Preparing Your Home For The Incoming Autumn/Winter Seasons

After a long and splendid summer, finally, the trees are turning burgundy and yellow. It’s time for the fall to once again reign supreme and dictate how we live our lives and the moods we have during the day. The cooler temperatures bring with them the seasonal shedding of leaves from trees, frosty mornings where every time you exhale, you can see your breath, and of course, the unpredictability of the weather. Usually, the sun puts up a pretty good fight very early on, but soon, rain clouds become a common thing and the atmosphere changes.

The air gets thicker and due to high pressure, starts to slow down, sending chills down your spine. Our homes should be treated as living things too because the weather changes quickly have an effect on every part of the properties we live in. A bit of attention to detail and practical thinking could save you from having to do costly repairs. If you’re unprepared for the gradual and sometimes sudden climate shift, you could get caught out with horrendous consequences that follow.

Keep it airtight

You may not notice it during the warmer months, but most likely, your home is being subjected to drafts. Air flow that suddenly pours into your home from the outside, due to a crack or hole in your exterior walls or structural flaw can drop the temperature of your living space dramatically. It’s crucial that you also plug any of these gaps before the rains come in, so you don’t suffer from rot and mold forming in the cracks. You can sense a slit edge if you can see water entering through your windowsills or seeping in through your roof into the attic. You may find it easier to spot these openings if you place a candle at suspected areas and observe the flame. The flame will flicker and be pushed in the opposite direction from the draft, allowing you to mark the spot for renovation. You can either seal these gaps with putty or filling agent, or you can put towels in the windowsills to not only block the draft but to also absorb any rainwater that comes in. You can also replace the window frames if the erosion is too large.

Clear the gutters and pipes

The interior of your home is vastly important, but many issues first start with the exterior of the home being weakened and slowly withering away. As the rain will begin to become more and more common each day, together with the colder thicker air, there is a high chance of blockages causing damage to your home. Before the season gets in full swing, clean your gutters of leaves, pebbles, twigs and bird droppings. Clear and blockages, especially at the kinks and curves of the pipes as the majority of debris, will get lodged at these narrow points. You could hire a service to do the cleaning for you if you’re uncomfortable with heights.

Prepare for flooding

The fall season also brings with it the commonality of rain clouds. Due to heavy rain and sudden tumultuous downpours, rivers and lakes become overflown and flooding around them can begin to take place. There’s very little the authorities can do for you once the waters start to spill over the barriers and out onto the streets and pavements. As they ground in residential areas is concrete, the water will have nowhere else to go, except into your home. It’s vital then that you have a way to get the flood water out of your property as quickly as it came in, to stop any structural damage from occurring. You can get sump pump switches via theplumbinginfo, which will allow you to turn on your pumping equipment remotely. If by chance you come home one day and you can see your basement is filling up with water, it’s hazardous to venture down into the water to manually turn on the pump. You may have washing machines or other electrical appliances engulfed by the water. Therefore it’s better to have a switch you can use to turn on any pumping system that will clear the water, and not put yourself at risk.

Cover the air conditioning

Air conditioning is exposed during these colder months, to the full brunt of the harsh weather. The machine could get clogged with leaves, have water run through the system and generally, the cold can be harmful to the sensitive parts of the machine. The internal wires, computer chips, and even the blades are fragile enough for the winter frost to seep in and potentially ruin these parts. You should cover your air conditioning unit in preparation for the hail, rain, sleet, and snow. You should use a fairly thick blanket of some kind, with the fabric side on the outside, so any loose bits cannot get into the filter. Tie the covering down with a something strong like rope or very tough synthetic string. It’s also a good idea to do this because the air conditioner is one way for the cold wind to get inside your home, which many people don’t think about.

Get an automated thermostat

Gone should be the days of having to switch on your central heating manually. If you haven’t already, by a programmable thermostat. By doing this, you can set a timer to your central heating and have it activate whenever you wish. There’s nothing more soothing that driving home from work or after picking up the kids in the freezing cold, then walking into a nice warm home. You can also set the temperature to whatever you want, which if you do so during the night time, can save you money on your monthly bills.

Preparing for the autumn and winter months requires you to have a different mindset. Contrary to what the popular belief might be, but because the atmosphere is colder, everything doesn’t turn rock solid. Actually, rains are much more frequent, so you’re having to deal with a wetter environment. Make sure your home is ready, and your thoughtfulness will add to your family’s comfort as well as saving yourself from having to make costly repairs to your property.