Top Ways to Winterize Your Home
Winter can be a very harsh environment for your home. Your home has to work very hard to keep the inside cozy and perfect for those cold winter nights. Here are the top things you should do to winterize your house for the winter.
1. Clean your gutters — but be careful!
This can be a hard and tricky job so you need to be careful. You want to make sure your gutters are clear and clean of any debris to get ready for rain, snow or ice. You will want to clean out all of the leaves, twigs and dirt so that the ice or rain will not clog your gutters. Clogged gutters can not only harm your gutters but also your roof. This job includes using a ladder so if you are not comfortable hire a professional.
2. Inspect your furnace
It is a good idea to have a heating and cooling company to do maintenance service on your systems. A service technician knows what to look for and will go over your furnace with a fine tooth comb. The worst time to find out your furnace is not running efficiently is during a cold winter day.
3. Insulate your pipes
Most anyone should be able to do this step. There are foam insulation tubes designed for covering pipes. All you will need to do is cust the length and pop them on. Insulating your pipes close to the outside walls will prevent them from freezing.
4. Seal your doors and windows
A good test and indicator that you need to do this is to see if you can see daylight around the edges of your doors or windows. If so, they need o be sealed with caulk. Another step even further is to put up storm windows during the winter which will keep the heat inside.
5. Reverse your ceiling fans
This should be an easy one. Heat rises so you want the fans to push the heat back down. This will keep your house toasty during the winter. There is a switch on most ceiling fans that can be switched so that the fan will go counterclockwise.
6. Get your chimney swept
A fire is a great way to stay cozy and warm during the winter. If you have a fireplace, then you need to make sure it is in working order. A good way to do this is to get your chimney swept. Creosote can build up in your chimney and can actually cause a fire so this can be dangerous.
If you follow these tips for winterizing your home, then you should be comfy and warm all winter.
