Winter preparedness

• Cleanup your garage to park your vehicles this winter.  Organize and put away your gardening supplies, bring out snow shovels for when needed.
• Be prepared by purchasing a few bags of ice melt.
• It is a great time to donate some of the junk you have collected that is cluttering your garage so you can park inside.
• Clean gutters and downspouts of debris and leaves.  Be careful when using a ladder and water to hose down the gutters.  Keeping clean gutters will keep snow and ice dams from forming and causing water damage to the interior of the home.
• Drain garden hoses and disconnect from outside spigots.  This prevents the spigots from freezing.  Install insulation covers over them which are easily available from a local hardware store.
• Wash and clean exterior windows and screens.
• Clean and store patio furniture, umbrellas, and children’s summer toys.  Discard broken or damaged items that you know you will not use the following spring or summer.
• Check chimney and have them cleaned professionally if necessary. A clean and properly maintained chimney will prevent possible smoke damage to your home. 
• Firewood purchased by the cord instead of the occasional trip to the store.
• Check your attic; make sure you have at least 6” – 8” of insulation.  Lack of insulation causes heat loss as it gets colder and possible frozen pipes in an extreme winter.