TLC for Your Home in the Mountains

  Check the Exterior, Door and Windows

•  Inspect exterior for crevice cracks and exposed entry points around pipes; seal them.
• Use weather stripping around doors to prevent cold air from entering the home and caulk windows.
• Replace cracked glass in windows and, if you end up replacing the entire window, prime and paint exposed wood.
• If your home has a basement, consider protecting its window wells by covering them with plastic shields.
• Switch out summer screens with glass replacements from storage. If you have storm windows, install them.

• If your weather temperature will fall below 32 degrees in the winter, adding extra insulation to the attic will prevent warm air from creeping to your roof and causing ice dams.
• Replace worn roof shingles or tiles.
• Clean out the gutters and use a hose to spray water down the downspouts to clear away debris.
• Consider installing leaf guards on the gutters or extensions on the downspouts to direct water away from the home.

• Rake away all debris and edible vegetation from the foundation.
• Seal up entry points to keep small animals from crawling under the house.
• Tuckpoint or seal foundation cracks. Mice can slip through space as thin as a dime.
• Inspect sill plates for dry rot or pest infestation.
• Secure crawlspace entrances.

• Buy extra smoke detector batteries and change them when daylight savings ends.
• Install a carbon monoxide detector near your furnace, gas-log fireplace, and/or water heater.
• Test smoke and carbon monoxide detectors to make sure they work.
• Buy a fire extinguisher or replace an extinguisher older than 10 years.

• Locate your water main in the event you need to shut it off in an emergency.
• Drain all garden hoses.
• Insulate exposed plumbing pipes.
• Drain air conditioner pipes and, if your AC has a water shut-off valve, turn it off.
• If you go on vacation, leave the heat on, set to at least 55 degrees.

• Trim trees if branches hang too close to the house or electrical wires.
• Ask a gardener when your trees should be pruned to prevent winter injury.
• Plant spring flower bulbs and lift bulbs that cannot winter over such as dahlias in areas where the ground freezes.
• Seal driveways, brick patios and wood decks.
• Don’t automatically remove dead vegetation from gardens, as some provide attractive scenery in an otherwise dreary, snow-drenched yard.
• Move sensitive potted plants indoors or to a sheltered area.

• Buy indoor candles and matches/lighter and/or flashlights and extra batteries for use during a power outage.
• Find the phone numbers for your utility companies and tape them near your phone or inside the phone book.
• Buy a battery backup to protect your computer and sensitive electronic equipment.
• Store extra bottled water and non-perishable food supplies (including pet food, if you have a pet), blankets and a first-aid kit in a dry and easy-to-access location.
• Prepare an evacuation plan in the event of an emergency.