We want to be proactive in helping you avoid any inconvenience with the cold weather. Here are a few maintenance to-do's to make your winter as comfortable as possible.
Disconnect All Outside Hoses from Spigots:
Remember to unhook hoses from spigots! They can be the first to freeze, burst, and cause terrible damage which we know you don't want to have to pay for. As an additional measure of freeze prevention, you can also cover the spigots with foam insulators, which can be purchased at any hardware store.
Sprinklers Should be Shut Down:
If your sprinkler system has not been shut down yet, a contractor will be completing them by October 31st. Please notify us if you are not contacted and they are not shut down by October 31st. In the meantime, please take the following steps:
- Turn off the sprinkler timer.
- Turn off the valve to the sprinkler system (if you know how).
- Open valves or "bleeders" in the sprinkler boxes to allow the water to drain (if you know how).
Check Your Heat System:
If you have not already turned on the heating system, we wanted to advise you to do so now. If there is a problem, it is better identified now rather than when it gets colder! Remember to change your furnace filter, now, too! We recommend that you change every 60-90 days.
Please understand that the first time you turn on the system, it may have a funny smell from not being used for months, and that is not at all unusual. Let us know if the smell persists for more than 3 days. Also let us know immediately if the heat does not come on. If your system BLOWS air, it should start blowing warm within just a few minutes. Boilers (baseboard hot water heat or hydronic furnaces) take longer than forced air, so give it several hours to produce heat. Be sure to switch hydronic heaters from summer to winter setting! Electric heat is the fastest conversion of energy to heat, so you should feel conductive heat emanating within moments.
