Blog | Winterizing Your Home Checklist
Winter weather can easily destroy your home if you’re not careful. It is crucial to stay on top of a few things before the weather gets too cold. Make sure your home is ready for when temperatures are freezing by using the checklist below.
Protect Your Pipes
Bursting pipes can cause major damage to your home and bring some major expenses. Ensure your pipes are well insulated and have the proper coverings, including the sprinkler system. You might also need to have your lawn watering system blown out to remove water from pipes.
Make sure you also know how to turn your water off if tragedy strikes. Water meter keys and insulation can be purchased easily online or at your local hardware store.
TIP: If you have to drip your faucets for an extended period of time during a winter storm, try to collect the dripping water. This will help if the water stops working in your home.
Weather Proof and Efficiency
There are many options when weatherproofing your home. This will help keep the warm air in and the cold air out, and vice versa during the summer.
To weatherproof and raise heat efficiency, you can purchase or replace your storm door, door sweeps, weather-stripping for windows and doors, window insulation, and attic and basement insulation.
You might also be able to save big on your electric bill by switching to a smart thermostat. You can set the heat lower while you are sleeping and schedule it to rise during your awake hours.
Tip: Switch your ceiling fans to turn clockwise. This direction will push the warm air down, helping heat the full room.
Heat Maintenance
Have your furnace and the filter inspected before it gets cold. If you have a fireplace, make sure it has been properly cleaned and cleared of any debris, as build-up and objects can cause house fires.
Outdoor Tasks
Make sure your roof is in good shape, and focus on making sure shingles are intact. Clean the gutters and spouts of debris. If your home has a crawl space, use the proper insulation or covers before the first freeze.
If you have trees, branches can get heavy with snow and ice. Limbs might need to be trimmed or removed to prevent them from falling on your home, car, or power lines.
Bring outdoor furniture or other items indoors to keep the weather from wearing them down. Even moving them to the garage can help tremendously.
Plants will need to be moved indoors or in the garage. If that’s not possible, there are tons of options for protecting plants during the cold. You can easily search for pop-up greenhouses and plant tents online.
Emergency Supplies
In the dreaded event that you have to wait out a winter storm, you need to be prepared if you have no electricity, water, or food available. Having a few resources on hand can make a huge difference, especially if you have to go days without going to restock supplies.
Some items to have on hand:
- Batteries
- Flashlights
- Water jugs
- Nonperishable items
- Medications
- Pet needs
- Hand-crank or solar chargers
- First aid kit
Each home is different, so be sure to add to this checklist to best fit your family’s needs. This will help make sure each year, you are doing everything you need so your home is ready for the upcoming cold weather.
Covering costs
In some cases, you might find more issues than you expected while cleaning up, or you might have the urge to make some updates to improve your home. If the costs have become overwhelming, consider some of our loan options. With the help of some of our loans, you can make those needed changes to your home without the worry of having to spend more in the future when things go wrong.
Home Improvement Personal Loan – Have the cash in your account to pay the contractor when you are ready—as soon as the same day you apply. Up to $25,000 with no appraisals, equity, or collateral required.
Home Improvement Personal Loan
Mortgage Cash-out Refinance – A cash out mortgage allows you to refinance your home and take out your equity at the same time. If your interested in lowering your interest rate and monthly payment a cash-out mortgage may be right for you.
Home Improvement Personal Loan
Federally insured by NCUA. APR=Annual Percentage Rate. Rates, terms, and conditions are subject to change and may vary based on credit worthiness, qualifications, and collateral conditions. Payment example: A 180-month loan of $25,000 at 7.99% fixed APR will have 180 monthly payments of $9.55 per $1,000 borrowed. All loans subject to approval. Restrictions may apply; see credit union for details.
