If you've recently purchased an older home, you may have been busy, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic when at home more, renovating the property to make it look and feel more appealing.
However, as time goes on, keep in mind that it's also vital to maintain "grand old dame" houses. Maintenance is essential for any home, but especially so for the aged ones that have had more chance for things to wear out and go wrong. Follow a few tips to keep your well-established property in good order this year and beyond.
Create a Schedule to Stay on Top of Tasks
From the start, it's helpful to create a maintenance schedule. Time passes quickly, after all, and it's easy for months to go by in a flash and for upkeep tasks to be missed. Having a schedule will help to prevent this from happening. Adhering to a program is also a plus in that it makes it much less likely that minor problems turn into big ones because of maintenance fails.
As you work out your annual timeline for tasks, factor in the reality that not all projects need completing at the same frequency. Some jobs you'll only need to do once a year, while others may be necessary twice a year, quarterly, or even potentially monthly. To stay on top of things, consider taking photographs or videos of your home, especially parts that already show some signs of wear and tear. These records will help you to better notice deterioration over time.
Get the Roof and Gutters Attended To
As for specific maintenance jobs, one that not enough people pay attention to is attending to a home's roof and gutters. These areas are important because they keep pests, water, dirt, debris, and other things out of your house, and the internal area cleaner, dryer, and safer as a result.
Have a roofer or other professional inspect your property's roof at least once a year. Search online for "qualified roofing companies near me" or the like to find experts in your area. The person you hire should look out for broken or lifting tiles and shingles, amongst other things. These issues can crop up due to weather exposure, general deterioration, overgrown plants and vines on the roof, etc. Have your contractor rectify these things and clean the roof as needed.
Pay attention to gutters, too. These need cleaning out a few times per year to get rid of all the muck that builds up in them, such as tree leaves, dirt, twigs, animal droppings, and more. If you don't do this job, ice dams and icicles can form, along with rust and, eventually, holes. If your older home has ancient-looking gutters that need more than just cleaning, it might also be time to have sections or even the whole lot replaced.
Service Heating and Cooling Systems
You want to be comfortable year-round in your property, which means taking care of the heating and cooling systems within it. Many older homes have appliances that have been there for decades that may not be working so well or efficiently. Hire an electrician or other specialist to inspect the HVAC in your home to see what state it's in. The contractor might be able to repair broken machines to breathe new life into them and make them safe, or it might be more economical to replace old systems with new ones.
If, however, the heating and cooling systems in your home were updated in the last ten years already, you can focus on maintaining them instead. Many machines need services that involve cleaning components and replacing filters. You may be able to do basic things yourself, but it's generally wise to have an electrician do this work as electrics are involved. Either way, consider doing or arranging maintenance jobs a couple of times a year. Generally, the best times are spring or fall, before the particularly hot or cold weather arrives.
Have Pipes and Drains Inspected
Another common problem in older properties is that the pipes and drains are very aged. You might keep having dramas with water leaks, frozen pipes, or clogging because of these systems in your home. If so, issues may stem from rust, broken or loose attachments, and backed-up pipes. You don't know what has been poured down drains over the years that shouldn't have been.
Call a plumber to address apparent problems ASAP and give everything a thorough once over to spot potential issues and sort them out before they become something much worse. The last thing you want is a flooded home or a situation where you can't use taps, toilets, or showers due to plumbing problems.
An older home has many lovely advantages to enjoy, but don't neglect the upkeep on it, or you'll be asking for trouble. Pay attention to the factors mentioned above, and you should hopefully avoid too many headaches.
