Home Maintenance for Fall

Looking for tips to prepare your home for Autumn?

These are some quick and simple things that you should do in regards to home maintenance to ensure that you have a stress free Fall and a relaxing Winter and Spring.

Time to rake.
Once the leaves have fallen from the trees you'll want to rake them saving yourself some work come spring. The City of Calgary has a Leaf and Pumpkin Composting program running from Sept. 28 to Nov. 11 this year with locations available at www.calgary.ca. Last year, 2,255,000 kilograms of leaves and pumpkins were collectedand composted.

Clean your gutters.
Leaves won't only end up on the ground but in your gutters as well. Bob Vila suggests wearing gloves and a dust mask, then — with a good ladder to access the gutters — scoop out excess leaves with a garden trowel into a garbage bag and rinse the gutters with a high-pressure hose. Leaving decaying leaves in the gutter can be an open invitation for mosquitos and ants while overflowing gutters can be a risk for your homes foundation.

Empty gas-powered equipment.
State Farm recommends yard maintenance machines such as your weed whacker and lawn mower should be emptied of their unused fuel as sediment can build up and clog fuel lines by the time you try to use them next spring. If they aren't already, disconnect your garden hoses so trapped water can't freeze in them damaging the hose.

Review fire safety.
The changing of the seasons is a great time to gather the family and review your fire safety plans. The City of Calgary suggests having a home fire escape plan that includes two exits out of each room of the home and then having a safe place for the family to meet up once they've exited the home. Since May, the Calgary Fire Department has been knocking on doors and discussing fire safety before Fire Prevention Week in October.

Check your furnace.
Change your furnaces air filter and stock up on extras to have handy over the winter. Filters should be changed every one to two months. State Farm suggests calling in an HVAC contractor to test the heating output of your furnace as well as giving the system a tune up. Inspect your heating ducts and vents, dust them off and make sure they're in good shape.

Have a wood-burning fireplace?
Annual chimney sweeps are recommended, especially if you use your fireplace often. Chimney sweeps do just that, sweep the flue of your fireplace but can also test it for smoke integrity to ensure dangerous gases can't escape into your home. It's recommended to use more seasoned wood to burn in your fireplace, as it burns with less smoke. Keep wood at least 10 metres away from your home.

Share your tips and tricks for preparing your home for fall in the comments below.

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