Yes, there are still some precious weeks ahead of picture perfect autumn weather (hopefully)—mild temperatures, sunshine and loads of fall foliage for leaf peeping.
That said, this is also the time of year to begin facing the reality of the upcoming winter. The snowy season’s demands can be intense, and you’ll want to make sure your house is in good working order to withstand them.
Among the many cleaning services we offer here at Gadue’s is restoration of smoke, fire, or water damaged clothing and household items. And because we’ve seen too many homeowners in need of those services on account of an inadequately winterized house, we thought we’d run down a quick checklist of some of the basic preparations that can cut down on the chances of a preventable disaster.
Check Your Fireplace and Chimney
For many people, a highlight of wintertime is a friendly blaze in the fireplace—but, of course, this also represents one of the serious hazards to your home. You should have your fireplace, flue, and chimney inspected at least once a year, or more often if you’re noticing problems.
Have a chimney sweep assess your system for creosote buildups, clogged dampers, and other issues that might impede airflow and basic fireplace function. A great way to find a qualified chimney sweep is to ask for guidance from your friendly local fire department.
Check Your Heating System
This is also an essential time to check on the condition and functionality of your furnace or water heater. A faulty heating system can introduce dangerous levels of carbon monoxide to your home, so have a professional repairperson tackle any problems, such as malfunctioning controls or gummed up ducts.
Change Batteries in the Smoke Alarms and Carbon Monoxide Detectors
Put fresh batteries in your smoke alarms and carbon monoxide detectors and make sure they’re functioning properly. Ensure you have enough alarms fitted in the proper places: You want smoke alarms on each floor of your home as well as in every bedroom and bedroom hallway; have a carbon monoxide detector in hallways bordering every sleeping area as well.
Check for Other Structural Issues
More broadly, when you’re winterizing your home you want to look it over for any and all structural issues. How’s your roof looking? Remember, it needs to be in good shape enough to withstand potentially months of snowpack on top of it. How about those gutters? Now is a better time to clear them than when everything’s iced over. Check for insulation breaches throughout the house, which not only rack up your heating bill but also can cause airflow problems.
Gadue’s Restoration Service
Be proactive about evaluating your house’s condition and making necessary repairs and upgrades, and you’ll reduce the likelihood of a house fire, air quality issue, or another of those dangerous situations we want to help you avoid.
If the unthinkable happens, though, and you suffer damages, remember you can always turn to Gadue’s Dry Cleaning. Depending on the degree of damage, we can often restore your clothes and household items to a pre-loss condition.
Everyone here at Gadue’s wishes you a cozy—and safe—winter! Now go check that fireplace!
