5 Spring Home Maintenance Tips

24 Feb 5 Spring Home Maintenance Tips

With Spring Comes Spring Maintenance Honey-Do’s

The throes of winter are almost a thing of the past!  In just a few short weeks, Spring will arrive across the Kansas City Metro.  And with it will come Spring cleaning, Spring gardens and Spring honey-do’s for the outside of your home.  Even if your better half isn’t harping about the exterior condition of your home, here’s 5 home Spring home maintenance ideas you’ll want to consider as soon as you can get outside in shorts and a sweatshirt:

1) Use a screwdriver or flat iron to probe around the wood trim of your doors, railings, windows and decks. Feeling soft spots? It’s the first sign of wood rot. Make repairs as soon as possible, before the coming spring rain does even more damage to the exposed wood.  Small repairs now save big repairs later!

2) Check those gutters! Did you know that a full 20 foot gutter can weigh up to 300 lbs? After a harsh winter, most gutters and downspouts are jammed with more ice and debris than people realize. Gutters are designed to shield your roof and home from water, but when they’re full of limbs and sediment they have no purpose whatsoever. Clogged gutters can lead to wet basements, washed out landscapes, and very expensive wood rot repairs.

3) Remove all the leftover firewood that’s stored near your back door. Firewood should be stored at least 18 inches off the ground at least 2 feet from your home.  Why?  Because all the nastiness of winter stays on the wood, and over time it will rot away wooden panels.  It can even get mold inside of siding.  So make sure it’s relocated when not in use for the next 7 or 8 months.

4) Check the condition of your drive, patio and foundation.  Really pay attention to your concrete slabs for signs of cracks, which can mean that movement has occurred.  All exterior slabs except pool decks should drain away from a home’s foundation. If your’s doesn’t, invest in soil and create the draining effect that you need.  Fill cracks with a high-grade crack filler or professional silicone caulk. Once it’s dry you can power wash the surface and clean it, for good measure. This is really important, as Spring rains can cause severe yard flooding, which can lead to foundation flooding. Not to mention the swarms of mosquitos and other nasty bugs that breed in the pools leftover in these shallow areas.

5) Finally, check for any cracked, weathered or chipped paint.  Paint is the first line of defense from the elements, and when it starts to go, it’s not long before wood rot and other damage will trail behind.  Spring is in fact the perfect time to repaint your house.  Nothing breathes new life into a home like a fresh garden and a matching fresh coat of paint!

For All You Over-Achievers Out There

This covers the major items, but if you really want to go all out…it’s a good time to change your furnace filter, clean out your outside AC unit, sweep out your chimney flue and do a quick maintenance check for all your lawn and garden care equipment.  The first days of Spring are a great time to overseed your lawn also (get it down well in advance of any  heavy rains, so you haven’t wasted your time in the end!)

Get Professional Help (For Your Home)

If you did all of the above, and found a few items that you need professional assistance with, please give us a call!  We aren’t just one of the top rated exterior painters in Kansas City, we’re also trained wood rot repair and fascia board replacement specialists.  We have a team of pro’s who repair and install siding.  And, to top it off, we repair and stain the finest decks you’ll find in Jackson and Johnson County!  Fill out the form on the contact us page, or pick up the phone and call today.  The home of your dreams is just a call or click away…