In the Northwest Suburbs of Illinois we can experience some severely cold winters. Over the years, I have witnessed many maintenence mishaps caused by the winter weather.  To prevent winter-related disasters, a little preparation makes all the difference!  Here are some tips for preparing your home for the winter season:

• Caulk and weatherstrip your windows to keep air from escaping through small cracks. Also, consider sealing any older or unused windows using a plastic window-sealer kit, which can be an inexpensive and relatively easy weekend project.

• Make sure that your chimney is clear. To do this, simply light some rolled up newspaper in the fireplace to see if the smoke rises. If it doesn't rise, your chimney is clogged and in this case you should contact a professional chimney sweep for proper cleaning.

• Prevent your pipes from freezing by wrapping them in insulation or newspapers.  To block moisture, cover the newspapers with plastic.  Also, during extreme cold temperatures, let faucets drip a little to help avoid any freezing from taking place. When in doubt, always know where your water valves are located and how to shut them off in the case of an emergency.
• If you plan to leave your home for an extended period during the winter, do not shut off your heat. Take additional precautions to prevent water piping in attics, crawlspaces, and exterior walls from bursting during freezing temperatures or while on winter vacations.

• Finally, replace the batteries in all of your smoke detectors and test to ensure that they are functioning properly.  Put fresh bulbs in all lights outside of your home. If you have a snowblower, consider having it tuned up to ensure that it is working properly and place it in a handy spot that is easy to access.

You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.