Winterizing Your Home

Here are ten tips to help you prepare your home for winter:

1) Furnace Inspection

- Call an HVAC professional to inspect your furnace and clean ducts.

- Stock up on furnace filters and change them monthly.

- Consider switching out your thermostat for a programmable thermostat.

- If your home is heated by a hot-water radiator, bleed the valves by opening them slightly and when water appears, close them.

- Remove all flammable material from the area surrounding your furnace.

2) Get the Fireplace Ready

- Cap or screen the top of the chimney to keep out rodents and birds.

- If the chimney hasn't been cleaned for a while, call a chimney sweep to remove soot and creosote.

- Buy firewood or chop wood. Store it in a dry place away from the exterior of your home.

- Inspect the fireplace damper for proper opening and closing.

- Check the mortar between bricks and tuckpoint, if necessary.

3) Check the Exterior, Doors and Windows

- Inspect exterior for crevice cracks and exposed entry points around pipes; seal them.

- Use weatherstripping around doors to prevent cold air from entering the home and caulk windows.

- Replace cracked glass in windows and, if you end up replacing the entire window, prime and paint exposed wood.

- If your home has a basement, consider protecting its window wells by covering them with plastic shields.

- Switch out summer screens with glass replacements from storage. If you have storm windows, install them.

4) Inspect Roof, Gutters & Downspouts

- If your weather temperature will fall below 32 degrees in the winter, adding extra insulation to the attic will prevent warm air from creeping to your roof and causing ice dams.

- Check flashing to ensure water cannot enter the home.

- Replace worn roof shingles or tiles.

- Clean out the gutters and use a hose to spray water down the downspouts to clear away debris.

- Consider installing leaf guards on the gutters or extensions on the downspouts to direct water away from the home.

5) Service Weather-Specific Equipment

- Drain gas from lawnmowers.

- Service or tune-up snow blowers.

- Replace worn rakes and snow shovels.

- Clean, dry and store summer gardening equipment.

- Sharpen ice choppers and buy bags of ice-melt / sand.

6) Check Foundations

- Rake away all debris and edible vegetation from the foundation.

- Seal up entry points to keep small animals from crawling under the house.

- Tuckpoint or seal foundation cracks. Mice can slip through space as thin as a dime.

- Inspect sill plates for dry rot or pest infestation.

- Secure crawlspace entrances.

7) Install Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Detectors

- Some cities require a smoke detector in every room.

- Buy extra smoke detector batteries and change them when daylight savings ends.

- Install a carbon monoxide detector near your furnace and / or water heater.

- Test smoke and carbon monoxide detectors to make sure they work.

- Buy a fire extinguisher or replace an extinguisher older than 10 years.

8) Prevent Plumbing Freezes

- Locate your water main in the event you need to shut it off in an emergency.

- Drain all garden hoses.

- Insulate exposed plumbing pipes.

- Drain air conditioner pipes and, if your AC has a water shut-off valve, turn it off.

- If you go on vacation, leave the heat on, set to at least 55 degrees.

9) Prepare Landscaping & Outdoor Surfaces

- Trim trees if branches hang too close to the house or electrical wires.

- Ask a gardener when your trees should be pruned to prevent winter injury.

- Plant spring flower bulbs and lift bulbs that cannot winter over such as dahlias in areas where the ground freezes.

- Seal driveways, brick patios and wood decks.

- Don't automatically remove dead vegetation from gardens as some provide attractive scenery in an otherwise dreary, snow-drenched yard.

- Move sensitive potted plants indoors or to a sheltered area.

10) Prepare an Emergency Kit

- Buy indoor candles and matches / lighter for use during a power shortage.

- Find the phone numbers for your utility companies and tape them near your phone or inside the phone book.

- Buy a battery back-up to protect your computer and sensitive electronic equipment.

- Store extra bottled water and non-perishable food supplies (including pet food, if you have a pet), blankets and a first-aid kit in a dry and easy-to-access location.

