How to Winterize Your Bay Area Homes

How to winterize your Bay Area Homes is probably on many people's mind as we officially entered November. We are fortunate to live in a pleasant climate in the Bay Area and our winterize preparation list is much simpler than many others in the snowy regions. Invest a little time today to winterize your home will help you prepare for the upcoming rainy season and help to maintain your house structure, save on energy cost and keep your home system running properly.

• Check your drainage

  Preventing water and moisture intrusion is the first step to winterize your home. Walk around the house when the weather is still nice and make sure that the soil is not in contact with the siding and is sloped away from the house. It is also important to make sure the downspout is directly tied into the storm drain system or point it several feet away from the house so the water flow away from the house.

• Clean gutters

  Inspect the rain gutter and clean any leave debris from it to ensure no obstruction for the water flow.

• Have your furnace checked and tune up

  It is always a good idea to schedule fall maintenance service in preparation for the cold weather. The service should include checking fuel connections, burner combustion, and the heat exchanger. It is also important to change out your air filter on a regular basis. It is especially important if you have children or pets to keep the air clean inside the house.

• Weatherstripping and chalk windows and doors

  Walk around your house to make sure there are no visible gap where the windows and doors meet the siding or stucco. If there are any, chalk them. Inspect all doors and check on the condition of the weatherstrip, if it is crumbling then replace with the new one. This will ensure better insulation against the cold weather and help to save energy.

• Take a peek at your crawl space in January

  It is always a good idea to check on your crawl space at least once a year. Summer months tends to be dry so the moisture usually shows up a couple months into winter when the moisture starts to build up if there is leak. If you do find moisture, get in touch with a building inspector or general contractor who can help you pinpoint the source of the problem.

• Prune Trees

  Winter is a good time to do major trimming when the trees are in dormant. Contact with the trees is bad for roofs and siding, it is important to trim them away from the house. You also want to make sure your leaning trees have proper structure to support it. Unsupported tree is likely to fall in the wet season when the ground soil tends to be saturated.

Last but not least, winter is a great time to start planning your landscape project so the newly planted trees, shrubs or perennials have a chance to establish before the spring time arrive! I hope you find this list helpful!