Certain home maintenance and upkeep tasks have to be addressed seasonally to ensure systems are running smoothly, residents are comfortable, and a home looks its best. AHRN.com put together a checklist of basic seasonal upkeep items to help you get organized.
TIP: If your home falls under HOA requirements, keep that information handy to avoid fines and conflicts with neighbors. Try filling in tasks on your yearly family calendar at the top of each season, or every 6 months, to keep on track.
Outdoors:
- Trim back bushes growing out of line of walkways, doors and windows.
- Weed garden areas and consider mulching to both impede further growth and make things look neat.
- Regularly cut the grass before it grows to seed.
- Trim the edges near fences and garden beds before they get too long.
- Remove dirt that may have built up against the house in the winter/windy months.
- Clear any brush, vines or extra growth away from the house, which helps prevents mice and other pests.
- Replace light bulbs that burned out around the perimeter of the house and driveway.
- If your HOA allows for a BBQ, keep it a good 2 feet away from the house so siding doesn’t get damaged.
TIP: Getting ahead of the quick pace of summertime grass, plant and weed growth at the beginning can make it easier to keep up in the long run.
Indoors:
- Summer is a great time to check all filters, including the water filter in your fridge and the dryer vent.
- Test smoke alarms and carbon monoxide detectors. Replace any batteries that are running low.
- It’s a perfect time to replace the light bulbs you’ve been meaning to get to.
- Check any personal fire extinguishers that you may have added to what existed in the rental to see if they need to be refilled or given new life. It’s prudent to check what the landlord provided as well.
Summer Safety:
Your safety, and that of your family and guests, is paramount.
It’s extra important in this season when things get dry and hot to be mindful of fire prevention. Be safe rather than sorry regarding the rules about handling BBQ’s, fire pits, and things like sparklers and smoking. Make sure guests put their cigarettes out in a tin can full of wet sand and keep away from the house.
Living alongside wildlife can be a wonderful thing, but also requires some cooperation. As spring babies mature, the population grows, and more wild animals may come close searching for food or play. Raccoons and other animals can affect how you store your garbage and the kind of cans you use for trash disposal. If there are deer in your area, they’re likely in search of tender greens and sweet flowers. That may affect what you plant (or how you cover or fence it). If there are concerns about wildlife in your area, study up on them and discuss it together with neighbors.
If you have pets, hike, or see an abundance of wildlife near your home, educate yourself about what to do to – and not to do – in your region.
Create a household plan for emergency and fire.
Include in your plan what you’d do if your family is all together AND if you find yourselves apart. The latter is almost more important!
If you already have an emergency plan, the beginning of summer is a great time to hold an annual family meeting to review it. Adapt it to include anything that might have changed.
By doing these things, it will go a long way to ensure you have a safe and enjoyable summer in your home!
Keep track of your maintenance to-do list with our downloadable checklist!
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.