search for heating and air conditioning contractors through the ACCA website.
3. Make sure your attic has sufficient insulation
Without proper insulation, your home won’t be able to maintain a comfortable temperature throughout the season. What’s worse is this could cause ice dams to form along gutters and the roof, allowing meltwater to back up and flow into your house. Consulting a professional winterization or energy efficiency contractor could be a wise choice if you’re not sure how much insualtion to install.
4. Turn off exterior faucets and drain hoses
Undrained water that collects in pipes and hoses can freeze once the temperature drops. The ice can then cause pipes to burst as it expands. This can be a very inconvenient and costly issue; luckily, it can be easily avoided by simply turning off the outdoor faucets and draining the exterior hoses. Don’t forget to also drain your lawn irrigation system!
5. Prune shrubs and trees in late winter
Most horticulturalists advise homeowners to wait until late winter before they break out the pruning shears. Of course, different plants may require different care methods, but overall it’s best to wait so that the plants have been dormant a long time before you start cutting. Consult a landscaping professional or ask someone at your local garden store for more information.
6. Start thinking about your spring home improvement projects
It’s never too early to start thinking about what your home will need in the future. Since winter is generally a slower season for everyone, it can be a great time to start making a list of maintenance/improvement goals for the next year. Maybe your vinyl siding could use a good pressure washing? Or perhaps you’d really love to get your backyard fence repainted? How about the outdated wallpaper in the guest bathroom? Maybe this is the year you could get it replaced?
Once you decide which projects are high on your list of home improvement priorities, give Colour Solutions a call for a free estimate. We offer a variety of painting services as well as other home improvement projects including deck staining, gutter cleaning, faux finishes and more! Simply call 910-686-3067 or send us a message online. We look forward to hearing from you!