Spring cleaning: Tasks to help maintain your home

Winter weather can take a toll on your home both inside and out. Spring, however, is a good time to perform maintenance tasks that ensure your home is ready for warmer weather. The following tasks should be part of your spring maintenance checklist.

Check your roof

If you have had snow storms, ice storms and other winter weather in your area, plan to check your roof during spring. You might see shingles or tiles on the ground near your home if they were blown off. Also check for loose tiles, damaged eaves and other signs of roof damage. If you're not sure what to search for, you can have a professional roof inspection done to find any damage that occurred during the winter.

Check your windows and doors

Check for openings around windows and doors in spring. Finding and closing these openings will help keep cooler air in your home as temperatures heat up. You can close these gaps and openings with weather stripping, caulking or other materials. Sealing up these gaps also helps prevent spring pest infestations as bugs become more active again.

Inspect outdoor faucets and sprinkler systems

Warmer weather means you can turn outdoor faucets and sprinkler systems back on again after shutting them down for the winter. Before using these, check to make sure they're working properly. If you put any insulation on sprinkler heads or faucets, remove it before testing them.

Clean your deck or patio

Your deck or patio might have grime on it from not being used or cleaned during winter. Give your deck or patio a good cleaning before getting it ready to use in warmer weather. Consider refinishing your deck if the wood is looking worn, which helps protect it from wear and tear all spring and summer long.

Put new batteries in detectors

Replacing old batteries with new ones in carbon monoxide and smoke detectors is an important spring maintenance task. Having fresh batteries helps ensure that smoke and carbon monoxide detectors will warn you if there's a fire or carbon monoxide leak.

Clean your gutters

Prepare your gutters for spring storms by clearing them out. Winter debris can accumulate in your gutters and stop water from flowing through them. You can either get up on a ladder to clean your gutters, or have professional gutter cleaning done.