Yay for Fall! We all look forward to the relief from the heat that comes with Autumn, but it is also a time to get ready for those colder days before they can cause problems for you and your home.
As you start looking to the trees for colorful leaves that will fall and make a lot of yard work, also look at the trees themselves. Any drooping or dead branches need to be trimmed because in Georgia, we don't get snow; we get ice. Ice accumulations on trees can cause them to fall on the home causing roof damage. Also scan around your roof to see if there are any other potential hazards that can damage your home during a winter storm.
Icy conditions make the exterior walkways a potential hazard so Fall is the time to make sure you have a plan to keep them safe. Consider keeping bags of sand nearby so when a storm is coming you can put down a layer making it harder for the ice to form on your walkways and easier to scrape up if needed. Having a welcome mat or area rug right inside your door allows people to clean or remove their shoes safely without tracking snow or ice throughout the home.
For the interior, plan to be spending much more time inside as the temperatures drop so use these tips to get your home ready.
Fall is a great time to get your HVAC serviced. By cleaning your filters, ducts, coils, registers, drain pans and other components before you need it, you will help protect the unit and potentially prevent having no heat during the cold winter days.
Check for signs of water damage and/or mold and mildew growth. This includes the ceiling, walls, floors, cabinets and furniture in each room. Address these now because during the winter months most homes are recirculating air inside the structure to conserve heat. This contained environment can promote mold growth which spreads by putting mold spores in the air you are breathing.
You will also want to check for signs of biological contaminants. If you find rodent or bird droppings, be sure you are finding how they got inside to prevent them from spending the winter inside with you. You also want to be sure you clean up any mess they made so you are not exposed to that while spending the winter trapped inside.
ServiceMaster of Gwinnett is able to help you with this in multiple ways. First of all, we can clean your furniture and floors to remove dirt, dust and pet hair which will help keep the air cleaner and help reduce the risk of potential mold growth. Our second way to help is to perform a water mitigation on any water damage you find during you fall inspection. We will get your home cleaned up and dried out to help prevent mold growth over the winter months. Finally, if you do experience a loss during the winter from either water (frozen pipes bursting for example) or fire & smoke damage (failed heater for example), ServiceMaster of Gwinnett offers disaster restoration services to get you safely back in your home as soon as possible.
