Summer maintenance tips!

With summer officially starting yesterday I thought I would give you some tips on some things to do around your home now that we are officially in the summer months.

1) EXTERIOR PAINTING- This is a fairly easy task to complete on your home. It will help protect exterior wood and brighten the exterior appearance of your home. If you are not sure what the exact color of your paint is just ask a paint professional at your local paint store and they can help you to get the exact color match.

2) WASHING EXTERIOR WINDOWS- Summer is a great time to do this. Just fill a bucket with hot soapy water and start scrubbing. It may be a good idea to purchase a window squeegee to make it a little easier to dry.

3) WASHING WINDOW SCREENS- This can be done with a bucket of hot soapy water and a soft brush to scrub them, rinse, then let them air dry.

4) REVERSING CEILING FANS- Reverse the direction of your ceiling fan during the summer so that it spins counter-clockwise. This pushes air straight down, creating a breeze. Shut off the fan and wait for the blades to come to a complete stop. Once everything has stopped moving, locate the direction switch, this will probably be on the side of the fan above the blades. Flip the switch in the opposite direction and then turn the fan back on.

5) CLEAN YOUR AIR CONDITIONER FILTER- Every air conditioner has a filter on it. It should be cleaned every two weeks. You can wash it with warm water or clean it with a vacuum.

6) CHECK YOUR FURNACE FILTER- Turn off power to the furnace and then locate the filter behind the service door. You may need to unscrew a panel or two. Remove the filter and give it a wash it if it is a reusable one. If the filter has a cardboard frame, you will need to replace it instead of washing it. This will help keep dust down in the house also.

7) WIPE DOWN AND CLEAN BASEBOARDS- I know it is a tough task to get on your hands and knees to do this but a lot of times baseboards are overlooked. This helps prevent dust and dirt build up.

8) CLEANING YOUR GARBAGE DISPOSAL AND DISHWASHER- Although this isn't necessarily a summer task you should still do this once in a while. You can clean the garbage disposal with just hot water and dish soap. also adding a lemon to it eliminates the foul odor they sometimes get. The dishwasher add two cups of vinegar to a cycle and run the cycle on a low wash.

These are fairly simple and budget friendly tasks to complete around your home this summer. These may seem like unimportant things but do these same things on my home to keep it properly maintained and save you some money from having a bigger problem later on.