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Winter is a Great Time to Inspect Your Home

winter home inspection

When the weather outside is frightful, heading outside to do an inspection of your home and property probably sounds about as far from delightful as you can get. But you might want to think about bundling up and getting yourself out there.

As we all know, the cold, harsh winters we get here in Ontario mean a lot of wear and tear on our homes. From freezing pipes to a conked out heater, there’s plenty that can go awry when the temperatures drop. The best thing to do as a home owner is to take plenty of precautions and do what you can to get your home ready for winter. Have a look at our autumn checklist for home maintenance here and our winter proof your home resource here.

But even with all the prevention in the world, problems crop up. And the winter is a great time to check for any existing or potential issues that the cold brings on.

Winter home inspection checklist

Double check your smoke detector and carbon monoxide detector batteries. You may have done so already in the fall, but in case you missed this step, or just to be on the safe side, check again. Your heater is cranking, you may have a wood fire blazing and your windows are most definitely closed tight. It’s crucial at this time of year that those detectors are doing their jobs!

– Take a look at those windows and doors and check for drafts. If you took any steps to mitigate drafts, now is a good time to make sure that your preventative measures are working as they should. And if not, more weather-stripping (which does deteriorate over time) and caulking may be in order.

– Are your gutters holding up? You hopefully did a clean up of the leaves and debris. Now you can check for any damage related to snow and ice.

– Have a look at those pipes. Hopefully you took the steps of insulating your pipes, allowing some warmer air to get to them, and turning off outdoor water and draining taps outside (more on preventing frozen pipes here). But it’s still a good idea to check to make sure that things aren’t getting too cold. And if your pipes do freeze, you can follow the steps here or to be even safer and prevent a pipe bursting, just shut off that water and call a plumber! And if you have a lot of trouble with frozen pipes in the winter, you may want to consider getting advice from your plumber on what you may not be able to see that is causing your recurring problem.

– Consider calling in a professional home inspector. Not only can an inspection help with detecting issues relating to the above, a professional can also check on bigger problems, such as insulation failures or roofing and/or structural components being overly stressed with the weight of snow and ice.

For more information on home insurance and how the proper home maintenance steps can help prevent claims, get in touch with us today. Looking for a quote for house insurance? Head over here.

Disclaimer: The information in this blog is for informational and educational purposes only and is not intended to replace the advice or expertise of a certified home professional, inspector or other specialist in home systems or repair. It is always recommended to consult with a professional when dealing with any major problems related to your home.

 

Image source: FreeDigitalPhotos.net/ Victor Habbick

 

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