Seasonal

How to Winterize Your Home: A Checklist

Winterizing is mostly about water and air: keeping water out of places it can freeze, and keeping heated air where you paid to put it. Here's the full list.

When to do it

Aim to finish before the first hard frost — roughly late September in northern climates, October through November further south. Working ahead matters: caulk and sealants need temperatures above about 40°F (4°C) to cure properly, and hose bibs are far easier to drain while the weather is still mild.

Water first — this is the expensive one

A burst pipe is the single costliest winter failure in a home, and nearly all of it is preventable in an afternoon.

1. 1Disconnect every garden hose. A hose left attached traps water in the spigot, and that's where the freeze starts.
2. 2Shut off the interior valve feeding each outdoor faucet, then open the faucet outside to drain the line. Leave it open all winter.
3. 3Drain and shut down irrigation systems — blow the lines out with compressed air if your system requires it.
4. 4Insulate pipes in unheated spaces: crawl spaces, garages, attics, and along exterior walls. Foam sleeves cost a few dollars per length.
5. 5Find your main water shutoff and make sure everyone in the house knows where it is and that it actually turns.

Heating

• Book the annual furnace or boiler service before the season rush — technicians get booked solid the first cold week.
• Replace the furnace filter, and plan on checking it monthly through heavy heating months.
• Bleed hot-water radiators so they heat evenly instead of gurgling.
• Reverse ceiling fans to clockwise on low — it pushes warm air down from the ceiling instead of creating a breeze.
• Have the chimney inspected and swept before the first fire, and confirm the damper seals when closed.

Seal the drafts

Air leaks are where comfort and money quietly escape. On a windy day, run the back of your hand around window frames, door edges, outlets on exterior walls, and where pipes or wires enter the house — you'll feel the cold spots immediately.

• Re-caulk gaps around window and door frames on the outside.
• Replace worn weatherstripping and add door sweeps to exterior doors.
• Fill gaps around pipe and cable penetrations with expanding foam or caulk.
• Check attic insulation depth — it's usually the highest-return upgrade in an older home.

Roof, gutters, and drainage

1. 1Clean gutters after the leaves finish falling. Clogged gutters are the main cause of ice dams, which force meltwater back under your shingles.
2. 2Check that downspouts discharge several feet away from the foundation.
3. 3Scan the roof for lifted, cracked, or missing shingles — and for tree limbs that could come down under snow or ice.
4. 4Clear the ground-level vents and exhausts (dryer, furnace, water heater) so snow can't block them.

Safety and the gear you'll want ready

• Test every smoke and carbon-monoxide detector. Heating season is peak CO season — this is not the year to skip it.
• Service the snowblower, and stock ice melt and shovels before the first storm sells them out.
• Check that generators and backup heat sources start, and store fuel safely.
• Store outdoor furniture, drain and flip anything that holds water, and shut down the pool.

Do it once, then let it repeat

None of this is hard — it's just easy to forget, and it only comes around once a year. Add your home to Upkeepery and each of these becomes a scheduled task with a reminder that lands before the frost does, so next fall the list runs itself.