- Prepare an evacuation plan in the event of an emergency.

Reference 9/21/2010:  http://homebuying.about.com/od/buyingahome/qt/92607_WinterHom.htm


Halloween Safety Tips for Adults

Parents of trick-or-treating kids can get so caught up in the fun themselves that they might forget some simple safety ideas that could keep everyone out of trouble. Having a fun and safe Halloween will make it all worth while!

Kids love Halloween! They get to dress up and get free candy! What a perfect holiday! Give your kids some precious Halloween memories that they'll have for life.

If you take your kids to a sponsored event, like a safe Halloween thrown by your church or community center, make sure to keep an eye on them at al times. Even though it seems less dangerous, you are still in a strange environment full of people that you don't know. All it takes is a minute with your back turned to find your child gone.

Cell phones are everywhere now! Everyone seems to have one, they can be so affordable. Make sure that your child has a pre-programmed cell phone with him/her if they go out on Halloween night! Make sure that all important numbers are already there and ready for use.

Below are more common sense tips that can help adults keep their kids safe:

- As bad as it sounds, this is just a fact of life now. Get on the internet and check your local state website for sex offenders. Almost every state has one, just do a search for your state sex offender site. Look up your zip code and it should have a list of registered offenders in your area that includes street addresses. Make sure that your kids stay away from these houses!

- Know the route your kids will be taking if you aren't going with them. Let them know that they are to check in with you every hour, by phone or by stopping back at home. Make sure that they know not to deviate from the planned route so that you always know where they will be.

- Trick or treating isn't what it used to be. In most cities it's not safe to let kids walk the streets by themselves. Your best bet is to make sure that an adult is going with them. If you can't take them yourself, see if another parent or two can.

- Help your young child pick out or make a costume that will be safe. Make sure that it's fire proof or treated with fire retardant. If they are wearing a mask of any kind, make sure that the eye holes are large enough for good peripheral vision.

- Know what other activities a child may be attending, such as parties, school or mall functions. If they are going to be at a friends home, get the phone number and make sure that you've met the parents.

- Make sure you set a time that your kids should be home by. Make sure they know how important it is for them to be home on time or to call immediately if something happens and they are going to be delayed.

- Kids will be kids. Explain to kids of all ages the difference between tricks and vandalism. Throwing eggs at a house may seem funny but they need to know the other side of the coin as well, that clean up and damages can ruin Halloween for everyone. If they are caught vandalizing, make them clean up the mess they've made.

- Some sick people find Halloween a great night to hurt cats. Explain to your kids that animal cruelty of any kind is not acceptable. Kids may already know this on their own but stress the point that it's not acceptable behavior. Make sure that they know that harming animals is not only morally wrong but punishable by law and will not be tolerated.

- Serve your kids a filling meal before trick or treating and they won't be as tempted to eat any candy before they bring it home for you to check. Check your local grocery store or craft store for Halloween cook books full of tasty treats on a horror theme for both kids and adults.

- Make sure that if your child is carrying a prop, such as a scythe, butcher knife or a pitchfork, that the tips are smooth and flexible enough to not cause injury if fallen on. Make sure that costumes won't get in the way when they are walking, which could cause them to trip.

- Teach your kids about not getting into strangers cars or talking to strangers, no matter what the person says to them. Explain to them as simply as you can that some adults are bad and want to hurt children, that they should never go into a house that they don't know, get into a car or go anywhere with a stranger. Also, tell them what to do should this happen, to scream as loud as they can to draw attention and to run away as fast as they can to someplace safe.

- Be sure to show your children know how to cross a street properly. They should always look both ways before crossing the street and should only cross at corners or crosswalks. Make sure that if you have more than one child, they know to take the hand of the younger child when they cross a street.

Make Halloween a fun, safe and happy time for your kids and they'll carry on the tradition that you taught them to their own families some day!

Reference 9/21/2010:  http://www.halloween-safety.com/halloween_safety_adults.html

Thank you,

Laura Soride - "Your Realtor for Life."