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Home Maintenance Can Really Save You Money
It was November 2002 and I can still hear the roofer saying to me "didn't you know you have about two dozen torn and missing shingles up there?" My reply was "uh, no..." I can't remember if we just neglected to check our roof or if we didn't know to do so as we had only been homeowners for about two years; I like to convince myself that it was the second reason. Either way, we should have checked our roof at least once during those first two years! How embarrassing, but we all learn. The moral of the story is that we could have saved ourselves a nice amount of dollars by noticing the peeling shingles and sealing them back down by ourselves. By the time the roofer came out, there were already minor leaks into our house (actually into the kitchen cabinets) and shingles needed to be replaced.
Here's the lesson - Don't skip out on maintenance! Making sure that your home is functioning properly can really save you some money by catching small problems before they turn into costly repairs-like our roof story did. Performing a fall and spring check of your roof, gutters, heating and a/c system and pipes can help you spot potential problems and fix them before they turn into something worse. For example, sealing down some peeling roof shingles before the winter weather can help prevent missing or torn shingles or even roof leaks from developing. The roof, gutters, heating and cooling system and plumbing are the biggies- make sure to check these at least twice a year and any other parts of your home that you think need the attention.
A great way to remember to perform a maintenance check is to schedule it around the clock change. It's also a good time to replace the batteries in your smoke and carbon monoxide detectors. So plan ahead for it now, as the first Sunday in November is just around the corner and the clock will be falling back quickly!
Here's some tips for creating a checklist to prepare for your fall maintenance checks:
Posted by Marcy Tate
