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MAINTAINING your house during the winter season
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The following guide lines are items that the homeowner should review and complete before the snow gets too deep:
- Check and clean your rain gutters and downspouts for leaf build-up from early winter season and ice jams from cold temperatures. Make sure that the elbow at the bottom of the downspout is facing away from the house and that it dose not allows the water to puddle at the foundation wall. This will limit any water damage that may occurs into the basement and prevent ice dams from occurring at the base of the roof that may cause water damages to the interior ceilings at the roofline. (Note: An ice dam build-up occurs when water freezes in the rain gutters and the build up that occurs raises the roof shingles and allows for the water to clime up hill during freezing and thaw cycles during the winter.)
- Regularly during winter check and secure all handrails at the entry doors to the house, to prevent slipping while using the steps during ice and snow conditions.
- Check the turn off water supplies at the hose bibs (faucets) on the exterior of your house. If there is ice buildup near the drains that may signal you have a leak. Make sure to drain any remaining water from the pipe to prevent further freezing and potential water damage to your basement
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- regularly check all doors and windows for proper fit and weather tightness. If you discover any air leaks repair or replace weather striping. For storm windows make sure that the weep holes found at the base of the window frame are not clogged with ice or dust. And for those property owners without storm windows (it is never too late to install them) you can purchase storm window kits. (They can be obtained from any hardware or any store with a home improvement section.)
- Make sure your furnace or boiler are performing normally. If you hear any abnormal sounds or see water leaks near your furnace, seek professional help immediately. For those of you that have the cardboard replacement filters in your hot air furnaces, the recommended replacement is at least once a month during the heating season. Allow proper clearances around the indoor and outdoor components of your heating system.
- For smoke detectors, if you have battery units it is recommended that batteries be replaced twice a year at the same time the clock changes occur for Daylight Savings & Eastern Standard Time. If you forgot when they were changed last, don't take a risk. Change them immediately. All units should be cleaned by using a vacuum cleaner during your normal household cleaning. This will remove dust build – up which can cause false alarms.
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