Jun. 26, 2021 at 10:39 am

Mark Roemer Oakland Unveils Tips on Preparing Your Home for Winter

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Introduction

When you welcome the winter season, you need to change your lifestyle with warmer clothes, enriching food, grippy shoes, and chains on your tires. According to Mark Roemer Oakland, the same holds for your home. Here are a few tips to prepare your home for winter:

Tips & Tricks

Check the HVAC System – An HVAC system can last you for two decades or more if you maintain it regularly. However, if they aren’t in their best condition or the manufacturer has switched out the best quality components in favor of cost, then the system might not last for even 10 years. That’s why you should check your HVAC system or separate heating and air conditioning system before you welcome winter. At the very least you may need to change the filters to save cost on energy bills and for extending the life of the system. Consider signing an annual maintenance agreement with your HVAC contractor so that problems get fixed before they can make a major impact,

Check the drainage – Inspect the soil around the foundation of your home. Make sure that there are no low spots or depressions where water can pool up and freeze. If you find such spots, fill them with fresh soil. After that, you need to check the downspouts of your rain gutter. Make sure that water flows away from your home. Install downspout extenders if that isn’t the case. This helps you redirect water where you want and keep it away from the soil around and under your home. If the soil around your foundation gets saturated and freezes up, it expands with the water and adds pressure to the foundation. That can lead to cracks and may add instability to your home.
Clean the chimney and get firewood – A chimney without maintenance can cause major issues with ventilation during the winter season. Clean it thoroughly or hire a chimney cleaning company to do the job for you. You should also order firewood before the cold hits and stack them in a nice dry location while keeping them covered. If you have old firewood left from last winter check for roots and get rid of them so that termites and fungus don’t affect the new stock. These measures keep you ready for a cozy fire so that you can read books, sip whiskey or laze around during the cold season.
Test the smoke detectors – Most house fires happen during winter since you burn a lot of wood, build fires, and blast furnaces. You also close your home shut so that the cold breeze doesn’t get inside. While it protects you from cold, it can quickly accumulate carbon monoxide in case of a fire. That’s why you should check your smoke detectors to see if they are working properly and replace the batteries if they have been in there for a long time.