Get Your Midwest Home Ready for Spring
The first day of Spring is less than two weeks away! Although we know winter can tend to try to hang on like that ex-partner that just won’t go away, here in the midwest, we are WILLING spring to come. With so much snow this winter and then glimpses of warm days, we’re itching for a season promising brighter days and less sickness (aside from those pesky allergies that seem to come with Spring). So how can you get rid of the signs of winter on your home and prep it for the next season? Just follow these simple seven home maintenance tips:
- Get Ready for Bugs
With all the April showers that you can soon expect comes all the mosquitos. So it’s time to inspect those screen doors, windows and porches. If you had some rough winter storms or your screens are just old in general, you’ll want to repair any tears or holes in your screens. Enjoy the breeze without the annoying biting buzzers entering your home.You should also check for signs of termites. Termites swarm in the spring, so if you see a bunch of flying insects flying out of a hole in wood, it’s probably termites. It’s best to call a pest control company to do a check-up and spray for bugs anyway.
Photo by Toa Heftiba on Unsplash
- Prep Your Wooden Party Spaces
The warmer weather gets us excited to start hosting outdoor gatherings on our decks, under pergolas and in our fenced in backyards. These wooden outdoor features will last longer against the wet spring elements and the hot and cold changes if you reseal or stain them every year or two. You might also check for any repairs to wood rot or cracked boards that need to be taken care of.
- Inspect Your Roof
Different kinds of storms come with each season, but winter can bring heavy snow and ice that sit on your roof for days at a time. It’s always good to get up on the roof (or have a professional take a look) and see if you’ve got missing shingles or damage to pipes or chimneys.
- Time to Paint
While you’ve been stuck inside all winter, you’ve probably been browsing Pinterest looking for home projects to do. What better project than giving your home’s exterior a facelift? Spring is the perfect time to paint your house. If you have an HOA, remember to check with them on any rules around paint colors. If you’re free to choose whatever you’d like, hop in the car or take a walk around your neighborhood and snap some photos for some inspiration!
- Get Organized
Most people feel a little better about life when they know where to find things. Not necessarily a deep quote to embroider on a pillow, but think about it! If we all added up the amount of time in our lives we spent looking for our keys or cell phone or screwdriver or sunscreen, it would be sad to see how much time we’ve lost. But if we had a set spot for where these things always went, we’d get time back in our day, and our kids would hear us cuss a lot less.
Photo by Jeff Sheldon on Unsplash
Consider spending a gorgeous spring day with the garage door open and finally putting up that pegboard over your workbench so you can find all of your tools and get items out of tubs and off the floor. Or on a stormy spring day, take the opportunity to empty the linen closet and junk drawers and take time to organize the space. Hot home maintenance tips: Amazon, The Container Store, Target and more have a plethora of storage bins and drawer organizers to help make it make sense and look pretty.
- Check Your Sprinkler System
If you did it the right way, you had your sprinkler system winterized to prevent any issues during the cold season. But harsh weather can still do a number on sprinklers, so you’ll want to have your sprinkler company do a maintenance check on your system. Or you can check through a few things on your own:
Are sprinkler heads intact and undamaged?
Run the system’s zones manually and make sure all heads are pointed in the appropriate direction and spraying properly.
Make sure sprinklers aren’t spraying the house or windows to avoid moisture problems and make sure they’re not spending too much time on sidewalks and driveways so as not to waste water. - Get Lawn Equipment Ready
Photo by Daniel Watson on Unsplash
It will soon be time to power up those lawn mowers and weed eaters. Make sure blades are sharpened, equipment is cleaned and you’ve got a full tank of gasoline (and a backup or two) so you don’t get motivated just to get stopped in the middle of a lawn project.
Or, just do it the easy way and hire a lawn company. 🙂
For other spring home maintenance tips, check out blogs we’ve written in the past on this topic. And if you’re in need of a repair person or specific service company, be sure to visit our list of recommended vendor resources we provide on our website.