Is Your Home Prepared for Winter?

It’s holiday season – time to put out the holiday décor, shop for gifts, and spend time with family and friends. And with freezing temperatures just around the corner, preparing your home for the winter should also be on your holiday to do list! Here are some tips to help protect your home and keep your family safe:

Freezing temperatures
• Have furnaces serviced and chimneys inspected and cleaned.
• Check the home perimeter and seal any air leaks with caulk and weather-stripping. Add additional insulation in the attic if needed—most homes need at least 12-15 inches.
• Insulate pipes that go through exterior walls or colder areas such as garage ceilings or unheated attics.
• Turn water off to exterior hose bibs; detach and drain garden hoses, outdoor faucets and hose bib.
• Locate the water main shutoff valve and keep the access path clear in case a frozen pipe leak or other water issue needs to be stopped.
• Consider installing an automatic water shutoff valve to prevent extensive water damages.
• Steps to winterize a NJ coastal vacation home or seasonal dwelling.

Snowfall
• In high snowfall areas, make sure no exhaust vents become buried by snow.
• Install adequate attic insulation, which prevents ice damming by keeping a ‘cold roof’ to prevent continuous melting of roof snow.
• Identify a local roofer that clears snow from roofs and removes ice dams to prevent roof collapse or interior water damage. Not all roofers clear roof snow or ice dams.

Winter storms
• Service back-up generators and have adequate fuel supplies on hand. Do not store fuel inside. Even if the generator is portable, it should never run indoors.
• Have emergency supplies on hand, such as flashlights, batteries and inverters to use in the car to charge devices