Is Your Home Winter Ready?

Now that it is officially fall, and we all know fall doesn’t last for very long in the Midwest, it’s time to start thinking about making your home winter ready. As home builders in Omaha and surrounding areas, we put together a checklist of what to do to your home before winter sets in. This is for those who live in older homes, if you live in new construction homes in Omaha, you probably don’t need to do much.

Today’s homes are built with all the different seasons in mind and chores we used to have to do like hanging storm windows have been eliminated. Most of the things you’ll need to do as a new homeowner are things regarding your garden and yard. For the homeowner in an older house, there’s more to do to make your home winter ready.

Is Your Home Winter Ready?

Fill the Gaps

Fill any gaps you might find in and around the windows and doors. Cracks around the foundation where the house has settled can be filled and covered so water doesn’t get in and mold or mildew – for superficial cracks only. For larger gaps have a professional come out and inspect to make sure your foundation is in good shape and some other problem doesn’t need attention. While you’re checking do a radon check, they are easy to do and pretty inexpensive. Radon test kits can be purchased at most hardware stores or big box home improvement stores.

Storing Plants over the Winter

Did you know that plants like geraniums can be stored over the winter and will bloom again next spring? Simply cut off any dead leaves, and trim back if necessary and bring the plant indoors. Store in a cool dark place and don’t bother watering until spring. In the spring you can start watering the plants and introducing them back to the sunlight. Keep them indoors but expose to the sun for a week before putting outside in full sunlight. Trim and dead leaves and branches and add some fertilizer to the soil and you’ll have beautiful blooms in no time.

Clean Gutters

No one likes cleaning the gutters, but unless you have a service or gutter toppers, you’ll need to do it. You should wait until the leaves have fallen around your home so you don’t have to do it again this season. Clean out any muck or debris and run a hose through your gutters until the flow runs out the downspout. Fix any broken gutters or downspouts and affix into place.

Lawn Care

Now is a great time to fertilize and seed your lawn before it goes dormant for the winter. Fertilize and seed the lawn after the final raking if possible. Sometimes Mother Nature doesn’t cooperate and snow flies before the leaves can be raked up. If this happens, don’t worry, your lawn will probably be just fine.

Turn off Outside Faucets

Don’t forget to turn off your outside faucets. It doesn’t take much to end up with a broken pipe due to freezing. Drain the line before turning off the water to the outside faucet and leave the spigot open so it dries up leaving no water to freeze.