Year-Round Home Maintenance Guide

Home maintenance  is a necessary and year round process for prolonging the life of your home.  Regular
home maintenance  keeps a home clean, valuable and comfortable.  Home maintenance covers a wide array of concerns from pest control, to weatherstripping, to gutter cleaning and beyond.  Concientious preventative maintenance is more cost effective than repairing a problem that gets out of hand.  This brief guide breaks up
home maintenance into two general categories, interior and exterior.  You will find that many of these tasks you can take care of yourself.  For others, it is a good idea to call a local handyman.  A professional handyman will have the tools, time and experience to help you maximize the life of your home.  A good handyman can perform routine inspections in the spring and fall, while taking care of minor repairs year round.

Exterior
Roofs, gutters, and downspouts.  Roofing needs to be inspected while the weather is nice.  Look for damaged or missing shingles, bubbles, blisters or areas where the gravel has eroded.  Tree branches that touch the roof need to be pruned back.  Gutters need to be cleaned and checked for leaks and blockage.  Look for spots that need re-securing due to rust or other erosion.  Check the seams of downspouts for any splits.  A downspout with a split is usually blocked with debris.  Inspect eaves, soffits and fascia, for peeling paint, rot or vermin damage.

Walls, foundation walls, and siding.  Check all walls for signs of the house settling.  Inspect stone walls and foundation walls for any brick and mortar deterioration.  With wooden walls, look for rot, damaged boards and areas of contact between wood and soil, which will accelerate deterioration.  For stucco, look for cracks and separating.  If any surfaces are painted, and the paint is blistering or bubbling, it can mean that moisture is seeping out of or into the house.  Examine the siding of the home for any loose or missing parts.  Trim back trees, vines, and other plant life.  Vines especially will work their way into the smallest gaps in siding and spread them open.

Doors, windows, porches and decks.  Replace any damaged window panes.  Check frames and window sills for deteriorated paint.  Repaint as needed.  Make sure the caulk and weatherstripping are intact and functional.  Clean out window wells.  All wooden parts of porches and decks need periodic inspection.  Make sure railings and steps are secure.  Look for rot or evidence of insect infestation.  Re-stain the wood as needed.

Outdoor wiring.  Make sure exterior outlets have proper covers and ground fault circuit interrupters.  Wires leading away from the house or out to buildings like the garage need to be inspected for any loose wiring or frays.

Interior

Walls, ceilings and doors.  Look in dead air corners and nooks for evidence of mildew or condensation.  Inspect for cracks or signs of water damage on interior finish.  This can be evidence of high humidity in the house, which leads to rot.  Look for bulges in ceilings and walls.  Examine door frames, looking for any that are out of square.  A door frame that becomes out of square within six months is considered fast movement in structural terms, and may indicate a larger structural problem.  Make careful notation of movement or changes to be able to compare it in the future.

Main electrical panel and indoor wiring.  This maintenance should be done by a qualified electrician at least once per year, for the safety of the home and the homeowner.  Check the main electrical panel for any signs of moisture penetration.  Test all breakers to make sure none have stuck.  Label the circuits.  Look for burnt wires.  Tighten fuses and aluminum wire connections.  Test the ground fault circuit interruptors.  For indoor wiring, replace any frayed or damaged wiring, including appliance cords and extension cords.  Tighten loose switches and electrical outlets.

Water heaters and plumbing.  Use the test lever on the water heater’s pressure relief valve to make sure that the valve is not stuck.  Depending on the region, sludge may gather at the bottom of the hot water tank.  Drain a small amount of water from the tank to make sure there is no sludge.  If there is, regular draining will be in order.  Grab a bucket if the hot water heater does not discharge near a drain.

HVAC systems.  This includes all heating and air conditioning in the home.  Check all filters monthly.  Clean or replace filters as needed.  Listen for noisy blowers and note them to a technician.  Lubricate circulation pumps and drain expansion tanks.  Whether an oil, gas, or electric system, have a technician inspect furnaces and boilers to make sure they are working properly and all connections are snug.  Examine exhaust pipes for corrosion or loose sections.  For cooling systems, recharge as necessary.  Check the condensate drain line for leaks during the cooling season.  Check the outdoor unit, to make sure it is level and running properly.  Listen for any fan noise that may indicate a failed bearing or poor alignment.  Inspect refrigerant lines for any problematic insulation.  Clean up debris and trim plants away from the outdoor unit.

Attics.  Inspect the attic once or twice a year.  Look for water stains, rot, mildew, or fungus.  These are clues the attic has high humidity.  Make sure insulation is dry and that attic vents are unobstructed.  Look for any bird nests or evidence of pests in the attic.  If so, call an exterminator.

This guide is meant to get a home owner started thinking proactively about preventative home maintenance.  Preventing problems is a lot cheaper fixing them.  Recruit a handyman and develop a yearly or twice-yearly maintenance inspection schedule.  The extended life and comfort of your home will be well worth the trouble of periodic home maintenance.