Preparing Your Home For Winter: Simple Steps To Be Winter Ready

You know it’s coming—winter is just around the corner, and you don’t want to be underprepared, especially when it comes to your biggest investment, your home. When the temperature drops, strong winds, and occasional snowstorms hit, the last thing you want is costly repairs from damage that could be prevented by ensuring you’re properly preparing your home for winter.

We have a simple set of steps to follow to ensure your home stays safe and comfortable during the winter months. We will share what precautions and steps to take to winterize your home, from indoor preventative measures to outdoor maintenance, to keep you fully prepared. The goal is to keep the heat inside your home and that you, as a home homeowner, have a checklist to follow to prepare your house.

While some of these steps can easily be done by yourself or a family member, you may want to consider hiring a professional Peabody handyman. We offer a variety of services that can help you when preparing a home for winter weather in South Essex County, from window frame repair to keep the cold at bay to adding insulation to your attic. Keep reading below to find out all the best ways to keep the cold out and in the heat when preparing your home for winter!

Weatherproof The Exterior

The outside of your home is just as important as the inside, and you will want to ensure that preventative measures such as weatherproofing the exterior of your home are taken. Here are a couple of measures you can take when preparing your home for winter:

Clean the gutters: Lots of things like leaves, twigs, and debris can clog your gutters and downspouts, which can lead to ice dams that can wreak havoc on your roof and siding and ultimately damage your home.
Gutter repair: While cleaning your gutters, you might have found some damage. You will want to ensure that your gutters are repaired by a licensed professional from Mr. Handyman of South Essex County. A damaged gutter could mean water runoff that leaks into places that you don’t want it to. This can cause extensive damage, especially if it freezes.
Window and door weatherproofing: Cold drafts can easily enter through your windows and doors when they're not properly sealed. Our team of handymen can help with preparing your home for winter by ensuring your windows and doors don’t let cold air in.

These are great preventative measures and are worth the investment. Preparing a home for winter requires a lot of work, but it’s worth it in the long run to prevent damage and the need for repairs when winter hits. Taking steps to winterize and ensuring your home is prepped for when the cold weather arrives is critical.

Insulation is Key

Keeping cold air out of your home comes down to one thing: insulation. You will want to leave your insulation up to the professionals. If you notice that your heat is struggling to stay in your home, your insulation might be the problem.

Attic Insulation: Hot air rises, and we want it to stay that way without the loss of heat. When you lack insulation in your attic, the heat escapes and will result in higher heating costs. Preparing your home for winter should include looking into attic insulation.
Door installation and draft stoppers: Over time, your doors experience wear and tear that can be a cause for concern when winter arrives. Preparing your home for winter includes door repairs or door replacement. If you don’t need a door repair but notice a draft, installing a draft stopper is a quick fix to get you through the winter.
Installing curtains or drapes: It seems like an odd method of preparing a home for winter but installing thermal curtains or a heavier material can help block some of the chills from windows. Getting your house ready for winter doesn't have to cost a ton of money.

Adding simple insulation like thicker or thermal curtains can increase the warmth in your home. Preparing your home for winter can seem like a challenge, but simple fixes and solutions can save you money and prevent devastating damage to your home.

Service Your Home Heating

During those cold snaps, your home heating system will be working double time to keep up and ensure you stay warm and cozy inside. Some things you can do to prevent any issues with your heat can be as simple as servicing your home. You can do these things yourself to ensure they are running smoothly and maybe ensure some energy savings.

Change your air filters: A dirty air filter means that your heating system is working harder to get the warm air you need, which means putting a strain on your system. Make sure to replace old and dirty filters with new, clean ones.
Smart thermostat: A good way to make your home efficient and not raise your heating bill is to install a smart thermostat. You can control the settings to reduce the heat at night when you’re sleeping or while you’re away.
Seal heating ducts: Check for cracks and gaps in your heating ducts and seal them with duct tape. Cracks and gaps can reduce your home efficiency by 20% and result in heat loss.

Regular servicing of your home is always a good way to make sure things are working properly, but especially in the winter, when you run the risk of serious weather damage and heating issues.

Outdoor Spaces

When you think about your outdoor spaces, you automatically think that they are well-equipped to handle the winter. While this is the case for a lot of things, other areas of your outdoor spaces might need special attention. Throughout the year, hazards and issues can come up, and you might have thought, “I can put this off,” or it has gone unnoticed. Making sure to check or repair the following can help prevent severe damage.

Inspect your deck and patio: Take a thorough look at your patio and deck. If you notice that the railings need repairs or there are loose boards, you may want one of our handymen to come and quickly repair this for you to avoid a collapse from heavy snow or strong winds.
Fence repair: Another good thing to take a closer look at and ensure nothing is broken is your fence. While this might not seem like a “must-do” when preparing your home for winter, it's a good housekeeping task. If you have broken spots in your fence, you will want to ensure a handyman comes and repairs this for you before a strong wind or sudden dump of snow creates a large issue.
Hoses and taps: Ensure that your garden hoses are removed from your outdoor taps to prevent freezing and expansion. Make sure that you drain the water and turn off the water valves for the winter as well.

Be sure to carefully check your outdoor spaces, put away furniture, and make sure things like shovels and snowblowers are in an accessible area. Even when you're in late winter, you never know when a snowstorm can hit.

Upgrades For Efficiency

If you are looking to save some extra money this winter, consider upgrading parts of your home to make it more efficient. Simple upgrades can make a big impact on your home heating while reducing your bill. Our certified contractors at Mr. Handyman of South Essex County can install your efficient upgrades today!

Window replacement: Windows that haven’t been replaced for many years can be drafty and not as efficient as they once were. Preparing your home for winter can include some much-needed upgrades to your windows.
Install storm doors: A storm door is great for many reasons, but one of them is adding an extra layer of protection from the elements. A storm door will block and protect your main door from the elements without reducing your visibility.

Although these are more costly measures, they are great to consider when you start preparing your home for winter. Not only will it help during the winter season, but it is beneficial all year round.

How Mr. Handyman Can Help You When Preparing a Home For Winter

While there are a lot of preventative measures you can take on your own, hiring a professional, local handyman can make a lasting difference when it comes to repairs and upgrades. Making the necessary repairs and upgrades, such as replacing outdated windows, adding insulation to your attic, or adding a storm door in your home, goes a long way to protecting your home from intense winter storms.

When you’re looking to get the job done right the first time, Mr. Handyman of South Essex County is here to help. We understand that your time is valuable, and that’s why our team will work promptly to ensure that you get the best quote possible. Our friendly team will ensure that your job gets done the right way and up to your satisfaction.

Call Us Today To Start Preparing Your Home For Winter

Ready to be winter-ready? We are excited to help your home become more efficient and withstand those cold winter months. When it comes to preparing your home for winter, we have you covered! We proudly serve the following areas of South Essex County: Beverly, Lynn, Lynnfield, Marblehead, Newbury, Newburyport, Rowley, Salem, Salisbury, and Swampscott, MA.

Call us today to book your handyman service and start preparing your home for winter!