If you own a house, you know that the work never seems to stop. You have to constantly be on top of regular maintenance tasks to keep a functional and beautiful home. Planning for repairs should be a priority for every homeowner, and experts recommend setting aside 1% of your home’s purchase price for repairs. Apart from having a budget, you should also look into some home maintenance tasks that you may be forgetting. Here are a few things that you should add to your to-do list to ensure that you don’t get caught by surprise.
Get Up On The Roof
Out of sight, out of mind — that’s your roof. We tend to focus all of our energy in maintaining the things that are in front of our faces, while ignoring the stuff that we have to go out of the way to see. The reality is that the roof is a vital part of your home. It serves as the first point of protection between you and the elements. According to a roofing contractor in Mansfield, minor issues on a roof can quickly get out of control and require that you bring a roofing contractor in to do expensive repairs. Regular roofing repairs should be done, especially if you live in a place that experiences storms and hurricanes, such as Arlington or Fort Worth, Texas. So, you need to get up there a couple times a year and have a good look. You should have an eye for broken or missing shingles, as well as moss or other signs of rot. If you fix the little things as you go, you can avoid a big repair bill in the future. According to Forbes, the average cost to replace a roof in the US is about $8,000, so make roof maintenance a priority to avoid having to do a full roof replacement.
Inspect Your Windows’ Weep Holes
It’s hard to stay of top of something if you don’t even know what it is. Many people are unaware of what weep holes are, or why they are important to maintain. Weep holes are found along the bottom of your window, on the outside. They are tiny little holes that are designed as a drainage port for water that gets caught inside the window frame’s inside channel. If the water can’t escape, the windows can become damaged. So, you should inspect the holes a couple times a year and clean the debris that is blocking things up.
Keep The Dryer Duct Work Safe
Keeping your dryer vent duct work clean is one of the most important tasks that you can do, yet it often gets overlooked. Unlike the other tasks mentioned here, this has ramifications that go beyond the pocketbook. Built up laundry lint is among the leading causes of house fires in the world. So, it’s vital that you stay on top of it. Even if it doesn’t cause a fire, built up lint drastically reduces the efficiency of your dryer, costing you time and money. Since this is such an important task, you should schedule it quarterly. Remove the duct from the back of the dryer and use a shop vacuum to remove all the lint from the duct.
These are just three examples of overlooked tasks. In all cases a little bit of extra work a couple times a year can save you a whole lot of labor and money down the road.
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