Spring cleaning gets all the headlines, but there’s an entirely different seasonal home maintenance checklist most homeowners neglect almost entirely. Sure, you remember to clean the gutters and maybe power wash the deck. But all those things that could save you some serious future headaches? Those all too often fall to the wayside until the damage is done.
Spring is a crucial season for preventing disaster, unfortunately. Winter does a number on houses in many ways. And once spring hits, a whole bunch of activities start to pick up around the house that can cause issues if you don’t do anything about it.
Inspect Your Home’s Foundation and Exterior Walls
Those winter freeze-thaw cycles are brutal on foundations. Any cracks that appeared in your foundation before winter likely saw the gap expand with the ice and snow.
Walk around the outside of your house and look for new gaps, cracks, or areas where the mortar crumbled due to all that freezing and thawing.
This does not just affect your home’s structural integrity (though it does). Once the temperature warms up, those cracks also become an entry point for moisture and critters, among other things. A half-inch gap may not seem like much, but that’s enough space for mice, insects and more to crawl on into your home.
While you’re at it, check the grading on your foundation, too. The ground settles and shifts over time. So, it’s best to catch any issues this spring before your yard starts to hold water next to your foundation. That standing water can negatively affect your home’s foundation, plus breed mosquitoes (and attract other pests looking for a water source).
Schedule Pest Control Services Before It’s Too Late
Pest control is another task on most homeowners’ spring-cleaning lists. By the time you start noticing pest activity inside your home, it’s already likely too late to stop the issue without serious measures. In spring, pest and insect activity will kick into high gear, so it’s best to plan for prevention rather than clean up the aftermath of an infestation.
Getting a pest control inspection can help you identify activity a casual observer may miss. There are various reasons to get a pest control inspection in the spring, from catching early activity to preventing a massive pest problem before it damages your home. The cost of pest control services for prevention is always cheaper than waiting until you have no choice but to call someone for help.
Check outside your home for ant hills forming near the foundation, nests from wasps around your eaves, and signs of rodent activity in your garage or shed. Spring is when their populations are still manageable.
Inspect Your Roof
Most people don’t think about their roof until they see stains or moisture dripping onto their kitchen table. A quick inspection this spring will help avoid that disaster though.
Inspect your roof for missing or damaged shingles. Most people lose shingles due to harsh winter winds. Keep a lookout around the north side of your house, as this is where ice dams typically cause the most issues.
Also inspect the flashings around chimneys, vent stacks and skylights. These areas suffer the worst damage during winter, and even the slightest issue will enable water to find its way in as soon as the rain hits.
Seemingly small leaks can wreak havoc on your attic long before you realize anything is wrong. A single leak can wreak havoc on your home and not only promote pest activity, but also mold growth.
Additionally, don’t forget to clean out the roof valleys. It’s an easy thing to forget in spring, but most people remember to do this step every fall. So, it’s a good idea to check in spring again, too.
Leaves and pine needles trap moisture in the roof valleys, causing them to degrade much faster than normal. Plus, it’s easy for them to collect in these areas, making them the perfect area for a leak to form.
Check Your Sump Pump
If you have a sump pump, make sure you check it before the heavy spring rains set in. If it hasn’t had any reason to run yet all winter, then now is the time.
Pour water in the sump pit and watch it run. While you’re at it, also check all your downspout extensions! They all need to be pointing at least six feet away from the home this spring after winter wreaked havoc on them all.
Winter storms typically knock down downspout extensions or the ground shifts and settles around your home. It’s easier than you think for these extensions to become clogged, which is one of the most common reasons basements flood.
Service Your HVAC System
Your furnace has likely worked hard all winter long, and it’s almost time for your air conditioning system to take a beating. So, before either system begins working in overdrive, spring is the perfect time for some preventive maintenance.
Change air filters and air duct vents this spring. While you’re at it, also plan on professionally servicing your heating and cooling system.
Most people rely heavily on their heating and cooling systems, so it’s easy to forget how much dust can build up. Dust and debris can cause significant buildup that will negatively affect the air quality in your house if you’re not careful. Clean out dust and debris this spring for the cleanest air this summer.
Additionally, if your system isn’t functioning optimally, you’re more likely to see it fail at the worst possible time–like when a heat wave hits before your system has a chance to kick on.
Check Your Outdoor Lighting
Spring means longer days, so make sure to check all your outdoor lights this spring. Replace burned-out bulbs this season and ensure all motion sensors are still functioning as expected.
It’s more important than most people realize to maintain well-lit areas around your home. Keeping unwanted two-legged visitors away is essential. But raccoons, possums and more prefer dark areas with secluded spaces to roam. As long as your yard is well-lit in spring, they’re more likely to roam elsewhere.
Final Thoughts
Spring cleaning might not be the most exciting endeavor. However, it’s essential to avoid creating a financial burden throughout the year on your home. Most of these tasks can be done in just a few hours over the course of a day combined with others.
Catching these issues this spring saves you thousands of dollars down the road. The only trick is remembering to do it.
