Winterizing Your Home

Tips for Winterizing your home:

• Check exterior caulking around windows and doors to insure there are no gaps.  This will help prevent air and moisture intrusion.
• Check weather stripping around exterior doors and repair or replace as necessary.
• Treat fire ant mounds in the yard.  Often they will over winter under the house, if not treated.  They will then enter the house under bathtubs and sinks.  Orthene is a good product for fall and winter mound treatments.
• Have heater professionally serviced and change air filters.
• If you live in a house with a pier and beam foundation, do not cover the crawl space vents.  This can trap moisture in the crawls space and result in mold or wood rot.  Instead make sure that exposed water lines in the crawls space are insulated to protect against freezing.
• Cover exterior faucets that are not frost free type.  The newer exterior faucets are designed to expel water from the faucet head when the valve is closed. These are frost resistant, but may need to be covered if it is a hard freeze.
• Bring tropical plants indoors for the winter, if possible.
• Keep the lawn watered.  This will help protect turf and ornamental plants from frost damage.  You won’t need to water as much as you do in the summertime.  Maybe once per week and the day before a hard freeze.
• Clean gutters and downspouts.  Many times the downspouts are neglected causing gutters to overflow.  This will have to be done regularly during the fall until the leaves are down.
• Keep the roof clear of tree litter.  Tree litter on the roof can causing water and/or ice to dam on the roof.  This may allow moisture to seep in through the shingles.  Remember the roof covering is designed to shed water and is not a water proof barrier.