With things finally starting to thaw outside, you may be looking forward to spending more time outside in your yard. Before you start planning those spring activities, you may want to spend some time completing a few maintenance tasks around your home and yard. Doing so will get your home in tip-top shape for the warmer months ahead and will also help prevent costly emergency repairs later on down the road. Wondering where, to begin with, your spring home maintenance checklist?
Well, these maintenance and repair tips will help you get started.
Make Sure You Have the Right Tools
Taking care of spring maintenance tasks on your own is a great way to keep expenses low, but you will need to make sure you have a few essential tools before you get started. For example, if you plan on checking your roof for leaks, holes, and damaged shingles, you are going to need a reliable ladder to keep you safe and stable. Instead of trying to use your standard old ladder, consider investing in a top-quality telescoping ladder. Telescoping ladders are easy to fold down and carry around the yard so you won’t have to deal with a sore and achy back. These handy ladders can also be adjusted to various heights, which makes them perfect for helping you access higher spots like your roof and gutters, as well as lower areas of your home. A reliable, safe, and light ladder can make many spring maintenance tasks a snap, but you may need to pick up some additional gear as well, like gloves, rakes, and utility knives.
Create a List of Spring Maintenance Tasks You Can Easily DIY
If you haven’t created your task list just yet, you can use online maintenance checklists to help you figure out what needs to be inspected, cleaned, or repaired around your home once winter begins to wind down. To get ready for all those April showers that are just around the corner, make sure that cleaning and inspecting your gutters is a top priority on your home maintenance checklist. Using your new telescoping ladder and a good pair of gloves should make this project fairly straightforward, but you may need to call in a professional if you notice any damage in or around your gutters.
You will also want to take a lap around your yard to check for wear and tear around windows, doors, irrigation system pipes, and any other areas of your home that have been exposed to freezing temperatures and winter weather. If you plan on gardening in the months ahead, now is also a perfect time to begin cleaning out garden beds and preparing them for any flowers or plants you would like to grow in spring and summer.
Know When to Call a Pro
From cleaning your gutters to completing simple repairs on your irrigation systems, there are a lot of spring maintenance projects that you can safely and effectively complete on your own. With this being said, there are also several home maintenance and repair tasks that you should leave to licensed professionals if you want to avoid further damage, extensive costs, or even serious injuries.
If you think that freezing temperatures may have damaged pipes in your home or yard, for instance, you are much better off calling a licensed plumber than attempting to assess and repair any damages on your own. Other home projects that you should never attempt to DIY include fixing wiring fixtures, repairing doors, and replacing windows. Aside from safety and quality risks, trying to cut costs by taking care of these maintenance projects on your own could also void your homeowner’s insurance. So when in doubt about spring maintenance and repair projects, it’s always best to consult a licensed professional.
Making spring maintenance and repair projects a focus now will ensure that you can relax and have fun later. So take care of the DIY cleanup and maintenance mentioned above, and then call professionals for all the rest.
