Be Prepared for a Harsh Winter in 2015

Three-quarters of the United States is predicted to experience a hard winter for 2015. Now is the time to prepare your home, to make sure it is safe from damage that can be caused by harsh winter elements. Below are a few quick and easy yet essential steps you should take to winterize your home.

Shut off exterior water spigots and bring in your garden hose. If your hose is still connected when the temperatures dip to below freezing, the water in the hose will freeze. As the ice inside the hose expands, it can actually cause damage to the pipes inside your home. Avoid a flooded basement and busted pipes by taking this very quick and simple step.

Insulate your exterior pipes. Foam sleeves are available at any hardware store in a variety of sizes and can prevent pipes from freezing. Prevent pipes from freezing, and you prevent them from bursting. Burst pipes can flood your home and be very costly to replace or repair. Keep the temperature of your home at a minimum of 65 degrees. The temperature inside the walls is much lower and keeping the thermostat any lower than 65 may cause those pipes to freeze.

If you haven’t already done so, make sure your attic is well insulated. If heat escapes from the roof space, it causes icemelt on your roof. Constant expansion and contraction from heating and cooling condensation can cause serious damage to your roof. Having your home insulated properly can take less than a day, and the cost is minimal compared to repairing a damaged roof in winter.

Have your furnace checked and serviced before turning the heat on. Test your smoke and carbon monoxide detectors. Make it a habit to change the batteries every year when we “Fall Back” from Daylight Savings. House fires and carbon monoxide poisoning deaths occur much more frequently in winter.

These are just a few steps you can take to weather proof your home, prevent damage, and keep your home and family safe during the upcoming winter months.