Last blog, we talked about things to do in May to your Glenview home to get ready for the heat of summer. We reviewed your cooling system, heating system and other things inside.
This time we will go over things that need TLC to get ready for summer on the outside of your home; your windows, window screens, and exterior siding. 
Let in the Sunlight
Now is a great time for cleaning all those windows and window coverings in your home. It's a long project, so save it for a sunny day and recruit someone to help you.
After you have removed all the curtains and blinds, clean the windows, window sills, and trim inside and out with warm soapy water. Outdoors, you can use a hose to rinse the soap. To clean the glass, invest in a good quality squeegee. To determine the size of squeegee you will need, measure the width of your smallest window.
Equipment you will need is the squeegee, a pole that fits your squeegee handle, a microfiber cloth, and a bucket. Drop a few drops of dish soap or TSP (trisodium phosphate, a powdered stain remover and degreaser found at hardware stores) into a bucket of warm water for a streak free finish. Apply your cleaning solution with a rag or mop. Immediately squeegee it off, wiping the blades between strokes to minimize dripping and spots. Systematically do one window at a time using your pole for high windows or hard to reach places. You may want to consider using a professional for second story windows.
Window Screens
Choose a nice sunny day to take your window screens out of storage and lay them on your grass, driveway or patio. First, use a soft cloth or dry, clean paint brush to dust off all the dirt. Then take a big, soft bristled brush and use warm, soapy water to gently scrub each side of the screen. Hose off well and put in the sun to dry. Be careful to handle the screens carefully so as to not tear them from their frames. If small tears happen, you can mend with a needle and thread.
It is fairly easy to replace a screen that is too damaged to repair. The materials you will need are: mesh, tubing by the yard (this is the strip that fits into a channel along the edge of the metal frame), and a screwdriver. You can find all of these items at your local hardware store. Be sure to measure the metal screen to buy enough of the tubing.
The steps to replacing the screen are as follows:
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Remove the old tubing (use a screwdriver to pry it out) and lift off the screen.
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Cut the replacement screen larger than needed, fit it tightly to the frame while tucking the tubing back into the channel with a screwdriver. There is a special tool available to use if you have many screens to do, but a screwdriver should work just as well.
Take Care of Exterior Siding
The paint on your home's main job is to protect your home from the deteriorating effects of dirt, moisture and sunlight while making your home look nice. Because of our harsh winters and hot summers, the average paint job lasts perhaps six to eight years. The exterior of your home is the first thing potential buyers will see, so it's important to keep it looking nice and to take the care needed to extend its life as it will cost thousands of dollars to repaint your home.
As soon as the weather's warm, examine the outside of the house. Make sure to trim shrubs that touch your siding, windows or trim. If you maintain a space of at least two feet between your Glenview home and plants, you can help to keep away damaging insects and moisture from the home. The same thing applies to soil and bark - make sure they only touch the foundation and not the siding.
You may find some mold on your siding after the winter. If you do, spray with bleach and water, let dry and rinse well with a garden hose. Scrub if necessary.
If it's within your budget, it is a good idea to hire a professional to use a power washer to clean the exterior siding. You can rent one to use yourself. However if used incorrectly, these machines can do a lot of damage by dislodging or breaking shingles or siding, creating openings for mold and moisture.
Check Outdoor Hoses and Irrigation Ssystems
With our Illinois winters, freezing and thawing can heave the ground and even crack pipes and hoses, so turn on the water pressure and see how your irrigation system responds before you need it. Walk around the yard and where your irrigation system is set up and look for leaks, breaks, pooling water or clogged sprinkler heads. Repair, replace or call in the pros to get your irrigation system ready to run on time for the heat of summer.
If you plan on selling your home this summer, remember that all of these things will impress buyers and will show that your home has been well-maintained. Contact The Marla Schneider Team today to find out what your home is worth. The Marla Schneider Team sold more real estate than any agent on the North Shore in 2010!
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