With winter fast approaching and snow already on the ground in the Treasure Valley, we thought it would be helpful to share a few home maintenance tips for the holiday season. Of course the inside is where many of us hibernate in the Idaho winter, but a holistic approach toward your home will protect your investment overall.
The ways exterior fixtures effect your home:
Clean your gutters: It's important to make sure that leaves and other debris aren't' blocking your gutters and preventing the water to drain freely. If water freezes in the gutters, it's not the worst thing ever, but results could be damaging over time.
Insulate the attic: Take a look in the attic and make sure that there is a minimum of 12 inches of insulation. If there isn't, make sure to add more. There are plenty of services that can inspect your attic as well, but the main thing is making sure that this area is energy efficient for the winter months.
Insulate exterior pipes: If your pipes in the laundry room and bathrooms are on exterior walls, make sure that they are insulated properly to prevent a lot of cold air from getting in.
What can be done on the interior of the home:
Add more curtains: Hanging more curtains or heavier curtains will help keep the cold out of your bedrooms and living rooms. Keep the curtains open when the sun is shining and make sure they are closed every night. This sort of back and forth allows the home to regulate temperature in a way that will save on your next power bill. Simple, yet effective.
Check the fireplace: If you have a wood burning fireplace, it is very important to have it inspected and cleaned. This should be done annually. We can all benefit from the cozy feeling provided with a wood burning fireplace, but if regular maintenance isn't being performed it can cause a major headache in terms of the homes value.
Seal the doors: Replace any worn weather stripping to help keep all the doors sealed properly. Lots of energy is wasted every year because of old windows and door seals working improperly. Another aspect of our lovely treasure valley is that the average age of houses puts them somewhere in the timeline of ineffective seals. Weather stripping around doors gets regular wear and tear, so even if you're home is newly built in a Kuna development, after a few years you'll need to perform this update.
There are many other ways to winterize your home so make sure you do your homework to save yourself time and money. The team at Coltrin Central Vac. wishes everyone a happy, safe and warm winter and a Merry Christmas!
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