Your home’s exterior is an awesome space where you can enjoy gathering with friends and loved ones and making memories. Unfortunately, if you’re not prepared for the winter, your exterior could quickly become an expensive bill, with repairs draining your bank account.
Instead of letting this damage slide, these are several home exterior projects anyone should do before winter.
Clean Your Gutters and Add Guards
Your gutters are vital to protecting your roof from leaks and stopping the first floor of your home from flooding in the spring. Although they may just seem like a leaf-catching device at times, they’re incredibly important to any property. Unfortunately, they are really great at catching leaves: so it’s vital that you clear them out and consider getting gutter guards. If not, the mass of leaves and debris in them could freeze and turn into a burg: ruining your roof.
Clear Your Flower Beds And Plant Bulbs
Just because spring is gone doesn’t mean your garden has to be dead! When fall is underway and your gardens die, take the time to clear out any dead flowers. Behind this, plant bulbs and give your property the chance to spring into life when the warmer weather starts coming back.
Check Your Siding and Roof Health
Your siding and roof are there to protect you from the rough cold, but if your roof is older or your siding is cracking, you could be setting yourself up for failure. Look into fiber cement siding– it’s one of the best types of house siding for winter weather and will keep your home safe and insulated through the ice and snow.
Correct Cracks in Cement or Concrete
Creating a gorgeous home exterior is nice: but there are bigger reasons to remove any cracks in the cement. Unlike oil stains, which you can fix in an afternoon after looking up how to remove oil stains from driveways, cracks will get far worse over time if you let them go unchecked. Do what you can to clean up the cracks and get rid of any imperfections where water could gather in the winter. These cracks will just grow larger as they go through another freeze and thaw cycle: don’t let that happen. Waterproofing concrete walls will protect you before the cracks even start.
Completely Drain and Dry Your Pool
If you have a pool, you need to drain it and get out any moisture. Ice expands as it freezes, and this could quickly crack or ruin your pool and the pipes that lead to it. If your pool’s pipes aren’t winterized, make sure they are so you don’t have to worry about flooding your lawn or home the moment they start to thaw out.
Cut Grass and Rake One Last Time
Before the snow and ice settle in, take the time to cut your grass and rake up the last of your leaves one last time. Although some leaves would break down and become mulch through the winter that could feed your grass in the spring: too many leaves will simply suffocate your grass and leave you for a property with a brown lawn.
Cut lower than usual on your last cut to make sure if there’s any growth left, it’ll have space to grow a little without looking bad. If you decide to mow your leaves because you have too many, empty the extra leaves into a bag, and don’t let your mower scatter them back onto your lawn.
Comfort is a Must for Your Porch
Your porch should be one of the most comfortable areas of your home! When it snows and gets chilly out, you won’t want to wander off into your yard, so it’s a good idea to have a covered and safe exterior space where you can still enjoy the beauty of winter. Look into the many different porch ceiling ideas that will inspire you to create a unique and gorgeous home entrance, and don’t forget to update your exterior lighting, the paint, and any exterior furniture you have.
Check Your Windows and Doors
It’s important to check your windows and doors before winter settles in. These entrances to your home are often the main line of defense between your home and the icy weather outdoors. To check if there are any broken seals or if you need to get a window sash replacement, take the time to light a candle. Walk slowly near these windows and doors, and if you can see the flame pulling one way or another: it could be time for a window sash replacement. This change will save you a lot of money and trouble once the temperature drops.
Home Updates Can Make Any Property Safer in Winter!
Winter is coming in fast, and there’s no way to predict what weather it will bring. Make sure your property is as safe as possible by preparing for the worst!
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