Getting Your Home Ready for Spring

10 Tips to Get Your Home Ready for Spring

With spring right around the corner, it’s time to get your house ready for the season change. Here are some things that will help you get your home ready for spring.

1. Test smoke alarms

While this isn’t just a task for spring, it’s still important to remember to check and test your smoke alarms and CO detectors. If needed, change out the batteries. It’s quick and easy (and cheap) to do. If you don’t already have one, create a fire escape and safety plan for your family.

2. Protect against allergens

Allergens come out in full force during the spring, so get a jump start in keeping them at bay. Declutter your home, check your pipes for leaks, and sweep up dust to keep mold, dust, and pollen away.

3. Scrub walls, baseboards, and outlets

Winter damages your home, between the snow, rain, and melting salt. Now is the time to freshen up the walls, floors, and outlet covers to get your home shiny and clean for spring. Using a mild soap and water, scrub down the walls, baseboards, and outlet covers. Be sure that outlet covers are completely dry before replacing them.

4. Clean faucets and showerheads

To clean faucets and showerheads, unscrew the faucet aerators, sink sprayers and showerheads. Then, let them soak in a mixture of equal parts vinegar and water solution. Let them soak for an hour before rinsing with hot water and replacing.

5. Clean your grill

Chances are, your grill didn’t get too much use during the winter months. First things first, check the hose, specifically if you have a gas grill. Check that the hose from the propane to your burners and make sure it’s intact and clean. If there are any signs of tears, replace it! Then, use a wire brush and a damp cloth to clean off the grates. Afterward, pull out and dump the grease trap and clean it out. Finally, give it a bit of a test run before using it. Turn it on and let it burn for a few minutes. Make sure all burners are working and there are no leaks.

6. Prep your garden

Once the snow is gone, it’s time to get your garden ready. Prune and trim any dead branches and overgrown shrubbery, obstructive plants, and weeds.

7. Wash exterior windows

Take some Windex to your exterior windows to get them cleaned up for the spring season. If you have windows high up on your home, consider hiring a window-cleaning service to take care of the job!

8. Repair walkways

Snow and ice can seriously damage your walkways, leading to cracks and loosened bricks and pavers. Patch any cracks you find and replace the bricks or pavers that have come loosened. If you find any stains on your walkways, rent a power washing to remove them.

9. Clean up outdoor furniture

Your outdoor furniture has been sitting unused for a long time! Put on a fresh coat of paint and/or replace the cushions to make the furniture as good as new.

10. Clean out gutters

If your home has trees around it, there’s a high chance that there are leaves or pine needles in your gutters. This can lead to issues with clogging when the spring rain comes, leading to the rainwater being blocked from flowing through your gutters. This clogging usually happens at the elbow of a drainage system, where the downspout connects to the gutter. But don’t worry! The elbow is easily removable. Just remove it, check and clean out the clog, and put it back.