Is Your Home Ready for Cold Weather?

It may seem like you have plenty of time to prepare your home for cold weather, but it will be here sooner than you think. The best course of action is to get things ready before cold weather arrives. Not only does it make sense to prepare your home for winter before it's actually necessary, but you'll be a lot more comfortable doing it before the temps get too cold.

The heating unit -

1. No matter where you live, it's important to ensure that your heating system is working properly . This needs to be done before cold weather arrives, or else you may be left in the cold. Contact a professional HVAC service to come out and inspect your furnace and service it as he sees fit.

2. Step outside and examine the area around your heating unit. If there is overgrowth that touches the unit, trim it back. This will allow air to flow freely around it, which won't bog it down and cause it to work harder to heat the home.

3. Replace the air filter inside your home before you run the heater for the first time. These filters become clogged with dirt, dust, pet hair, and other debris, which can put a lot of strain on your furnace as it tries to heat the house. If you live in an area that is prone to severe winter weather, keep several extra filters on hand.

The chimney -

If you have a fireplace or wood burning stove, have a professional chimney sweep come out and inspect and clean out the flue before it's used. A professional inspection can help confirm that there are no cracks or structural issues with the flue. Moreover, a cleaning is necessary from season-to-season to remove the build-up of soot and creosote, which can cause a serious fire hazard.

The roof -

An important part of cold weather preparation is ensuring the roof can hold what winter may bring. Get up on the roof and look for cracked shingles, missing shingles, bent shingles, and so on. If you see anything that needs repaired, do it now. This is a simple fix; remove and replace any damaged shingles. Small cracks or tears can be mended with roofing cement.

The Gutters -

Prepare your home for cold weather by spending a few hours of one day cleaning out all the gutters around the house. Not only will this prevent overflow, but it will keep water from sitting in the gutters, which may freeze when frigid temps arrive.

Weatherization -

Help keep your home nice and toasty warm, and conserve energy in the process, by weatherizing windows and doors. This is very simple to do and fairly inexpensive. Add weather stripping to windows, door seals to block out cold air, and socket sealers to electric outlets. Learn more about weatherizing products that will help.

More from Jennifer Wagner:

Save time and Money with Preventative Home Maintenance

10 Things You Can Do To Make a Home More Accessible

Invisible Dangers Lurking at Home

SOURCE:

Personal knowledge and experience

Jennifer Wagner - Yahoo! Contributor Network

Columbus Home Improvement Examiner