9 TASKS TO TACKLE BEFORE FALL ARRIVES
COOLERWEATHERISNIGH—PREPYOURHOMEFORITS ARRIVALWHILEIT'SSTILLNICEOUTSIDE.
THEDAYSAREGETTINGSHORTER,ANDTHENIGHTSARE GETTINGCOOLER.THEKIDSARETRUDGINGOFFTO SCHOOLAGAINWITHTHEIRBACKPACKS,ANDLEAVES AREFALLINGFROMTHETREES.
YEP,IT’SOFFICIAL:FALLISHERE.NOW’STHETIMETO FINISHUPANYLAST-MINUTEMAINTENANCEPROJECTS ANDGETYOURHOMEANDYARDREADY.
1.Fixcracksinconcreteandasphalt
Dependingonwhereyoulive,thesemaybethelastweeks thisyearwhenitwillbewarmandsunnyenoughtorepair drivewayandsidewalkcracks.
2.Cleanoutthegutters
Noonelovesthisjob,butweallneedtodoitannually.Afew hoursofworkcanpreventbigproblemslateron.
Whileyou’reuponthatladder,visuallyinspectyourrooffor damagedshingles,flashingorvents.Youcanalsoinspectthe chimneyforanymissingmortarandrepairitbytuckpointing,ifneeded.
3.Turnoffoutdoorplumbing
Drainoutdoorfaucetsandsprinklersystems,andcoverthem toprotectthemfromthefreezingweathertocome.
4.Startcomposting
Ifyoudon’talreadyhavecompostbins,now’sthetimeto makeorgetsome.Allthoseaccumulatedautumnleaveswill bringyougardeninggoldnextsummer!
5.Cleanoutdoorfurnitureandgardeningtools
Itmaynotyetbetimetoputthemaway,butgoaheadand cleanyouroutdoorfurnitureandgardeningtoolssothey’re readyforstorageoverthewinter.
6.Plantbulbsforspring-bloomingflowers
PlantbulbsinOctober,assoonasthesoilhascooleddown, toreapbigrewardsnextspring.Ifyou’veneverplantedbulbs before,selectaspotinyouryardthatgetsfullsunduringthe day.
7.Prepareyourfurnaceforwinterduty
Ifyoudidn’talreadydoitlastspring,considergettingyour furnaceprofessionallyservicedintimeforthecoldseason.At theminimum,though,visuallyinspectyourfurnaceand replacethefurnacefilterbeforeturningitonforthefirsttime.
8.Cleanthefireplaceandchimney
Cleanoutthefireplace,inspecttheflue,andensurethedoors andshieldsaresound.Havethechimneyprofessionally sweptifneeded.Now’salsothetimetostockuponfirewood!
9.Keepthewarmairinsideandthecoldairoutside
Inspectyourwindowsanddoors.Checkweatherstrippingby openingadoor,placingapieceofpaperintheentrywayand closingthedoor.Thepapershouldnotslidebackandforth easily.Ifitdoes,theweatherstrippingisn’tdoingitsjob.
Also,now’sthetimetore-caulkaroundwindowsanddoor casings,ifneeded.
ONCEYOUFINISHWITHYOURAUTUMNHOMECHECKLIST, YOUWILLBEREADYTOENJOYTHESEASONINYOUR WARM,COMFORTABLEHOME.