ShowMe’s Tips on Preparing your Home for the Cape Winter
Preparing your property for the winter – Expert Advice.
Cold and wet weather can have serious affects on our biggest investment – our property.
Here are a few tips to prepare your property for the winter.
Gutters, pipes and drains
- Clean all gutters, downpipes, stormwater drains and gullys to ensure a free flow of water. You can do this job yourself, or hire someone to do it for you, but this is an essential job to before winter arrives. Preferably, you’ll want to clean out the gutters after all the trees in your yard have finished dropping their leaves. Gutters that are full can be weighed down and fall off during heavy rains or strong winds.
- Check all gutter joints for leaks and repair them while they are dry.
Walls, windows and doors
- Check all parapets for proper seals between the wall and roof. The warm summer weather dries the sealants and a small crack in the sealant will cause huge damage to walls and ceilings. Insurance companies will not cover damage caused by bad maintenance
- Check the putty in steel and wooden windows for cracks. Window putty that is cracked will cause water penetration and resulting damage to both the window frame and walls surrounding it.
- Check walls for surface cracks. If you can see a crack, water will find a way to penetrate the wall and it will cause damage and possible health issues if mildew starts growing.
- Check and replace worn weather stripping. Weather stripping around doors and windows plays a key role in reducing the amount of cold air that enters your home. Check for cracked or worn stripping, and replace with new, more efficient stripping. If caulking is looking worn and ragged, remove it and re-caulk with an efficient, moisture-resistant product. This will help keep the cold from entering your home, which in turn helps to reduce your heating bill.
- Seal gaps where insects and cold air come Into your home. Take a close look around the exterior of your home and cover any and all gaps you find. Use caulk to seal small gaps near the foundation of your home, or around windows. A heavy-duty screen or hardware cloth works well to cover exterior vents, allowing air to escape but preventing critters from seeking warmth in your home.
SPECIAL OFFER : Call In Line Handyman, Ian Laing on 079 129 7000, for help – and get 10% discount off labour costs for work done during May!
Bathrooms and geysers
- Ensure that bathrooms have adequate air circulation to prevent the growth of mildew on ceilings and walls. Ceiling mould is unsightly, unhealthy and a bit of a challenge to clean. It can also cause permanent damage to your home and must always be treated as soon as possible.
- To save on your electricity bill you can insulate your geyser with a geyser blanket.
Security
- Check that security lighting around the house is all working properly. Daylight hours are less and we often leave our property in darkness and return in darkness.
- Consider installing security lights that switch on with motion sensors. These will also help you save on your electricity bill as you will not have to leave the lights on all day.
Roof and chimney
- Take time to inspect your roof, or hire someone to do this for you. Problems like damaged shingles and worn-out seals around vent pipes and chimneys are much easier to remedy if you catch them early.
- Clean Your Chimney. Built-up creosote inside the chimney can cause a house fire, so don’t fire-up that fireplace until the chimney has been cleaned of any debris, animals that have moved in, and creosote build-up. You may also want to consider adding a chimney cap to prevent animal nests or homes from being constructed in your chimney in the future.
Source: Ian Laing – In Line Handyman
Swimming Pools
Get your pool ready for the off-season while protecting your investment by following these tips. It is important that your swimming pool needs to be properly prepared and zipped up for the cold months.
- Balance The Water Chemistry
- Clean Out Debris
- Flush Your Pipes
- Add A Winter Pool Cover
- Shut Off Pool Automation
- Pay attention to Your Pool During The Winter
Sometimes we feel more comfortable bringing in the experts – Colin’s Pool Services can assist!
Call them on 076 830 9462 to arrange.
Preparing your car for the Winter
Winter is here and with it comes rainy weather and wet roads. This reduces the stopping ability of your car and can lead to serious accidents.
The AA recommends certain checks before taking to the road this cold season:
- battery,
- wind screen,
- wipers,
- tyres
- lights
To learn more, read our comprehensive article about Winter Road Safety Tips
SPECIAL OFFER : To assist you in getting your car Winter ready ASR Glass Repair is offering the first 5 people to call, a 5% discount on windscreen replacement or supply and fit of smash and grab tint.
Call them today on 076 828 4219 and tell them you saw this on ShowMe to take advantage of this offer!