Is Your Home Ready for Winter? Fall Maintenance to Tackle Before the Cold Creeps In
Fall in Cheyenne doesn't always give us a lot of warning before winter makes an appearance. One day we're enjoying the warm temperatures, and the next we're turning on the heater in our cars.
That makes fall an important time for homeowners to take care of a few maintenance tasks before cold weather arrives.
Cheyenne's average first fall freeze is September 30, and there's a 50% historical chance of temperatures reaching 32°F by September 29. In other words, now is a good time to start getting your home ready. Unless you want to be tackling projects when the first snow is already in the forecast, don’t procrastinate!
Here are a few things worth putting on your fall home-maintenance list.
Take care of your irrigation system before a hard freeze
If you have an underground sprinkler system, winterization should be near the top of your list.
The City of Cheyenne Board of Public Utilities specifically advises homeowners not to wait to winterize their irrigation systems in the fall. Water left inside irrigation components can freeze and expand, potentially damaging pipes, valves, sprinkler heads, and other parts of the system.
The exact timing can depend on the weather and your system, but the important deadline is the first hard freeze. If you normally hire someone to blow out your sprinkler lines, this is a good time to get it scheduled.
And don't forget about your garden hoses and outdoor faucets. Disconnect hoses and follow your home's recommended procedure for shutting off and draining exterior water lines before freezing temperatures arrive.
Get your heating system ready
Before you need your furnace on a cold night, make sure it's ready to go.
Start with the easy stuff: replace your furnace filter and make sure your vents and registers aren't blocked by furniture, rugs, or other items.
If your heating system hasn't been serviced recently, fall is also a good time to schedule a professional inspection or tune-up. Getting ahead of the first cold snap can be easier than discovering a problem on the first really cold night of the year.
This is also a good opportunity to test your smoke and carbon monoxide detectors and replace batteries if needed.
Wait for the leaves to fall THEN clean the gutters
Cleaning your gutters is an important part of fall maintenance, but timing matters.
If the trees around your property are still full of leaves, cleaning the gutters today may mean doing the job again in a couple of weeks. Once most of the leaves have fallen, give your gutters and downspouts a thorough cleaning so water can drain properly before winter weather arrives.
While you're up there or looking from the ground, take a quick look for obvious signs of damage or areas where water isn't draining properly.
If you're not comfortable getting on a ladder or inspecting the roof yourself, consider having a professional take a look.
Walk around the outside of your home
Before winter weather makes outdoor projects more difficult, take a walk around your property.
Look for damaged siding, loose trim, cracked caulking around windows and doors, missing shingles, or other obvious problems that could allow moisture or cold air into your home.
You don't have to fix everything you find immediately. The goal is simply to identify small problems while they're still relatively easy to address.
This is also a good time to check your exterior lighting. The days are getting shorter, and making sure walkways, entrances, and other areas around your home are well lit can make a difference once we're spending more time coming and going in the dark.
Finish up the yard before winter
Fall cleanup isn't just about making your yard look nice.
Clear leaves and debris away from your home's foundation, clean up garden beds, and trim back plants as appropriate. If you have trees with dead or damaged branches, consider having them addressed before winter winds and snow create additional problems.
You may also want to put away outdoor furniture, garden tools, hoses, and other equipment that won't be needed during the winter months.
The goal isn't to make your yard perfect. It's to leave it in a condition that can handle several months of cold, snow, wind, and moisture.
Don't wait for the first snow
You don't have to spend an entire weekend winterizing your home.
Instead, make a short list and tackle it over the next few weeks. Prioritize the tasks that are affected by freezing temperatures, especially irrigation and exterior water lines, then work your way through the rest as the weather changes.
A little preparation now can help you avoid discovering a maintenance problem when it's 10 degrees outside.
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