Fall is imminent, and with it’s beautiful weather comes a perfect opportunity to get a leg up on property repair and maintenance before Mother Nature brings on winter storms. Here’s AHRN.com’s checklist. You can knock these out in a Saturday or two, or take the next two months to do little by little.
OUTDOORS
Do a thorough walk about of the building, looking for hanging shakes or clapboard, missing roof shingles, rotting wood, and cracked window and door seals. Ditto the garage door- eroded rubber there could land you with a garage full of snow drifts!
If you’ve been thinking about it, now is the best time to install energy efficient windows where needed.
Check walkways, sidewalks and the driveway for cracks and repair. If it needs it, it’s a good time to seal the driveway as well.
Be sure all outside lights have bulbs.
You know to turn off your spigots and drain water hoses (or your sprinkler system), but before you do, run water through your gutters to be sure you’ve properly cleared them. Then repair gutters if sagging and direct the drainage away from house.
Cover your AC unit.
However long you may use them, before first frost, cover and store furniture and your grill. If you use your grill year-round, look for a place that is more protected and not where snow tends to drift to make access easier in a storm. Just be sure it’s the right distance from the house for safety.
You may want to go so far as to power wash your deck, or house siding.
Garden and Lawn
Trim tree branches away from windows and especially electrical wires. If something big is growing too near your transformer boxes, you may want to call the electric company to have them check it out. Storms taking those boxes out is what causes whole neighborhoods to be in the dark/cold!
Plant new bushes and seed the lawn again so their roots will flourish come spring.
Add any flowering perennials, or dig up what overgrew this year, so you will know where to plant seeds come spring.
Empty patio containers and window boxes of old soil.
INDOORS
Since technology improves all the time, look into updating your fire/carbon monoxide/radon alarms. If not, be sure they have brand new batteries. Best yet – consider getting them hard wired to code.
Check for cracks, drafts and leaks on internal doors, windows, walls and ceilings. Repair and/or waterproof.
Clean wood burning chimneys of nests or ash and inspect for cracks. Make sure the flue opens and closes properly.
Attic
Look into the eaves for critter nests, and shredded or crumbling insulation.
If it’s been awhile, have a good electrician come in to check all your wiring. Pull any old lines that are no longer used, replace any that are dangerously cracked or frayed, be sure the connections are sound. It is worth every penny to avoid a fire, which tend to occur more in the winter.
Basement
Be sure vents and filters for all things from driers to HVAC are cleaned and clear.
Have the furnace get it’s yearly check up, and do a dry run on the hear to be sure it’s running well.
Equipment
Clean your weed wacker, lawnmower, rinse your wheelbarrow, and store.
Clean and store garden tools. You might spray them lightly with oil to prevent rust.
Be sure you have the right shovels, ladders and picks etc for winter in a handy place.
Pull out the big appliances out to vacuume behind- ( don’t forget condenser coils on the back of the fridge).
Inspect the garbage can areas. If containers are cracked, replace with the sturdiest you have in your budget, because it’s only going to get worse as that plastic gets cold. And critters will dine and leave a mess in the morning. If they are not in a covered area, check into something to raise them so they won’t get stuck to ice – sometimes just putting down wooden pallets you can ask stores for are a great solution, as the spaces between the wood slats allows for drainage.
If you think it’s a lot, one thing we can guarantee: you will never regret that you did these things!
This list is good not just for property managers – it’s something all homeowners and landlords should follow. If a renter, you may want to give a friendly call to your own landlord to see what he or she has on their schedule for the items above.
Find other articles about Fall Maintenance for Property Managers, owners and renters HERE on AHRN.com!
Meet Your Contributor
Rochelle Joseph is a Writer and Image and Marketing Consultant who has had experience marketing, renting, buying and selling her properties for over 20 years. She has written and edited for several publications, including the Boston Book Review, The Emerson Review, ZooBorns.com, WildLife Magazine, the Houston Zoo, The Wildlife Center of Texas, One Spirit Interfaith Seminary as well as AHRN.com. She currently writes at her great gifts blog at Looky Here You and her animal blog at Naturegirrrl.