The Fall Home Maintenance Checklist You’ve Been Looking For

Depending on what part of the country you live in, your fall home maintenance checklist may look different than someone else’s. In general, though, for the midwest specifically, you can count on this checklist to set your home up for best facing the colder, wetter months ahead. So turn on your Autumn Jazz playlist, cozy up with a cup of coffee and get out your planner – it’s time to get that home fall ready.

Let’s Talk Outside the Home

Roof

Potential hail damage, high winds from spring and summer storms and just general wear and tear may have left your roof with some leaks or missing shingles. Now is the time to inspect the roof (or if you’re scared of heights, have a professional inspect it) and make any repairs to damage done before heavy snowfall and ice come. The last thing you need is a leak in frigid temperatures!

Gutters 

As leaves start to fall, this may be something to do at the beginning, during and the end of the autumn season – clean out those gutters. Any clogs can mean water moving in the wrong direction near your house and foundation. Gutters can also corrode and rust when backed up. So, again, get up on that ladder, or have a professional company take care of it. For ease of maintenance in the future, consider gutter guards.

Lawn

It’s time to prep your lawn. Your sprinkler system should be winterized if you don’t plan on watering during the fall season. Stay on top of leaf raking so you can regularly set out bags for yard waste pickup and to keep from dealing with dead spots on your lawn and garden beds. You may want to aerate and do one last fertilization treatment as well.

Let’s Talk Inside the Home

Update/Review Safety Features

With getting ready to spend more time indoors, it’s important to make sure a few safety things are up-to-par and in the right spot:

• Smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors – make sure all batteries are working and do a quick test on each.
• Do you have fire extinguishers and know where they are? It’s best to keep one on each floor, and especially near the kitchen. (If you don’t have any, they are a very affordable purchase at places like Home Depot, and you certainly won’t regret it!)
• If you’ve had traps out for spiders, bugs and mice, be sure to check if those need to be replaced or thrown away. Hopefully the insects are dormant during the colder months, but mice certainly like to find warm places during the fall/winter, so keep those traps handy!

Furnace

The last thing you want to be doing is calling a HVAC company on one of the colder days of the season, so now is the time to have your furnace serviced, and if you know you need to get it replaced, pull the trigger! Scheduling and installing during fall is way better than having a company coming last minute for a higher price, or worse, not being able to find anyone with availability.

Fireplace

Whether wood burning or gas, now is a good time to get those fireplaces cleaned out and repaired, if needed. For wood burning fireplaces, it’s best to have them inspected for cracks, corrosion, holes and deterioration. It’s also a good idea to start stocking up on wood now so you’re not chopping in the falling snow!

If you feel like you don’t have the time or skills for many of these things, we’ve got you covered (for the Kansas City area). Check out our preferred vendor list to help with all those fall home maintenance checklist items.