Your home is your pride and joy, and you and your family have worked hard for it. However, once you are lucky enough to own your own property, you’ll realize just how much responsibility is required to keep everything shipshape.
The single most important thing is to ensure that things don’t build up and overwhelm you. To avoid this, you’ll need to prioritize regular home maintenance.
In this article, you’ll learn about ten of the most essential home maintenance tasks for making sure your home functions properly from year to year.
1. Cleaning Your Gutters
The gutters of the home are a critical component of how the building functions. They work to direct rainwater away from the foundation, where it can cause damp and rot the plaster. Without them, you’d soon know about it.
They easily get blocked with twigs, leaves, soil, and other forms of debris, and when this happens, you can end up with a water overflow problem.
Twice per year, give the entire system a clear-out. You can flush the infrastructure with a power washer or powerful hose, but if you’re unsure and don’t have a safe ladder (or if the gutters are simply too high for you to clean them safely), be sure to call in a professional.
2. Checking for Roof Damage
Roof damage is a big issue for many homeowners. Given the fact that you can’t physically see what’s happening on the roof until you get up there, it’s easy for problems to set in without you realizing.
Damage to your roof starts small, but may result in a serious structural problem if it goes unchecked. Similar to your gutters, the roof should be checked twice per year, and given the danger inherent in going up there yourself, it’s best to get a professional roofing contractor to take a look for you.
They’ll look for the telltale signs, such as loose tiles and shingles, dampness, and evidence of leaks, as well as moss accumulation.
3. Servicing Your HVAC System
A heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system is an essential part of making your home feel like a home as opposed to just four walls and a roof, and given the complexity, it requires regular maintenance.
The air filters will need changing every one to three months, and the entire thing will need a proper service once per year. If you notice there’s a fault with your system, don’t try to repair it yourself – call a professional qualified in HVAC repair to come and do the job to the standards required.
4. Flushing Your Water Heater
If you have a separate water heater, it’s important to know that this will also need your attention from time to time.
These systems have a propensity to develop mineral deposits, which in turn reduces water flow and can overload the mechanisms. To ensure this doesn’t happen, your heater will need to have its tank flushed once a year.
A plumber will be able to do this for you by connecting a special hose to the drain valve, which uses pressure to remove any buildup. Once the water runs clear, you’re good to go.
5. Cleaning Dryer Vents and Filters
One often forgotten element of appliance maintenance is the clothes dryer. Dryers build up lint over time, which can cause a fire if left to accumulate.
The lint trap (usually located on the front or underside of the machine) should be cleaned out after each cycle, and once a year, the system should be unplugged and the vent hose thoroughly brushed out and cleared.
If you haven’t done this in a while, you’ll likely find that your dryer functions much more effectively than it did before once dealt with.
6. Assessing the Foundation of Your Property
There’s more that can go wrong with the foundation of your property than gutter overflow. Any cracks, even small ones, can grow into larger, structural issues, and if you see peeling paint or bubbling, that can represent a mineral problem within the brickwork.
Take a careful look around the perimeter of your home. If you see any small cracks or plaster breakdown, these can be filled with an appropriate exterior composite filler. If anything looks unusual or you spot a major foundational breakdown, it’s best to call in a builder to repair it; while more serious elements could be tackled DIY, it’s possible to do more harm than good.
7. Testing Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Detectors
Shockingly, many people still don’t have smoke or carbon monoxide detectors in their homes, and more commonly, properties have detectors installed but with failing batteries or sensors.
All detectors in the home should be checked at least once per month, and better still, every two weeks. Most modern models will start to chirp when the battery is dying, but this isn’t always the case, so it’s best to be sure.
If your smoke detectors are older than ten years, you should replace the unit entirely, irrespective of battery status. Carbon monoxide detectors often need replacing sooner, usually between five to eight years.
8. Maintaining Your Lawn and Other Green Areas
While you may think looking after your garden relates only to the aesthetic elements of your property, this isn’t the case. When plants and greenery overgrow around the perimeter of your home, it can trap moisture that results in mold. There’s also a higher likelihood of introducing pests.
Your lawn should be cut nice and short, while flower beds around the building should be contained within properly structured beds that protect the wall. You’ll also want to check any decking for signs of rot, and replace loose boards as soon as you can if you find them (again, given that decking is often fixed to the property, any issues present can spread).
Wrapping Up
You should now have a better idea of the main elements to consider when it comes to home maintenance. This list doesn’t cover everything, but it should give you a solid head start on preventing the biggest disasters.
