It’s easy to let summer creep up on you. As the calendar turns from winter to spring and you start enjoying those warmer days, it’s not too long before you suddenly realize you’ve just hit your first 90-degree day. Before that happens, you need to get your home ready for summer. Here are a few tips.
Take care of your A/C
One of the worst feelings in the world is trying to turn on your air conditioner for the first time and finding it doesn’t work. Before you are faced with needing your A/C, test it out to make sure it works properly. To ensure it is working at top efficiency, hose down the unit outside to remove any dirt and debris that might have gotten in there when snow was piled up next to it.
Ready your windows
Not every summer day is going to be blisteringly hot, and there will probably be days where the windows will be open and the A/C is off. So you want to make sure those windows are in good shape. Test all your windows to make sure they open and close properly, take off any winter storm windows you had on and examine all screens to make sure there are no holes. Summer is the prime time for insects, so holes in your window screens could mean more bugs in the house.
Check your refrigerator
The worst time for your refrigerator to go on the fritz is in the dead of summer when it’s 90 degrees outside. To try to prevent that from happening, pull your refrigerator out from whatever wall it’s pushed up against and clean around the condenser coils and fan as well as the vents. Dust buildup in these areas can keep your refrigerator from working properly.
Check your roof and gutters
Sporing and summer is the rainy season in most parts of the U.S., so you want to ensure your roof is sound and your gutters and downspouts are in good shape. Get up on a ladder and inspect your roof for missing shingles or any other problems. While you are up there, ensure your gutters are attached properly and are free of debris. Do the same with your downspouts and also make sure they are positioned so the water will drain away from your house and off your lot.