Preventative Maintenance For Winter – Fall is finally here, and with the increasingly cold weather, now is the time to start thinking about doing some seasonal maintenance on the plumbing and heating in your home! The fall season is the best time for preventative maintenance to stay ahead of any issues that may arise during the winter, and even the spring. It can get overwhelming, so where do you start?
One of the most important steps to take when getting your house ready for winter is to disconnect any outdoor water hoses from your home. Whether in your garden or if you have an evaporative cooler, the water supply for that. Why is that important? If your outdoor hoses are left connected in colder temperatures, the faucets and any connected pipes inside your home may freeze and break.
Even if the temperature outside is above freezing, the temperature threshold around hose bibs is a lot lower. This causes many issues such as flooding, water leaks, mold, etc. Now, those problems are not only extensive to repair, but it can also get very expensive to repair as well. To prevent this from occurring, all you have to do is disconnect the hose, drain the remaining water, and store it in a dry place for the winter.
What people may not know is that if you have anything connected to your hose(s), such as a timer or a reel, they may not drain properly, so it is
also imperative to remove and clean those as well. October is the last month you want to have your hoses connected to the outdoor faucets,
especially here in the Four Corners area. While it may still be warm during the day, we are at the weird time of year where the temperature can drop 20-40 degrees overnight. With temperatures varying so much every day; you never know when issues may arise.
While there are a lot more steps you can take for preventative maintenance, disconnecting your hoses around your home is a good first step to take to get your home ready for the cold weather ahead. Another thing to consider while doing preventative maintenance is to look to your furnaces. More than likely, your heater has been sitting for months. Now that it’s getting cold, you may have turned them back on, or are thinking about turning them back on.
One of the best things you can do before doing so is to change the air filter on them. The new-style pleated air filters will trap more particles than the old-style fiberglass filters. This will cause them to clog up faster, potentially tripping the thermal fuse, which shuts down your furnace. Due to this fact, it is usually recommended to change them out every couple of months. If they go unchanged, it can cause your furnace to stop working.
By checking them now, or having them serviced, you can avoid the issue of your furnace stopping when you really need it. You can also avoid any overtime calls to a heating company and the expense that comes with an after-hours call. Most heating companies are running specials now, right before winter, to service and check furnaces, so not only is it better to avoid any issues, it also might be more cost-effective for your family. If you are unsure of where to go from there for preventative maintenance, give us a call today.
We would love to give you as much information as possible and answer all of your questions. We service every kind of plumbing, heating, and cooling, in homes, and commercial businesses. If you have any issues around your home, we can schedule some of our highly trained and knowledgeable technicians to come to your home as soon as possible.
