Now fall is here and in full swing, there has never been a perfect time to pay due care and attention to defending your property against the impending arrival of winter. Here, for your information, as well as for the protection of your future bank balance, are the top four ways to weatherproof your home this winter. Some of them can be sorted in no time at all; you will be pleased to hear.
1. Have Your Boiler Professionally Serviced
There are plenty of practical benefits to having your home’s boiler annually serviced by a professional company around October and November every year. Throughout winter is when the most pressure and demand is put upon your boiler and, if malfunctioning, a failure will result in a costly expense and maintenance outlays for not just the boiler but also the entirety of your plumbing system.
Other benefits of annual boiler servicing include a more energy-efficient home, an altogether warmer temperature, and the protection and guaranteed safety of yourself and your family.
2. Install Quality Weatherstripping On All Windows & Doors
During the cold winter climate, naturally, this is the time when your home loses far more heat. One of the main ways to contain the heat you are paying for is to ensure all significant cracks and gaps in all your windows and doors are freshly and properly seated.
Not only is weatherstripping an affordable and relatively simple way of weatherproofing your home for the winter, but it also can improve indoor air quality, prevent bug infestations, and the obvious financial savings.
3. Get Your Gutters & Drainage Systems Cleaned & Cleared
One of, if not the, most critical tasks that you must be sure not to neglect to complete to protect your property is to have your guttering cleaned and your drains unclogged.
To ensure the job is done thoroughly and correctly, it is strongly advisable to hire the services of a professional, knowledgeable, and established drain cleaning service company.
Other advantages of cleaning your guttering and drains include:
- Prevention of damage to the interior
- Avoidance of cracks in the foundations
- Protection against basement flooding
- Extension of the durability and resistance level of the roof
- Eradication of foul-smelling odors
- Elimination of noises caused by blocked pipework
4. Protect Your Plants!
The aim of the game here is that if you spend just a few hours and as little as twenty dollars on buying and utilizing the right materials to cover your flowers and shrubs.
Where feasible, move your more sensitive and tropical potted plants to a warmer area, ideally a greenhouse or insulated shed or outhouse. Add mulch to the soil your plants are growing in; mulch can compromise wood chippings, compost from the garden, or even dried, moldy leaves. This added mulch will provide your plants with the nutrients they need to survive through the winter months and be strong enough to reflower in the spring. Cover your plants with a specifically designed horticultural fleece or even a thick layer of old, dry newspapers.
