Cold Weather Tips for Your Home
As winter moves into Central Indiana, you’ll need to start preparing for the change of seasons. This involves more than finding your winter coat. Your house needs to be prepared as well. Getting your furnace turned up before it gets cold is just one of the many Cold Weather Tips we recommend to prepare your home for winter.
Checklist for Preparing Your Home for Cold Weather
A checklist is a great way to complete a list of chores before the temperature drops. While most of our tips pertain to plumbing and heating, there are many more winterizing chores that can be done to keep your home warm and energy efficient all winter long.
Plumbing
Even if you stay home all winter, there are still opportunities for your pipes to freeze. There are a few rooms that are especially susceptible to freezing pipes. Be sure to disconnect garden hoses from outdoor faucets.
Crawl Spaces
Make sure all vents and openings to your crawl space are closed. You want as little outside air to get in there as possible.
Garages
During the winter, your garage door should remain closed as much as possible. Many times, when people accidentally leave their garage doors open, the pipes are exposed to the cold. If your garage is not heated, and you have plumbing in the walls of your garage, find a way to add some heat. Ask the professionals in the black trucks about adding infrared radiant heat to your garage that you can turn on and off as needed.
Sump Pumps
Occasionally, the discharge line of your sump pump freezes and the line breaks. If your sump pump does run most of the time due to an underground spring or high water table, then you may need to run a temporary line for the discharge.
More Preventative Plumbing Tips
- Leave a steady stream of hot water running for all faucets located on an outside wall. Hot water freezes first. Leave cabinet doors open, too. You want as much heat in the area as possible.
- Take some time to find your water shut-off valve and ensure that it’s working properly. Locate your meter pit, and inspect the shut off at the road as well.
- The water coming into your home is much colder than in the summer. You may not have as much hot water as you do in warmer times of the year.
Snow Bird Tips
If you’re destined for warmer weather during the winter and are planning on leaving your house for weeks or months at a time, then these tips can prevent you from discovering an issue when you return.
- Turn off the water in your home. Either at the main valve or the meter pit.
- Make sure your water heater and water softener are set to “off” or “vacation” mode.
- Consider investing in a freeze alarm. There are many models out there that will call or text you when there is a problem.
Heating Tips
Most heating systems are designed to keep the temperature inside at 70 degrees when it’s 0 degrees outside. If the temperature falls below zero, your heating system might not keep up. These Cold Weather Tips are designed to prepare your furnace for the upcoming chill.
- Check and replace your filter. This will help keep warm air flowing around your house.
- Keep all of your registers open and not obstructed by furniture or household items while your heat runs for long periods of time.
- Leave your blower running continuously in the “on” position. This helps even out the air temperature throughout the home. Your heat will still turn on and off as needed.
- Wood-burning fireplaces can actually cool your home by allowing warm air to escape up the chimney, losing more heat than the fire generates. When you’re not burning anything, make sure the flue is closed.
- Change the batteries on your digital thermostat.
- Insulate doors and windows with plastic or tape to prevent drafts.
Call B&W to Get Your Home Ready for Winter
Your heating, cooling, and plumbing systems should be checked annually. If it’s been a while, now is the time to talk to B&W about getting your home ready for winter weather before it’s too cold. Contact us today to schedule your pre-winter inspection.