10 Spring Home Maintenance Tips

10 Spring Home Maintenance Tips  

After a long, dark winter, spring's bright sun and warm winds are, well, a breath of fresh air. The only downside? All that sunshine spotlights your leaf-filled gutters, cracked sidewalks and the dead plants in last year's flower beds. Here are some target areas that may need maintenance
around your home.

1) Check for loose or leaky gutters. Improper drainage can lead to water in the basement or crawl space. Make sure downspouts drain away from the foundation and are clear and free of debris.

2) Low areas in the yard or next to the foundation should be filled with compacted soil. Spring rains can cause yard flooding, which can lead to foundation flooding and damage. Also, when water pools in these low areas in summer, it creates a breeding ground for insects.

3) Use a screwdriver to probe the wood trim around windows, doors, railings and decks. Make repairs now before the spring rains do more damage to the exposed wood.

4) From the ground, examine roof shingles to see if any were lost or damaged during winter. If your home has an older roof covering, you may want to start a budget for replacement. The summer sun can really damage roof shingles. Shingles that are cracked, buckled or loose or are missing granules need to be replaced. Flashing around plumbing vents, skylights and chimneys need to be checked and repaired by a qualified roofer.


5) Examine the exterior of the chimney for signs of damage. Have the flue cleaned and inspected by a certified chimney sweep.

6) Inspect concrete slabs for signs of cracks or movement. All exterior slabs except pool decks should drain away from the home's foundation. Fill cracks with a concrete crack filler or silicone caulk. When weather permits, power-wash and then seal the concrete.

7) Remove firewood stored near the home. Firewood should be stored at least 18 inches off the ground at least 2 feet from the structure.

8) Check outside hose faucets for freeze damage. Turn the water on and place your thumb or finger over the opening. If you can stop the flow of water, it is likely the pipe inside the home is damaged and will need to be replaced. While you're at it, check the garden hose for dry rot.

9) Have a qualified heating and cooling contractor clean and service the outside unit of the air conditioning system. Clean coils operate more efficiently, and an annual service call will keep the system working at peak performance levels. Change interior filters on a regular basis.

10) Check your gas- and battery-powered lawn equipment to make sure it is ready for summer use. Clean equipment and sharp cutting blades will make yard work easier.

April Home Maintenance Tip

April Home Maintenance Tips

Fix fences, tighten your home’s energy efficiency, repair a screen door and make 8 cheap, fun improvements to give your home’s entrance some spring sparkle.

Finally, it’s spring. To celebrate, do a few improvements indoors — tweaking your home’s energy efficiency and getting doors to operate smoothly — and then get outdoors to do some work that shows off your home’s exterior. Install a new screen door or repair an old one. Maintain fireplaces and gas appliances while avoiding the scammers who pop out of the woodwork like bugs this season. Repair fences. Remove stubborn stains from concrete garage floors, patios and sidewalks. And try one or all of our eight cheap and fun ways to give your home’s entrance some exciting spring sparkle.

Inside

Install a programmable thermostat:
Energy is wasted when you push up the temperature when the room feels cold or turn down the heat manually when it’s too warm. A programmable thermostat lets you set the temperature in your home, then leave it. The most useful products give you options for establishing different temperatures for day and night (62 at night, for example, and 65 during the day), weekdays and weekends (keep the house cooler while you're away at work and warmer when you're home) and also let you turn the heat way down during vacations without changing your daily settings.

Cut energy expenses further:
While you are in the mood to reduce energy consumption, call your electric utility and/or your heating-fuel company to ask about financial incentives for installing energy-efficient appliances or improvements. Some utilities subsidize the cost of improvements: adding insulation or weather-stripping, or installing that programmable thermostat, for example. Others give rebates for purchasing Energy Star appliances such as water heaters, air conditioners, dehumidifiers, heat pumps and fans. Also, remember to take the federal tax credit for such.

Straighten out problem doors:
Walk around the house with a can of silicone lubricant and a rag, trying each door. If a door is sticky, open it part way and pull the hinge pin out. The pin is found in the center of the hinge, in the joint between the plate on the wall and the one on the door. Lightly oil the pin and the hole into which it will fit, using the rag to stop drips. Drop the pin back in place. If a pin is stuck in a hinge, use a hammer and small screwdriver to knock it all the way out. Sand off accumulated oil, dust and rust from pin and lightly lubricate it before reinstalling. You may have to do this with both pins.

Outside

Repair or replace screen doors:
Get ready for bug season by hanging screen doors. You can repair torn screens yourself:
Measure the screen opening. You'll need overage, so add at least an inch to each side. Bring the measurements to a hardware store and purchase a new length of screen.
The screen is held in place by a flexible cord fitted into a channel that runs around the screen frame. Lift out the cord. If it is old and brittle, measure it and buy new cord at the hardware store.
Place the new screen over the opening, fit it snugly in place by settling the cord in its channel around the entire opening (poke it in place with a screwdriver). Trim the excess screen with scissors or a box cutter.
Many Hardware stores sell kits for replacing screens today check with your local store.

Install a chimney/rain cap:
You could send out an invitation to birds and squirrels to come nest in the warmth of your chimney, or you could install a cap to protect the stack from dripping rain and uninvited critters. A cap, sometimes called a “crown,” shelters the opening while it lets smoke escape. A cap prevents wind from entering your home and helps create a good draft that feeds your fireplace or stove with oxygen. Metal chimneys usually come with caps, but if yours doesn't have one, ask the manufacturer for advice. Caps are not appropriate for all chimneys. Ask your chimney sweep to inspect the chimney each year for damage and to advise you on whether to install a cap.

