Your Home Maintenance Guide for Colorado Homeowners

Picture for a moment what your home would look like without any home maintenance.

Your gutters would be overflowing with debris, your siding would be disgustingly discolored, and unwanted weeds would be growing rampantly throughout your yard. Plus, it’s not only the exterior of your home that would suffer without home maintenance services. The interior would quickly fall into disarray as well. Drywall would crack and sag, cupboards would look chipped and unattractive, and doors would warp over time.

It almost goes without saying that home maintenance odd jobs—that always seem to pile up—are key to keeping your home looking as cozy, welcoming, and safe as it is. However, home repair and maintenance tasks can take a toll on your time. You already have a busy schedule and like many Colorado homeowners, you probably don’t look forward to working on your home at the end of the day.

To help you stay on top of your home maintenance tasks, we’ve put together this checklist. To help you stay organized and reduce stress, we’ve organized this list by section so that you can stay on top of your home maintenance needs. We’ve also noted what tasks the team at Mr. Handyman serving Colorado can help with. After all, you don’t have to complete your home maintenance to-dos alone!

Home Maintenance for Outside Your Home

Ensuring your home’s exterior is maintained boosts curb appeal, increases the value of your home, and often complies with neighborhood regulations. The following home maintenance tasks should be completed at least once a year. Often, spring is a good time to work outside of your home.

1. Power Wash Your Siding

Power washing can make your siding, deck, and patio look brand-new. Power washing has many benefits, including getting rid of discoloration, cleaning away years of grime on your cement walkway, and preparing your fence for staining. However, power washing is also a dangerous task that is best completed by a home maintenance services professional.

2. Touch-Up Paint

A fresh coat of paint can work wonders on your home’s exterior, giving your trim, doorway, fence, or even your house itself a new lease on life. Touching up any chipped, peeling, or discolored paint will make your house look as fresh as it did when you moved in.

3. Repair Cracks in Stucco

Like most things, stucco can chip, crack and deteriorate over time. When this happens, call our home maintenance services experts, and we will efficiently repair your damaged stucco. We’ll also check to see if there are any underlying structural problems that caused your stucco to break.

4. Refinish Your Deck

After a long Colorado winter, there’s nothing like enjoying the warm summer on your newly refinished deck. Refinishing your deck not only helps make your outdoor space more enjoyable but also protects your deck from rotting. Refinishing your deck can be a big task. If you’re short on time or need a helping hand, the pros at Mr. Handyman of E Boulder, Broomfield & Erie can help.

5. Cleaning Gutters and Downspouts

Clean gutters and downspouts serve a very important purpose. They prevent flooding and damage to your home during heavy rainfall or snowmelt. When your gutters are filled with debris and muck, they can’t move water away from your home. Instead, the water pools around the base of your house and can cause structural problems. Many Colorado homeowners find gutter cleaning an unpleasant job. If that sounds like you, then get our home maintenance professionals to get it done for you.

Windows and Doors Home Maintenance

Depending on the age of your home, your windows and doors may require a little TLC. The best way to prevent water damage, drafts, and bugs from entering your home is to regularly maintain your windows and doors.

1. Seal Cracks and Gaps in Windows and Doors

Keep the elements and insects out of your home by sealing any gaps or cracks in your windows and doors. Applying new caulking to areas of your windows and doors that have seen better days is the best way to seal any gaps.

2. Install Energy Efficient Windows

Energy-efficient windows can greatly benefit both your energy bill and your eco-footprint. Energy-efficient windows help keep your home cool in the summer and warm in the winter. Our home maintenance experts can professionally install energy-efficient windows in your Colorado home.

3. Oil Squeaky Doors

Squeaky doors can be quite annoying—and may even set off dogs that bark at any little noise. The good news is, squeaky doors are very easy to fix! Simply remove the pin in your door’s hinge, put a little petroleum jelly on it, and replace the pin.

4. Replace Damaged Doors

Your front door is key to both your home’s curb appeal and to keep you, your pets, and your family safe. Whether your front door was damaged from wear and tear or you simply want to update the entryway to your home, our home maintenance experts can efficiently replace your front door.

5. Tighten Door Locks

Check to ensure your front door’s lock works properly. If not, it may be too loose. If the locks have become loose, simply tighten the screws in your door handle.

Home maintenance Services for Your Walls

One of the most overlooked areas of your home, your walls often receive a lack of regular home maintenance. As a result, the home repair tasks for your walls can pile up. If you need help completing the following home maintenance tasks, don’t hesitate to call one of our qualified handyman experts. Our skillful and courteous team would be honored to help you out.

1. Apply a Fresh Coat of Paint

Just like on the exterior of your home, a fresh coat of paint can really revitalize your indoor space. Whether you want to switch things up or your walls are in desperate need of an update, a fresh coat of paint can make it look like you just renovated—without having to do any extensive home improvements.

2. Re-Grout Old Tiles

The grout in your kitchen backsplash, tile flooring, and bathroom takes a lot of wear and tear. It’s easy for grout to become outdated, dirty, and damaged. However, you don’t have to completely install brand-new tile to make your tired tile look brand-new. Rather, remove the old grout and replace it with new grout. If you're not sure how or don’t have time to, our technicians can help.

