6 Summer Home Maintenance Tips
Last Updated on August 21, 2020 by Duncan
Every year when the summer season rolls around, homeowners everywhere begin their yearly checklist of summer home maintenance.
After the long, cold months of Fall and Winter, and then the humid and wet months of Spring, many of the items and areas around your household are going to need a little tender love and care.
This is in large part due to the changing weather associated with the seasons. In general, Fall, Winter, and Spring are much wetter than other months.
This may cause rust build-up, mold to show up, or a large variety of other issues that could arise.
The colder months are generally unpleasant in many areas around the world as well, which can make general maintenance and upkeep of your home a bit trickier.
That’s why summer home maintenance is a must every year. It’s the perfect time to get your rear and gear and keep your home in tip-top shape.
In the end, you’ll see it’s much better to constantly maintain the integrity of your home rather than let it fall to the wayside.
With this in mind, this article was created to help guide you through the ins and outs of the most important summer maintenance tips that you should be considering this summer season.
Let’s dive in.
1. Clean Your Water Softener
If you own a water softener, and you should, you should be cleaning it at least once a year to ensure that you’re getting the best quality water to your home as possible.
What better time to do it when you’re already on a roll for your summer home maintenance checklist.
The right way to clean your water softener system is going to depend on the type of system you’re using.
If you’re curious about the exact steps, American Home Water (AHWA) knows all about your needs. Check out this post by AHWA to learn all about the different steps you need to take to effectively clean your water softener.
2. Check Your Air Conditioning
For the majority of Americans, and millions of others around the world, your air conditioning is going to get the most use during the summer months.
While you get a breath of fresh air from being confined to your home during the cold and bitter months of the early year, you’ll be battered with hot rays of sunshine to compensate.
This means checking and cleaning your air conditioning unit should be one of the first things to mark on your summer home maintenance checklist.
If you have central air conditioning, you should likely call a professional for cleaning services. However, it’s possible to do it yourself if you’re a handyman or know the ins and outs.
If you have an outside air conditioning unit, check out this article to learn some tips and tricks to effectively clean it.
On the other hand, if you have installed window units, cleaning can be much simpler. Simply remove and clean the filters before starting them up, or replace the filters entirely if they’re past their prime.
While you’re at it, consider cleaning all the fans within your home as well. If they haven’t been in use, ceiling fans can accumulate quite a bit of dust during the offseason.
Take a damp rag and wipe down all the blades to ensure a clean household. Remember that dust can be hidden on the top of the blades so don’t be afraid to wipe all of them down – even if they don’t look like they need cleaning.
3. Air Out the Basement
If you live in an area that sees a lot of snow and rain through the Fall, Winter, and Spring, your basement has likely been put through a lot. Moisture will easily accumulate and any cracks or foundation issues can quickly cause a lot of it to stick in your basement.
Over time, if the issue isn’t handled properly, this can lead to mold build-up and nasty smells that plague your basement.
Once the weather begins to dry out and temperatures rise, air out your basement with a large fan or by simply opening all the windows and doors for several days when it’s hot and dry. This will help remove a lot of the moisture that has built up during the other months.
4. Check Your Garage Doors
Dry, cold weather and constant exposure to moisture is the enemy of garage doors. They can begin to rust and deteriorate over time if they aren’t constantly cleaned.
Summer is the perfect time to check your garage doors for any signs of rust or integrity issues. Having a garage door malfunction can be a pain in the butt at best or cause serious injury at the worst.
Take the time to make sure your garage doors are functioning properly, don’t have any integrity issues, and are lubricated properly to keep them smoothly and safely functioning for the rest of the year to come.
5. Check Your Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Detectors
Smoke and carbon monoxide detectors often get left to the wayside for many homeowners. It’s unfortunate as these things are meant to provide life-saving detection in the event of an emergency.
To ensure your safety and that of everyone else who lives with you, give your smoke and carbon monoxide detectors a test. It’s one of those things that you always want to make sure is functioning properly.
If you’re unsure of how to properly test your detectors, this article from Protect America goes through the ins and outs of properly testing them.
6. Power Wash Your Deck and Clean the Grill
The Summer season means long days, delicious food on the grill, and catching some much-needed rest on your deck. You’ve earned it.
It’s also a great time to make sure that the things you lost most about Summer can be easily enjoyed and are in great shape.
Months of constant exposure to wetness may cause wooden decks to turn a sickly green color as they collect debris and gunk throughout the year. Simply purchase, or rent, a power washer and bring your deck back to its true form.
Velovision reviewed the best cordless pressure washers, so check out that article as it might be helpful for you.
Cleaning and readying your grill is also essential to the summer home maintenance checklist. The warm months aren’t the same without firing up your grill and getting some delicious meat and veggies on your plate.
Go ahead and take care of all the cleaning and maintenance your grill needs early on in the Summer to enjoy it all season long.