Preparing your home and yard for the fall season

Posted by: Author scentandviolet October 6th, 2017

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We are very excited to have Clara Beaufort of Garden Gigs guest write today's advice article on fall garden (and home)  preparation. Dig in.

The temperature outside is getting cooler, the days are getting shorter, and soon the leaves will be changing color and beginning to fall. On the home front, your kids are in school again, and the carefree, playful days of summer are behind you. Fall has officially arrived. Now is the time to wrap up any house and yard maintenance projects and start thinking about preparing your home for the cooler months ahead.  

Here are a few tips on how to best ready your home and yard for the autumn and winter seasons, so that the cooler temperatures don’t catch you and your family unaware and unprepared.

Preparing Your Yard and Home Exterior

There are several things you can do to prepare the outside of your home for the fall, including fixing cracks in asphalt and concrete. It’s best to repair sidewalk and driveway cracks while it’s still sunny and warm.

Another thing you can do is remove debris from roof gutters.While this certainly is not a pleasurable task, it is still a must-do chore. Investing a few hours of work in clearing your roof gutters will save you from problems later. When working around your roof, don’t forget to look for damaged flashing, vents, or shingles, and to further inspect the chimney for any absent mortar.

Want to keep a beautiful flowery garden in the spring and summer? Practice gardening foresight and plant flower bulbs in October when the soil is cooler, so that your garden positively brims with color during the higher-temperature seasons. For the best results, pick an area in your yard that is especially sunny during the day. Also, if you don’t own compost bins, now is the perfect time to acquire or build some. All the organic matter of fallen leaves will turn into gardening gold when summer comes around.

Preparing Your Home Interior

When preparing your home interior, clear the fireplace of all ash and debris and check to see that the flue is working properly. Verify that the shield and doors are intact, and have a professional sweep the chimney, if needed. It’s also a good time to order some firewood for future nights of enjoyable hearth fires.

Now is the time to secure home insulation. Closely inspect your doors and windows and re-caulk around the casings, if needed. To check weather stripping, open a door, place a sheet of paper on the door sill, and close the door. Look to see if the paper substantially slides back and forth. If it does, the weather stripping needs to be repaired or replaced.

Aim to bring in as much natural light into your home as possible to save on heating bills when it gets cooler. To further the reach of sunlight, clean your blinds and windows, particularly in your sunniest rooms. Also think about adding new lamps to dark corners and spaces. Lastly, consider outfitting your light fixtures with energy-efficient light bulbs.

An important step is conducting a home safety check. Make sure to change the batteries in your CO2 monitors and smoke alarms. (Timing this when clocks officially “fall back” is a good reminder tactic.) Draft and/or review the family fire escape plan and prepare an emergency kit for when the power goes out.

There are many ways to prepare your yard and home’s exterior and interior for the upcoming autumn and winter months. By completing these chores, you can enjoy peace of mind and rest easy knowing that all is well in your home and garden.

Writer: Clara Beaufort of Gardenergigs.com

Photo via Pixabay