Winter is almost upon us. Smart homeowners are in preparation mode, scrambling to get pre-winter chores completed before the snow flies. Getting your home in order for winter is important to protect your investment and make your life easier throughout the season. If you’re behind schedule, 7B handyman is here to help. Many homeowners choose the DIY route, but for larger projects, it never hurts to have an expert’s help. We’re happy to take some of these winterization tasks off your hands if you’re overwhelmed. We’ve compiled a list of things we get requests for regularly. Incase you haven’t thought of everything, feel free to cheat off us!
You probably already took care of some of these, but it’s never too late to save a pipe from freezing and possibly bursting on you.
Remove Garden Hoses From Faucets
Remove garden hoses from outdoor faucets. Leaving hoses attached can cause water to back up in the faucets and in the plumbing pipes just inside your exterior walls. If freezing temps hit, that water could freeze, expand, and crack the faucet or pipes. Make this an early fall priority so a sudden cold snap doesn’t sneak up and cause damage. Turn off any shutoff valves on water supply lines that lead to exterior faucets. That way, you’ll guard against minor leaks that may let water enter the faucet.
While you’re at it, drain garden hoses and store them in a shed or garage.
Drain Your Sprinkler System if you haven’t yet.
Time to drain your irrigation system. Even buried irrigation lines can freeze, leading to busted pipes and broken sprinkler heads. Follow the steps below to properly drain your sprinkler system.
Turn off the water to the system at the main valve.
Shut off the automatic controller.
Open drain valves to remove water from the system.
Remove any above-ground sprinkler heads and shake the water out of them, then replace.
If you don’t have drain valves, consider hiring an irrigation professional to blow out the systems pipes with compressed air.
Seal Air Leaks
Grab a couple of tubes of color-matched exterior caulk ($5 for a 12-ounce tube) and make a journey around your home’s exterior, sealing up cracks between trim and siding, around window and door frames, and where pipes and wires enter your house. Preventing moisture from getting inside your walls is one of the least expensive and most important of your fall maintenance jobs. You’ll also seal air leaks that waste energy.
Pick a nice day when temps are above 45 degrees if you can.
De-Gunk Your Gutters
Clogged rain gutters can cause ice dams, which can lead to expensive repairs. After the leaves have fallen, clean your gutters to remove leaves, twigs, and gunk. Make sure gutters aren’t sagging and trapping water; tighten gutter hangers and downspout brackets. Replace any worn or damaged gutters and downspouts. If you find colored grit from asphalt roof shingles in your gutters, beware. That sand-like grit helps protect shingles from the damaging ultraviolet rays of the sun. Look closely for other signs of roof damage it may be time for a roofing replacement. Your downspouts should extend at least 5 feet away from your house to prevent foundation problems. If they don’t, add downspout extensions.
Inspect the roof for problems
If you have a steep roof, stay safe and use binoculars to inspect your roof from the ground. Look for warning signs: Shingles that are buckled, cracked, or missing; rust spots on flashing. Any loose, damaged, or missing shingles should be replaced immediately. Black algae stains are just cosmetic, but masses of moss and lichen could signal roofing that’s decayed underneath.
A plumbing vent stack usually is flashed with a rubber collar called a boot that may crack or loosen over time. They’ll wear out before your roof does, so make sure they’re in good shape.
Direct Your Drainage
Take a close look at the soil around your foundation and make sure it slopes away from your house at least 6 vertical inches over 10 feet. That way, you’ll keep water from soaking the soils around your foundation, which could lead to cracks and leaks. Be sure soil doesn’t touch your siding.
Check Your Furnace
Schedule an appointment with a hvac if necessary to get your heating system tuned up for the coming heating season. We can help you inspect it and change your furnace filters. This is a job you should do every two months anyway, but if you haven’t, now’s the time. If your system includes a built-in humidifier, make sure to replace that filter as well.
Check Your Fireplace and Chimney
To make sure your fireplace is safe, grab a flashlight and look up inside your fireplace flue to make sure the damper opens and closes properly. Open the damper and look up into the flue to make sure it’s free of birds’ nests, branches and leaves, or other obstructions. You should see daylight at the top of the chimney.
Check the firebox for cracked or missing bricks and mortar. If you spot any damage, you’ll want to get it fixed before we get into the winter. 7B handyman is happy to help with that. Now is also a good time to have a look at your chimney. Your fireplace flue should be cleaned of creosote buildup every other year.
Sweet! You can finally install your holiday lights, or have us do it!
Did we mention, that 7B handyman has the tools and experience to get to all those hard-to-reach spots up on the roof. You’ll get a beautiful display without risking injury due to climbing on the roof. We may also be able to convert your outdoor outlets to GFCI.
Done Outside? Move to indoor projects.
Once you’ve got the outdoors all squared away, maintenance, you can think about what indoor projects you can get done over the Winter. This is a great time to be working inside. Projects like renovations and remodels in the kitchen or bathroom. Anything that doesn’t require you being outside in the cold much. Here are a few ideas along those lines. Tile Installation
If you’ve ever laid a tile floor or installed a backsplash in your kitchen or bathroom, you know that it’s easy to make mistakes and ruin the aesthetic appeal of your project. Tiling also often requires special tools. Skip the hassle altogether and delegate it to a professional.
Indoor Painting
Painting is a huge project. Though most opt for DIY, it’s nice to turn the project over to an expert. Consider how much time you’ll save by letting someone else handle the taping, priming, trim work, and clean-up!
Flooring
Carpet, laminate, and hardwood flooring installation requires specialized tools, not to mention that it’s time-consuming if you don’t know the tricks of the trade. While flooring installations are definitely possible to DIY, most homeowners pass the job along to a handyman.
Bathroom Remodeling
Some of us aren’t handy with a plunger, let alone with major plumbing maintenance issues. Almost everyone knows that when the drains get sluggish, it’s time to call in a technician who knows the ropes. The same goes for larger renovation projects. Whether you need a shower installed in your new master bathroom or a replacement faucet for your kitchen sink, the process goes much more smoothly with help from a professional.
Drywall Repair
Patching a dent or a few nail holes is one thing, but what do you do when you need to replace significantly damaged drywall? If you don’t feel like mudding, taping, spackling, and touch-up painting, put it on your handyman projects list.
Make sure your working safely
We’ve all seen the home remodeling shows where homeowners take a sledgehammer to their walls to make room for new improvements. But before you go knocking down drywall, it might be best to sit down with a professional first. We can help plan the renovation to make sure you’re not damaging the structural integrity of your home. Call us to come take a look so we can get you a bid.
We hope this helps you! If you need a hand checking some of these items off the list or if you have a winter project planned, call 7B Handyman today. We’ll bring all the right tools for the job and help you get it all taken care of efficiently.
7B Handyman wishes you a safe, warm, and trouble free season. Sometimes you just need a hand, if that’s the case don’t hesitate to call us, 208-304-6335