Is Your Home Winter Ready?
Winter is upon us – what better time is there to get winter ready? It's time to start thinking and preparing your home inside and out. A few precautions could save you a lot of heartache and money!
With heavy rains and storms comes damage to property, you can avoid some of this by just taking a little time to ensure your house is prepared. The last thing anyone needs is a leaking roof due to overloaded gutters.
Here are some basic tips to protect your biggest investment – severe weather can challenge us all.
Outside
Gutters
Inspect your gutters for debris and leaves and remove all, even get the hose and flush them out. Full gutters can cause your roof to leak and even collapse, when the water has nowhere to go, the gutters fill and it backs up and flows into the roof space.
This can be quite devastating, nobody wants water pouring into their home and over their belongings, or even worse over you whilst you are asleep. It will always invariably happen in the middle of the night!
It is also wise to have a professional clean your gutters to avoid any personal injury, particularly if you are elderly or need to get on the roof.
Trees
If you have any large trees on your property – have them cut back. Particularly ones that are hanging near power lines or your roof-line. A large branch snapping off a tree is extremely dangerous and can cause major damage.
Once again, please get a professional to lop large trees – make sure you use a reputable tree lopping service – there are some ‘cowboys’ around that can be a bit unscrupulous.
Backyard
Storm forecast? Secure all loose items outside to prevent them becoming missiles, causing bodily injuring or property damage. Anything that can be put away in a shed – store over the winter period.
Inside
Heaters
Check your gas heater, particularly the hose, if it is showing any signs of wear and tear you will need to replace. If your heater is an older model, you may need to have it serviced to keep it in good working order. Check and clean your filters.
Electric heaters – check the cords and ensure it's in good working order. Make sure they are dust free as settled dust could spark a fire.
Food
Excellent time to clean out the cupboard – clear out any flour, breadcrumbs etc that may be open and put any similar items into sealed containers. These are the type of things that will attract rodents whilst they are looking for a warm place in the cold.
No one wants a family of Stuart Little’s making themselves at home in your HOME!
At the end of the day being prepared for the winter weather will only be beneficial to you and your home.
IT’S WORTH DOING!