How To Winterize Your Home

Winter is coming! With all the cold weather and snow, you’ll want to make sure your home is ready for all the season can bring. You want to winterize your home to keep it cozy and warm, as well as to keep it safe and prevent any possible damages. Here are some of the ways you can winterize your home so that you can ensure it will be as prepared as possible for everything winter will throw at it.

Clean Out Your Gutters

If your gutters get clogged with debris and fallen leaves, this can lead to ice dams and water damage to your roof and home. This is because since the snowmelt can’t drain through your gutters, it ends up turning to ice, which can then go under your roof and through to your home, causing extensive damages. Cleaning out your gutters and installing gutter guards will help prevent ice dams and is essential to properly winterize your home.

Have Your Roof Inspected

Snow buildup is heavy, and can damage your roof. You want your roof to be able to withstand the snow, so having a professional come out to inspect it and take care of any necessary repairs will help to prevent major problems down the line. You may also check your home insurance policy, to see if it covers damages to your roof from snow.

Maintain Your Trees

A major cause of home damage in the winter is from fallen trees during storms and from the weight of the snow. They can hit your roof, your house, or your car, resulting in potentially extensive damages. It’s not just for your sake that you need to maintain your trees, though. If one of your trees falls and damages your neighbor’s property, they’ll be able to file a claim with their insurer, and you want to have insurance of your own to cover that possibility.

Check Your Weatherstripping

Weatherstripping keeps the warm air in your home and the cold air out. If your weatherstripping is failing, this can cause air leaks and lead to higher energy bills as your HVAC system works to compensate for any drafts. Replacing or repairing your weatherstripping is an important step to take when you winterize your home, so that you don’t end up with higher energy bills or have to deal with drafty windows.

Protect Your Pipes

Drops in temperature and poor insulation can seriously damage your pipes, causing them to freeze, expand, and potentially crack. Cracks in your pipes can result in massive water damage to your home, since it allows for hundreds of gallons of water to escape from your pipes. In order to protect your pipes so you can properly winterize your home, have a professional come out to install pipe insulation and heat tape, in order to prevent them from freezing and cracking.

Set Your Thermostat 

Going into the winter months, you want to make sure that your thermostat is set at the right temperature. If you’re not home, you don’t want your thermostat set to the same temperature as if you were, as this will result in you sending more on your energy bills than is necessary. Adjusting your thermostat to a lower temperature when you are not home and then putting it back up when you are will help save you money. You may even consider investing in a smart thermostat that you can adjust from your phone. 

Practice Fire Safety

Winter is the prime season for fires and candles and lights and personal heaters. With how the days are shorter, you want the light, and with how it’s colder, cozying up by a fireplace can be ideal. With all of these come heightened risks for fires to start, such as putting a cable too close to a personal heater or a candle getting knocked over. Make sure that you are prepared for any potential fires with fire extinguishers, escape routes, and working smoke detectors. And be careful to be mindful of how to avoid accidentally starting a fire.

Inspect Your Furnace And Filter

Since you’ll be using your furnace a lot more in the winter, an essential step to winterize your home is to make sure that it doesn’t have any leaks and to test for any possible carbon monoxide. If your furnace is old, you may need to have it replaced, in order to ensure efficiency and safety from cracks. You want to take care of any necessary repairs and replacements so that your furnace both functions as it should and so that your home stays safe from any gas leaks.

Another aspect of taking care of your furnace is replacing the filter, to ensure good indoor air quality. It’s recommended that you replace your furnace filter monthly in order to avoid indoor air pollution from dust and allergens, which can result in respiratory issues. Replacing your furnace filter also helps your furnace to run more efficiently.

Do You Want To Learn More About How You Can Winterize Your Home?

Insurance Unlimited In Bozeman wants to help you winterize your home and prepare for anything the season might throw at you with homeowner’s insurance policies designed to protect your home and your belongings from damages. To learn more about our homeowner’s insurance policies, please contact us at Insurance Unlimited In Bozeman today!