Beware chimney-sweep scams:
Yes, you should have your chimney swept by a professional to remove flammable creosote that builds up inside the flue from wood smoke. (If you don’t use the stove or fireplace much, you can wait two to three years between cleanings.) But not every chimney sweep is right out of “Mary Poppins.” Door-to-door scammers prey on homeowners, dangling deliciously low prices, then pressuring owners into “repairing” expensive but fictitious problems. Protect yourself by using a chimney sweep with an established business in your town. Check a company’s track record through the Better Business Bureau and locate certified sweeps at the www.wettinc.ca

Have gas-burning furnaces and appliances inspected:
Every year a licensed gas technician should clean out dust and debris and examine the appliance for safety, efficiency and repairs. Find a repair pro through your gas company or utility or search the Plumbing-Heating-Cooling Contractors Association's in your area.

March Home Maintenance Tips

It’s time to see what winter’s wind, rain and snow have done to your home and make fixes quickly to head off  spring water-related damage. First, head outside.

Outside:

• Spiff up the front entry. One way to stay on top of your home’s maintenance and protect your investment is to look at it as though you’re a stranger considering it for purchase. Perform repairs as the need arises and try each year to add a little to the home’s attractiveness on the outside. One good way to boost curb appeal, as real-estate agents call it, is to make the entrance more appealing. Once the weather is dry, check steps, decks and porches for wood rot and peeling paint. Repaint railings  nd porch steps yearly with durable deck or concrete paint. Wash winter grime and dust off the front door and door frame. Repaint or stain the front door to protect wood doors and give the whole home a little face lift.

     
• Check for roof dams. Now that the worst of the weather is behind us, pull a ladder up to the roof to check the valleys and remove accumulations of leaves, sticks, tree needles and other debris. Similar to the dangers posed by melting snow on a roof, dammed-up debris can let moisture penetrate the roofing and reach into structural timbers and walls, causing rot and mold. Also, check the flashing's  around roof joints, chimneys, skylights and other structures that penetrate a roof for holes or rust. Make repairs or call a professional roofer.

• Book a home inspector. The only time most folks meet a home inspector is during the sale of their home. But by then, you’re learning about troubles too late. To stay on top of your home’s maintenance and head off expensive repairs, hire a home inspector to scrutinize your home from top to bottom. Cost: $250 to $450. Tag along on the inspection so you can see any problems for yourself and learn about your home by asking questions. The inspection will give you either peace of mind that everything’s in good shape or a list of chores to be done. Ask the inspector to help you prioritize the repair.                             

Indoors: Now move indoors to complete your moisture-detective tour and perform some other TLC.

Banish household smells

Clean the garbage disposal.   It’s good to get in the habit of doing this monthly. Pour a cup of  vinegar into an ice cube tray, fill up the rest of the tray with water and stick it in the freezer. When the solution has frozen, pop out the vinegar ice cubes and place them in the disposal with chopped up lemons. Turn it on and let the ice cubes scrub the disposal as they are ground up. The vinegar will remove accumulated grease and eliminate odors coming from the disposal. Clean all drains, including the disposal, two or three times a year by pouring in equal parts salt, baking soda and vinegar, followed about 30 seconds later by two quarts of               boiling water.

• Clean or replace garbage cans and pails. Check garbage containers inside and out for cracks and breakage. Replace cracked or broken outdoor cans and use bungee cords to keep lids closed tightly. Take the kitchen garbage pail outside, sprinkle in a half-cup of baking soda and fill the can with hot water. Let sit for an hour, and then dump out the water and use spray cleanser to wipe down the can inside and out. Dry it thoroughly before putting it back in the kitchen. Clean the refrigerator by removing everything and washing down the inside with hot water and baking soda.

• Eliminate bathroom, kitchen and laundry smells. Trapped moisture encourages smelly mildew, mold and rot, which can create odors in the kitchen, laundry and bathrooms. Thoroughly inspect each of these rooms for cracks and breakage in grout and caulking that let water seep behind tile and flooring.  Check appliances for plumbing leaks by looking for moisture under or around sinks, tubs, washer, dryer, shower and toilets. 

• If you have a front load clothes washer inspect and clean the rubber booth, in most cases you can pull the boot back and clean around the boot, and you might even find that lost sock. Check for toilet leaks: Add a few drops of food coloring into the tank (not the bowl) of a toilet. Don’t flush. Come back in an hour to see if any of the color has reached the toilet bowl. If it has, you probably need to replace the flapper in the tank. If water is collecting around the base of the toilet, the seal – the wax gasket between the toilet and floor – may have failed and need to be replaced.

Install a simple water-saving devices:

• Aerators. Kitchen and bathroom faucets consume a great deal of water. Trim your home’s water usage by installing aerators in the faucet heads. Some shower heads accept aerators, too. Aerators mix air into the water to maintain good water pressure while reducing the amount of water flowing through the faucet. They cost $2 to $3 at a hardware store. To install, screw the aerators onto the  faucet tip. If you already have aerators on your faucets, remember to remove them annually to clean off any mineral deposits that can clog the screw-on screen and interfere with your water flow. Just toss and replace badly clogged aerators.