Annual Maintenance Tips for your Vancouver Home – Ask a Vancouver Mortgage Broker

Annual Maintenance Tips for your Vancouver Home- Ask a Vancouver Mortgage Broker

If you don’t keep yourVancouverhome regularly maintained, you could end up with some expensive repair bills down the road. A lot of problems can be easily avoided simply by following a few basic maintenance steps. Each season that we experience here inVancouverrequires a special touch and a few extra maintenance steps.

If you do experience a situation where a major and expensive repair job is needed, you might be well advised to take out a second mortgage or a home equity line of credit (HELOC). Sometimes, things get beyond out control such as the unpredictability and the ravages of ‘Mother Nature’.

Nonetheless, I have included a few helpful tips that should help you avoid unnecessary and expensive repair work. Sometimes it’s just well worth while to spend a little money now to avoid spending a wheelbarrow full later on.

The following will give a breakdown of maintenance tips which you could use for each season of the year so that your home stays fresh and well maintained.

Fall Maintenance Tips

Fall is when we need to get prepared for winter. There are some vital things you should do so you don’t caught with pants down should the temperature plummet, or we get that dreaded dump of heavy wet snow.

Clean your Furnace and Other Systems – You should always beat the rush and get your furnace or any other alternative heating systems inspected by a certified inspector. You want to make sure everything is in tip top shape and that filters and ducts are cleaned, and the lines are in good shape.

Clean your chimney – Creosote build up in your chimney can cause a fire and it happens somewhere every year so get them cleaned. If you’re using oil or natural gas then you want to make sure they are properly inspected as well.

Check Doors and Windows – You can lose up to 20% of your heat through gaps in your doors and windows. Spending a bit of money on re-caulking your windows and applying weather stripping to your doors can save you a pile of money.

Taps and Plumbing – Don’t forget to turn off your inside valve and open your outside faucet for your hose. Also, if you apply an insulated blanket to your hot water heater, you can also save a bunch of money.

Winter Maintenance Tips

The cold, wet snowy stuff is coming!

Heating Registers and Ducts – Your heating registers have been accumulating dust since you last used them, so give them a good vacuuming so those dust bunnies don’t ignite on you. Don’t forget to clean your grills and vacuum out them as well.

Clean up the Humidifier – When you’re heating a home, the air can get dry so if you don’t have a humidifier then you might want to consider buying one. If you own one, then you will want to clean that up and get it ready so it’s nice and fresh for the winter.

Detectors – Since you’re going to be batting down the hatches, you will also want to ensure the batteries are fresh, and that the smoke and carbon monoxide detectors are functioning.

Gutters – Rain and snow is the forecast with a few sunny days sprinkled in between. So give the eaves trough gutters a good clean so that water doesn’t leak into the basement because they’re clogged.

Maintenance Tips for Spring

The birds are singing and the sun is starting to shine, so now is a good time to go about your home and give a good and thorough visual inspection to see how you fared. Also, you should also do the following;

Gutters Again – Yup, leaves are fickle things so you should double check and make sure the rain gutters are free of leaves.

Windows – Time to take down the storm windows if use them, and to re-check the caulking and window frames, especially if they’re made of wood. A good dab of paint also helps to keep out the wood rot.

Exterior – Now is a good time to check for cracks in your walkways or driveway. A good sealant can help prevent problems from worsening. You’ll also want to check out the steps and the deck. Another coat of stain or other weather protection can easily prolong the life of all your wood work.

Summer Maintenance Tips

BBQ – Hold off firing up the BBQ because you want to make sure all your lines are good and no spiders have made their homes. Use a mixture of soap and water to check for any possible flaws in the lines.

Inside – You might want to check out your caulking in the bathrooms and kitchen area. Now’s a good time to also check your attic or crawlspaces and look for leaks, mould, or insect activity.

Lubricate – Now would also be a good time to lubricate any outdoor hinges and locks. They really should be done twice a year, once in the summer and once in the fall.

Have a Major Repair to Perform?

Even with out best maintenance efforts, things happen and things deteriorate so it might be time to call in a contractor. If the job is going to be an expensive one, you might to need to consider a second mortgage or construction loan. You want the best rates for this type of mortgage and I can help you find the best rates and save you money.