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Are you trying to figure out how to do proper house maintenance? Read this article to learn tips for how to keep your home safe.
House maintenance is essential if you want to keep a safe home. It's no secret that owning a home comes with a lot of hard work. Unlike renters, as OmniKeyTexas.com explains, you don’t have the luxury of a landlord to make repairs and services to the house.
You're now given the responsibility of keeping the house clean and well-maintained to provide a safe home for you and your family. Aside from the normal maintenance for cleaning purposes, you should also take into consideration the much larger maintenance required by your house.
Some of these tasks should be done yearly while others should be done more often. What matters most is that you take the time to create a seasonal home maintenance checklist to ensure you don't forget something that could deem your house unsafe.
To protect you, your family, and your home, continue reading below. Here's everything you need to know about keeping your home safe.
- Inspect the Electrical
The electrical wiring in your home should be up to code and up to date. Wiring that's not done professionally or correctly could cause serious damage to your home.
Faulty wiring is a fire risk and so is wiring that's been tampered with. Because your home's electrical wiring is such an important part of keeping your home a safe place, you should also check for rats on an occasional basis.
If rats enter your home, then they could build nests near your wiring and begin to chew through it. Rats anywhere in the home are unwanted, but rats near wiring is an even bigger problem.
- Inspect the Roof
You should have your roof inspected after each winter. Winter causes snow, ice, and water to build on top of your roof. This can all lead to serious roof issues.
In the spring, you might begin to notice damage to your roof from the winter such as broken or missing shingles, mold and mildew growth, and more. If your roof isn't well-taken care of, your home could face leaks, which then lead to other issues.
When the roof is leaking, you then have to worry about water damage to the house and mold and mildew. Roofing professionals such as TEMA Roofing Services can help you properly maintain your roof and repair any damages.
- Clean Your Dryer Vents
Electrical wiring isn't the only thing that could cause a fire in your home. Dirty dryer vents are also a fire risk. With each use of your dryer, more lint is sticking to the vent.
Be sure to clean the lint catcher on the front or on the top of your dryer after each use to keep the amount of lint to a minimum. You should also remove the dryer vent on the back of the dryer and clean it out using a vacuum.
Do this on a regular basis and your dryer will dry your clothes faster and not work as hard to do so, saving you on your energy bill.
- Replace Batteries in Detectors
Smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors can't detect an issue if they don't have working batteries. These detectors will signal to you when the batteries are dying. When this happens, you'll want to replace the batteries right away to keep you sane from those annoying beeping noises but to keep you safe as well.
A good rule of thumb is to switch the batteries out twice a year even if the detectors aren't signaling a dying battery. This is a way to be even safer. If you live in a multiple-story home, then you should also be sure to have these detectors on each level.
- Check Your Fire Extinguisher
If you've ever lived in an apartment complex before, then you're most likely aware that fire extinguishers need to be checked and changed often. Apartment complexes will ask their tenants to place the extinguishers outside for the fire marshall to either check them or replace them.
You need to do the same for your house. Check the extinguisher for any damages. Then, be sure the safety seals aren't broken and that pressure gage is where it should be.
Once everything is cleared, place the extinguisher in a place where you can easily access it in case of an emergency.
- Remove Debris From Gutters
Gutters are an easy maintenance task to overlook but shouldn't be ignored. Climb up on a ladder and clean your gutters on a regular basis. Do be sure to follow all safety procedures when using your ladder.
You'll then want to clean the gutters out first by using your hands while wearing gloves. Keep two buckets on the ladder, one on either side. Place all of the debris in one bucket and keep your tools in the other.
Use gutter cleaning tools to then remove the remaining debris. When finished, you can take a garden hose and spray the rest down the downspout.
- Clean Your Chimneys
If your home has chimneys, then this is another important aspect of your home to give some attention to when needed. Chimneys should be cleaned thoroughly once a year to prevent fires.
Dirt and debris and accumulate inside them and sometimes creatures like to build nests in them, which all adds to the possibility of a fire.
House Maintenance Is Essential for Safe Homes!
If you want to keep a safe home for you and your family, you need to have an effective house maintenance checklist to follow.
Use these tips listed above to help get your checklist started, and don't forget that there are many other aspects of a home to maintain as well.
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