Preparing Your Home For Cold Weather

Here are some tips for preparing your home for cold weather.  It is best to make yourself a checklist in advance and to purchase any supplies you may need.  Weather Stripping – install around windows, doors, vents and fans, plumbing areas, mail chutes and anywhere else you can think of.  Gutters – clean gutters drain water away from your roof and house.  If they are clogged in cold months, they can freeze and cause additional blockages.  Blocked gutters can allow melting ice and snow to seep into your roof.  Roof – While cleaning your gutters, get on your roof and give it a good inspection to see if anything is missing or torn off.  Prune Trees – Any limbs hanging over your roof can get heavy with snow and break off causing damage.  Freezing Pipes – During cold weather you should leave your furnace set at the same temperature, even when you are not home.  Any un-insulated pipes need to be covered with insulation to prevent them from freezing.  Another tip to do is, let faucets drip during serious cold spells.  Garden Hose & Hose Bib – Make sure you disconnect your garden hose and store it in the garage or basement for the winter and install a cover over your hose bib (outside water faucet). De Hart Plumbing Heating and Cooling, serving Manhattan Kansas, Junction City Kansas, Wamego Kansas, Topeka Kansas and some surrounding areas.