3. Hang Up Pictures

Hanging up pictures should be easy, but as most Colorado homeowners know, it can often be quite challenging. Getting your frames at an ideal height for your wall, making sure your pictures are straight, and not putting 50 holes into your walls in the process takes a lot of skill. Our home maintenance experts have the skills to efficiently and correctly hang your pictures—without damaging your walls.

4. Mount Your TV

Have you been putting off using your new TV because it’s a hassle to mount it? We get it. Just like how the team at Mr. Handyman of E Boulder, Broomfield & Erie are pros at picture hanging, we can also mount your TV safely and carefully.

5. Repair Damaged Drywall

Not only is damaged drywall an eyesore, but it can negatively impact your home’s structural integrity. It’s important to repair your drywall right away so that the damage does not get worse. If you need help, our Colorado home maintenance professionals can efficiently repair damaged drywall—without compromising our dedication to outstanding workmanship.

6. Dust Floorboards

You probably already regularly dust your mantel, shelves, pictures, and decorative items—but when was the last time you dusted your floorboards? A lot of grime can accumulate on your floorboards, so it’s important to take a few minutes to wipe them down every now and then.

Clean Your Appliances

Your appliances do a lot for you, so every so often you should give them a little love in return. Additionally, maintaining your appliances will keep them working longer and more safely.

1. Vacuum Refrigerator and Freezer Coils

It’s important to vacuum out the coils at the back of your fridge a few times a year. Keeping your coils clean ensures that hot air can be released from your fridge, thus enabling your refrigerator and freezer to work more efficiently.

2. Vacuum Dryer Vents

Lint is very flammable, and if too much of it accumulates in your dryer vents it might catch fire. It might be tricky to access your dryer vents because the appliance is quite heavy. Our home maintenance experts can expertly clean out your dryer vents so you can avoid the hassle while feeling safe in your home.

3. Clean Out Your Dishwasher

Help your dishwasher do its job by cleaning the dishwasher itself. This will help the appliance clean better, smell better, and prevent possible flooding from build-up in the machine.

4. Clean Out Your Microwave

As most Colorado homeowners will agree, the microwave is one of those appliances that can get grimy very quickly. A quick wipe now and then will help keep your microwave fresh and clean.

5. Clean Out Your Oven

It’s truly amazing the difference a clean oven can make! Your oven will work better when clean, and you’ll also be able to keep a better eye on dinner without having to peer through the blackened build-up.

Safety and Electrical Check

Once a month you should complete a safety check in your home. Wear and tear can cause small safety issues that should be addressed quickly to prevent any accidents.

1. Test Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarms

Smoke and carbon monoxide alarms are key in keeping you and your loved ones safe. At least once a month, check to make sure both detectors are working properly. Replace if needed.

2. Replace Batteries in Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarms

When was the last time you changed the batteries in your smoke and carbon monoxide detectors? You should swap out the batteries at least one to two times a year—just to be on the safe side.

3. Inspect Electrical Cords for Damage

Exposed wires can cause electrical shock and even spark a fire. Spend a day at least once a year going through your home and checking that you have no exposed extension cords, frayed wires, or damaged phone chargers.

4. Inspect Your Fire Extinguishers

You don’t want to wait for an emergency to find out your fire extinguishers are not working. At least once a year, check that:

• The extinguishers are visible and easy to access
• All your family members know where they are
• There is no physical damage, leaking, or corrosion
• The locking pin is intact and the taper seal is unbroken

5. Replace Dead Light bulbs

When your light bulbs die, your pleasant and cozy space can look quite gloomy. Replace your light bulbs promptly so your home looks warm and inviting again. If your light bulbs are hard to reach or you’re pressed for time, our friendly home maintenance experts can replace them for you.

Miscellaneous Home Maintenance Services

1. Furniture Assembly

Have you invested in new furniture, but your tables, chairs, or bookshelves are still living in their boxes? Furniture assembly can be a frustrating process; the instructions are often confusing, the boxes are heavy, and the whole process requires too much time. Rather than deal with the fuss of assembling furniture, why not let the pros at Mr. Handyman of E Boulder, Broomfield & Erie handle this home maintenance task instead? We will assemble your new furniture efficiently and carefully so you can focus on enjoying it.

2. Give Your Home a Thorough Clean

Staying on top of household chores is part of the day-to-day business of a Colorado homeowner. However, your home could benefit from a thorough cleaning one to two times a year.

Pro-tip: get your whole family involved; everyone can pitch in to get the cleaning done faster!

3. Inspect Your Basement and Attic

Generally, most Colorado families spend less time in their basements and attics than in other areas of the house. This also means that any issues in the basement or attic are less likely to be noticed. That’s why it’s important to take a day every few months to check out your basement and attic to troubleshoot any potential problems.

4. Install Handrails

Handrails can make your house more accessible and safer. Whether for your garage, basement or in your bathtub, our home maintenance services experts can efficiently install handrails wherever your home needs them most.

Schedule Our Home Maintenance Services Today!

Are you ready to tackle this Colorado home maintenance to-do list on your own? If so, we hope it helps you stay on track for your home repair and maintenance needs!