With winter quickly approaching and changing temperatures, it’s crucial to prepare your home for cooler weather.

This past year has taught us to prepare for unseen disasters such as the loss of power for several days during extreme temperatures in the South and unprecedented flooding on the East Coast. Many home repair businesses received a flux of new business because homeowners weren’t prepared. Here are four tips to consider for fall home maintenance.

Basic Emergency Preparedness

In February when many people were still dealing with the COVID crisis, Winter Wonderland fell on much of Texas. As people were taking pictures in snow many haven’t seen in decades, Winter Wonderland turned into a bad scene from the Disney movie, “Frozen.” Texans experienced power outages from a few days to several days. The cold temperatures busted pipes, compromised drinking water and caused many broken tree limbs to cause house and car damage. This experience reinforces emergency preparedness.

Homeowners should create an emergency freeze kit with flashlights, batteries, candles, snacks, water and a plan for any medications that may be affected by a power outage such as insulin or oxygen. Also check fire and safety detectors to make sure they are working properly. If you have many trees on your property, make sure to get limbs cut at least once or twice a year that could become hazardous in freezing weather.

Make sure to heed warnings we often see on the news telling us to leave our faucets on with a slow drip to avoid freezing pipes and covering up plants and bringing pets inside.

Prepare Plumbing, Electrical, Heating and Cooling

Plumbers got a big boost during the Texas winter storm mainly due to exposed pipes that didn’t have proper insulation. Flushing and sealing your water heater to ensure its working properly will prevent water overflow or the unit not working at all. Have your HVAC or gas heater professionally inspected for potential issues. Because the power kept shutting off and on, this put an electrical load on many home circuit breakers and caused many to fail right when you needed your house to heat up. Now that you know the issue, make sure to get HVAC and electrical items fixed before the next freeze

Prepare Home’s Exterior

Just like cutting down limbs near your home, have your roof inspected for wear and tear and potential problems during a major downpour. Many residents on the East Coast had basements that weren’t up to living code when Hurricane Ida swept in early September and flooded parts of New York and killed some living in apartment basements. Depending on where you live, from the bottom to the top of your home should be inspected for potential problems.

Winterize Your Lawn

Extreme weather can wreak havoc on lawns and gardens you spend all year tending to. Best practices include covering plants and gardens with sheets or blankets during extremely low temperatures. Fertilize your lawn - even when it’s dormant - to give it essential nutrients so it can quickly bounce back to a lush green grass in the spring. If you have a sprinkler system, make sure it’s properly shut down to prevent busted sprinkler heads and flooding in parts of your lawn.

***

If you, or anyone that you know is interested in purchasing a home, we have a solid team of experts who work to help our clients win. Our agents are working hard throughout the state of Texas, from San Antonio, to Austin, and Fort Hood Texas. We offer the service, guidance and expertise to help you buy or sell a home today! 

Give us a call seven days a week to purchase or sell a home, or simply talk and let us answer your questions. We are available from 8 am to 9 p.m. everyday! Office: 210-331-7000;  Text: 210-801-9115