How To Get Your Home Ready for Winter

As winter approaches, your home needs extra protection. To make sure you keep the inside of your house warm and take care of any winter roof repairs before the first freeze, add the following tasks to your seasonal maintenance checklist.

Tune Up HVAC System
Frost on the trees outside is beautiful, but cold weather can be troublesome if your home isn’t equipped to withstand it. As the weather starts getting cooler in the fall, it’s a good practice to schedule a tune-up of your HVAC system with a certified professional. This ensures that your heater is working and ready when that cold snap hits.

Guard Against Drafts
No matter how good your heater is, your utility bill can get expensive if it has to work too hard to maintain a comfortable indoor temperature. Air leaks make it harder to keep your home warm because your HVAC system is constantly fighting drafts of cold air that seep in. You can guard against these drafts in three main ways:

• Replace old windows with storm windows or add caulk to cracks.
• Add weather stripping around doors.
• Place insulating strips on the back of the outlet covers.

Check Your Roof
Before the first snowfall, it’s important to make sure your roof is in good condition. You need a winter roof inspection every year in the fall. Professional roofers find weak spots at the joints where the roof and siding meet as well as any holes in your shingles. Then they repair the problem areas so that you don’t get water damage when it’s icy outside. Add insulation to your attic to keep heat from escaping through the roof and contributing to the formation of ice dams. This protects your home both inside and out.

There are extra tasks you need to do every year before winter begins. By taking care of winter roof repairs, HVAC tune-ups and air leaks, you can keep yourself and your family warm all season.