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Maintain Your Home with this Simple Checklist

happy family cleaning their home windows

Gone a year without draining the water heater? Or forgotten to lube your garage door springs altogether? Keeping your home shipshape quickly feels overwhelming if you just focus on the lengthy list of maintenance and repairs.

Make daunting tasks more manageable by looking at frequency and season. Want maintenance to be smooth sailing? Create a checklist (or add to an existing one) using the suggestions below.

Monthly To-Dos

Clean or replace filters and vents to keep your ventilation system working properly. Don’t forget to include the dryer vent and range hood. They’re often neglected, unlike the more obvious air vents and filters.

Check indoor plumbing. Water damage is slow but sure. Hunt down the source of tiny leaks and check walls regularly for water stains. Do this diligently and you’ll avoid costly plumbing repairs. Touch up cracked grout and caulking while you’re at it.

Clean kitchen and bathroom drains. Pour baking soda and vinegar ice cubes down your kitchen drain for fuss-free garbage disposal maintenance. For the bathroom, avoid the mess of fishing out stuck gunk by using a drain snake that you can buy from the hardware store.

Seasonal Duties

Test smoke and carbon monoxide detectors to make sure they’re still working properly. Change the batteries every three to six months to guarantee more than your peace of mind.

Clean refrigerator coils to keep your refrigerator running efficiently. A flexible soft-bristle brush will loosen accumulated dust and dirt. This, in turn, can be easily vacuumed out of sight.

Clear your gutters of leaves (fall) and ice dams (winter) and inspect for leaks (spring/summer) and sagging (all seasons). Neglected gutters can lead to expensive water damage, drainage issues, and a compromised foundation.

Maintain your lawn to comply with any HOA requirements and to keep your home’s neat appearance. This includes weeding and mowing your lawn, inspecting your sprinkler system for leaks, planting grass on bald patches, and raking fallen leaves.

Check for drafts during summer and winter and seal them as soon as possible. Keeping the weather out of your home increases how well it cools or warms, translating to lower gas and electric bills.

Get your HVAC system inspected and serviced every six months. Schedule them right before winter and summer to keep you and your family comfortable all year round.

Yearly Checkups

Schedule a thorough home cleaning. Clean inside, out, and all around. Get to all the nooks and crannies you took a rain check on. Spring is still the best time for this since this is the season between a cooped-up winter and a carefree summer.

Drain your water heater to get rid of sediment. Your water heater will heat better and last longer.

Spray garage door components with a dry lubricant. This often-neglected task is the key to a smooth and whisper-quiet garage door. The lubricant also prevents rust and excessive wear, so you can keep money in your pocket for the next 10 years.

Maintaining your home won’t be a huge task if you tackle minor projects frequently. A well-maintained home costs you less in repairs and gives you a significant return when the time comes to sell. Once you feel it’s time to sell your home, give us, the Dana Benjamin Team, a call at 913.522.4277 or send an email at DBenjamin(at)ReeseNichols(dotted)com so we can help you.