Did you catch that summer officially starts today? The season of long days, sometimes oppressing heat, family vacations, and days spent by the pool has returned! And with the change in the season it is time to once again tackle a few maintenance items around the house to keep things running smoothly. Keep reading for a few ideas of what to add to your to do list this summer.
Inspect Kitchen and Bath Plumbing Fixtures
The kitchen and bathroom are some of the most important rooms in the house, so is something goes wrong in one of those rooms it can be quite disruptive. Avoid this unexpected headaches by doing periodic inspection and maintenance of the plumbing items so that you can avert or catch issues early before they become big problems. Check your pipes for signs of leaks or damage. Make sure your toilets do not run indefinitely or start running spontaneously. Unclog any slow moving drains (a quick Google search can help you find a safer and less caustic way to do this). Finally, regrout and recaulk areas where it has degraded or is missing so that water does not get into places where it doesn’t belong and cause damage.
Clean the Laundry Room
Despite often being one of the smallest rooms in the house, the laundry room has an uncanny knack for being one of the messiest and most disorganized. Laundry is already a chore so why make it harder on yourself by having to do it in a room that only makes the job harder and does not inspire joy? Take some time to clean up and organize. But before you start tackling the room take a few moments to think about what changes and organizational methods would work best for how you use the room. Perhaps adding a cabinet or shelf by the washing machine for storing your detergent, dryer sheets, and other cleaning items would help keep everything closer to the areas where they will most be used. Does the room have enough countertop working space for folding and sorting clothes? If you have some items that need to air dry would it be helpful to add a hanging rod in the room? And before you finish make sure to clean out your dryer duct and the water lines for your washer to keep both machines working as efficiently as possible.
Keep Your Home Safe While You’re Away
Summer and vacations go hand in hand, but while you’re away traveling make sure that your house is safe during your absence. Before you leave set up a few helpful security measures. Use a motion detector or timer for your front porch light so that your home won’t look completely dark and deserted at night. A few timer set lights on the interior might also be a good idea. If you’re going to be away for more than a few days make sure you stop your mail and newspaper delivery. Nothing screams empty house more than a bunch of newspapers lying in the front yard. Let a trusted neighbor know about your plans so they can also keep an eye on your home and inform you of any emergency issues they might see.
General Maintenance
Safety devices like smoke and carbon monoxide detectors should be checked regularly. If it’s been a while then let this serve as your reminder. The last thing you want is to find out in the middle of an emergency that they are not working. Check the maintenance date on your fire extinguishers to make sure they are still up to date and replace or service any that have expired. Once the spring rains have moved on take some time to inspect and clean out your gutters. Your life will be significantly easier come fall when you only have to clear out the freshly fallen leaves and not several seasons worth of build up. Also make sure that all of your downspouts are properly draining water away from the house and that the water doesn’t pool anyway. Mosquito season is coming and pools of water can quickly turn into breeding grounds for those pesky bugs.
Find Ways to Conserve Water
Water can fast become a previous commodity in the summer given the heat and general lack of rain, and that makes summer an ideal time to adopt some water saving strategies. Inside the house look into replacing your faucets and shower heads with low flow models. Also be sure to make sure your faucets aren’t randomly dripping and toilets are running excessively. Outside the home keep an eye on your sprinklers to make sure they are positioned to actually water your landscaping and not the side walk and check that none of the heads are broken and have turned into geysers. Also check what the proper watering schedule is for your landscaping and don’t over water.
Schedule Some Downtime
Despite the longer days and lack of school for the kids, somehow summers still seem to fly by without as much downtime and relaxation as we might like. Don’t let this summer slip by. Instead, actively make sure that you set aside some time for a little R&R in whatever way works best for you and make sure your house is ready to help you achieve the rest and relaxation that you deserve. If you like to read then find a quiet area of your house and stock with a comfortable chair and good lighting. If time outside lounging by the pool is your thing then get a comfortable lounge chair or pool floatie and have some sunscreen well stocked and ready to go. Or maybe you’d like some quiet time to catch up on missed sleep, in which case some light blocking curtains and creating the comfiest of beds might be what you need.