After an amazing summer and a warm start to the fall in Central Oregon it’s time to start preparing your home for winter. Below are a few tips and tricks for preparing your Central Oregon home for winter.
Must Do’s
- Remove all hoses connected to outdoor spigots. Never leave hoses connected to outdoor spigots when it starts freezing at night. Most frost-free spigots can’t drain properly when a hose is connected and you’ll risk freezing and breaking the pipe behind the shutoff valve causing a major leak. Draining the hose is less crucial but still important so it won’t crack over winter.
- Close your foundation vents. This will help to avoid the crawlspace from reaching freezing temperatures and it will reduce your heating bill.
- Winterize your irrigation system. Contact us if you need recommendations for a service to winterize your irrigation system.
Should Do’s
- Have your HVAC unit inspected and tuned up before winter. Many Central Oregon homes are running heat pumps which will be included in the tune up to make sure they’re heating efficiently.
- Clean your gutters. You should also make sure to clean your gutters before fire season in Central Oregon.
- Inspect the roof, windows and siding for any damage. You can use a set of binoculars so you don’t have to risk leg and limb climbing on your roof.
- If you have a gas stove, wood stove or fireplace get it and the chimney inspected and cleaned.
- Make sure your snow shovel is in good shape and if you need a new one purchase it before the first snow storm hits.