Keeping your home safe and in good condition requires a bit of knowledge. When you’re going down your home maintenance checklist, you’ll need to know the precautions and fixes you can take on by yourself now to save you time, money, and energy in the future. Here are 5 things to put on your homeowner checklist to keep your home performing at its very best.
1. Treat your home like a car
When you own a car, you don’t wait until it breaks down to get repairs. We conduct things like brake inspections and oil changes on a regular schedule. Why should we treat our homes the same way? Just like with cars, house problems can be a real hassle. No, you didn’t break down on the side of the road, but you might feel just as frustrated (if not more) with a broken A/C system, leaks and water damage, or an electrical fire. Keep a regular schedule on your home maintenance checklist to make sure your home systems will always be reliable.
2. Get to know your electrical panel
When going down your homeowner checklist, it’s a good idea to get to know your electrical panel. Which breaker controls which room or area in your house? If you ever want to handle your own minor electrical issues around the house, you’ll need to know which breaker to turn off to ensure your safety. When you open up your electrical panel, the back of the cover will have a description matching the number of each breaker. However, these descriptions might be vague or non-existent. In that case, you’ll need to go through and switch off one breaker at a time, seeing which outlet or light deactivates. Luckily, there are plenty of strategies to do this, including getting a friend or family member to help out.
3. Learn to deal with water issues
Finding the water main is an essential for your home maintenance checklist. In cases like a pipe leaking or bursting, you’ll want to be able to locate the water main. From there, you want to know how to shut it off, and know that it’s going to work properly. It’s helpful to label the water main handle so you know which way is on and which way is off. Water sensors are also helpful so you can stop leaks as soon as they happen. You can put them around areas in your home that are particularly susceptible to leaks.
It’s good to know of any leaks as soon as they happen because water damage can seriously compromise the safety and strength of your home. From there, you can address the problem. Often, leaks around the house are a symptom of a damaged roof. Here are 5 signs your roof might need to be replaced.
4. Regularly clean the gutters
A regular gutter cleaning is important to add to any homeowner checklist. Clogged gutters can cause infestations, mold growth, water damage to your home foundation and roof, and ice damming (even in places that don’t get much snow). To clean your gutters, use a high-quality and stabilized ladder, wear long sleeves and gloves, and scoop the debris out. A leaf blower can be helpful in blowing away excess debris. Make sure you don’t try to clean your gutters in dangerous weather conditions like ice, snow, or rain.
5. Add important phone numbers to your home maintenance checklist
You’ll want to save time when things go wrong. It’s important to add the phone numbers of local professionals to your homeowner checklist so you know who to call. The numbers can be for electricians, utility companies, roofing companies, plumbers, and more. Moreover, the phone numbers of friends and family would be useful to have written down. It’s hard to memorize a bunch of different phone numbers. If your phone contacts wipe out, it’s a good idea to put all important numbers in writing so they’re on hand.
In conclusion, homeownership can be busy and tough. By organizing your tasks in a home maintenance checklist, it’s easier to make sure that everything is taken care of. By adding these 5 tips to your list, you’ll save yourself the grief of major home damages, and have the peace of mind knowing you’re in a safe home.
In conclusion, homeownership can be busy and tough. By organizing your tasks in a home maintenance checklist, it’s easier to make sure that everything is taken care of. By adding these 5 tips to your list, you’ll save yourself the grief of major home damages, and have the peace of mind knowing you’re in a safe home.
