Homeowner's Pre-winter Checklist
 
Getting top dollar when you sell your home depends an awful lot on how well you maintained it while you lived there. Here are some pre-winter tips that can help you keep the value of your home. 

As the weather grows colder, homeowners should plan ahead for the stormy winter months. There are many things you can and should do to protect your home and family from the ravages of winter. Good planning can also help reduce maintenance and utility costs.

• Turn off the waterline to the outside taps from the basement, then open the outside taps themselves to drain them. Otherwise, the trapped freezing water will expand and crack the pipes.
• Gas lawnmower - add some gas stabilizer to the fuel tank and cover the mower with a tarp for the winter
• Gas snowblower - add fresh gas, clean the spark plug and replace the oil - easy steps for years of use. You can even add stabilizer to it in case it's a low-use winter!
• Lawns - apply winter fertilizer before the ground freezes and moisture can still dissolve it into the ground
• Furnace - if you have an attached humidifier, replace the filter, open the water line to the humidifier, turn it on and set to about 40% humidity. Don't forget to open the door/latch on the duct between the humidifier and furnace, so the newly humidified air is returned to the furnace and circulated. (humid air holds more heat!)

 
Central heating          
Open vents near the floor and close those near the ceiling for better air circulation. Test furnace before the weather gets very cold. Consider having a professional give your heating system a checkup. If heating system is older than 15 years, consider replacing it with a modern, efficient unit. Replace or clean your furnace air filters.

Window or through-wall air conditioners
Install a winter cover over the unit or remove it for the winter and seal the opening.

Insulation
Make sure attic insulation is at least R32-40. One inch of typical fiberglass insulation has an R value of 2.5. So to achieve R32-40 you need at least 12 inches of insulation. If at all possible, make sure walls are insulated to R12. Make sure crawl space is insulated. Consider insulating your basement walls. Besides saving you heating dollars, it can reduce common moisture problems caused by condensation. If your house was built before 1950, it may be an excellent candidate for cost-saving blown-in wall insulation.

Attic ventilation
Make sure attic insulation doesn't cover ventilation vents in the eaves (also called soffits or overhangs). This helps prevent winter ice dams. Make sure ridge vent and vents at eaves are free of plants and debris. Make sure bird and rodent screens for attic vents don't have holes or loose corners. If they do, replace or patch them.

Cleaning
Vacuum under and behind freezer and fridge. This can greatly improve efficiency of unit. Have chimney cleaned and checked by a chimney sweep. Have deck power washed and resealed. This is not necessary every winter. Every 4-5 is standard unless there is significant water damage.

Windows & Doors
If you have the older type removable wooden storm windows, make arrangements to have them re-installed. Replace or repair any broken window locks or latches. Caulk around frames. Repair any cracked or broken window panes.

Exterior Walls
Check for mud trails, sawdust, and other signs of termite or carpenter ant infestation. Check for gaps around pipes and wires that go through exterior walls. Caulk so that no air can leak in or out. Remove, drain and coil all garden hoses. 

Rainwater Protection
Keep gutters clean at all times. During the fall it is better to clean them several times rather than waiting until the end of the leaf season. If your gutters are rusty, it is time to replace them with new aluminum or vinyl gutters. If there are any signs of a leak or damaged shingles or flashing, have the roof checked. Generally, if the roof is leaking and is more than 15 years old (with regular shingles), it may be more cost effective to have a new roof put on. Make sure all culverts and exterior drains are free of debris.

Snow Preparation
Make sure you have a working snow shovel and sidewalk salt on hand.
 
 
Gutter Maintenance 
 You can do it yourself - it's not hard to clean and maintain gutters and downspouts. The only trick is that you have to get above the gutters to do some of the work.

Clean your roof

The first step is to clean any leaves, twigs or other debris off your roof. The best way to do that is to walk on the roof and use your hands and an old broom, or a leaf blower, to pitch all of that stuff down into the yard. Climb a ladder or go out a window. Wear old sneakers that give you a good feel for what's underfoot and still provide good traction. Stay back from the edge until you feel comfortable. If, at any time, you start to feel unsure about which way is up, sit down with your back to the roof ridge and your feet toward the gutter.  Once the roof is broom-cleaned, start on the gutters themselves.

If old leaves, roofing gravels or other stuff has collected in the gutters to the point that there's a sediment in the bottom, use a narrow trowel or putty knife, or both, to gently lift the collection out and pitch it down to the yard. This is easier and safer from the top of a ladder, but you will have to keep resetting the ladder so you can reach everything while not leaning too far to either side.

When the gutters themselves are clean enough to suit you, take a close look at each gutter outlook. That's the fitting that connects the gutter to a downspout. Often, downspouts turn sharply toward the house just below the outlook. That slows the runoff and allows debris to collect, often clogging the outlook. Clean out any clogs you find. An old set of kitchen or salad tongs may help with this task.

Shore up the supports. As you're cleaning the gutter trough, check it's supports. Hung gutters may need a spike tapped back in or a clip or a hanger replaced, depending on how your gutters are attached. This is the best time to do that.

Check the verticals. Your downspouts need to be as straight as possible and undented. Each section should funnel into the one below it. The joints should be secured with pop rivets or solder. At ground level, one of three things should happen: the downspouts should feed into underground drains, or they should turn sharply out from the foundation and feed into leader pipes that continue out onto the yard, or they should turn out and empty onto splash blocks. The point is to lead the runoff away from the foundation and to slow it down so that the potential for erosion is minimized.

Hose it down.  If everything above has been checked, you should be ready to finish the job by flushing your gutters and downspouts with water. Take a hose up onto the roof or above the eaves and flush the roof down. If everything is in good shape, water should flow rapidly down your roof, into the gutters, down the downspouts and out onto your lawn, or into your underground drains.

Cover it up. To minimize this chore in the future, you can cover your gutters with 1/4" hardware cloth. Just make sure the upper edge of the hardware cloth is mounted under the lowest row of shingles.