Getting Your Home Ready for Winter: A Fall Cleaning Checklist

Winter is just around the corner but is your home ready for all of the festivities that are about to take place in the colder months? A cozy and beautiful interior can most definitely counteract the gloomy weather outside.

So, are you ready to put up your sleeves and initiate fall cleaning? We promise that it’s not difficult and it can most definitely make your living space a lot more hospitable and charming.

Start Outside before it Gets too Cold

The hot weather and the beautiful sunny days have most definitely impacted your yard and the outside of your home. It’s a good idea to start the fall cleaning on the outside. Use the last rays of sunshine before the snow comes to get the exterior ready for winter.

The first thing you need to do is take a look at the patio and the outdoor furniture. You can wash the cushions and store them for the winter. Clean the furniture itself by following the correct procedure for the respective material itself. A thin coat of car wax is great for plastic or aluminum furniture. Paste wax is ideal for tick furniture and silicone sealant will keep metal patio furniture protected throughout the winter.

Next, you’ll need to install weather-stripping and check the caulk around your windows and doors.

Once you’re done, put away the irrigation system. Make sure that all hoses have been drained. The water can otherwise freeze inside and cause damage.

The final and probably most important step is to clean the gutters and downspouts. These can easily get clogged with leaves, branches and dirt. If you don’t get the gutters cleaned before the start of the rainy season, you risk basement flooding. Cleaning gutters is far from the most exciting task but it’s essential for ensuring the fall and wintertime safety of your home.

Alright, this wasn’t difficult! Once you’re done with the exterior, you can move on to your warm home and get started with the interior preparations for the winter.

Get the Kitchen Ready for Family Gatherings

That’s right – chances are that you’ll spend a lot of time in the kitchen when it rains outside. Whether you’d like to prepare delicious family meals or simply laugh and chat with each other, the kitchen should be 100 percent ready to handle your culinary activities.

Clean the fridge. Spot cleaning the occasional spill isn’t going to be enough – the refrigerator needs regular and thorough scrubbing. Get everything out and throw the items that look spoiled or that are past their expiry date. Pull the shelves and the racks out, they will be much easier to wash this way. The condenser coils that are usually located on the back or the bottom of the fridge shouldn’t be ignored, either. Your vacuum cleaner will get rid of dirt and buildup on those.

Unless you have a self-cleaning oven, this is the next kitchen item you should direct your attention to. Put a cup of ammonia in the oven overnight. It will loosen some of the grease that has accumulated on the walls. Scrubbing the oven will be a lot easier the next day.

Laundry Time

Get started with laundering bigger pieces before the weather gets too cold. Fall is the perfect time to wash carpets, pillows, mattress covers, curtains, blankets, comforters, rugs and everything else you deem necessary. Let those air dry outside. You’ll most definitely enjoy the fresh and clean scent of the laundered items.

A Few Additional Home Cleaning Tips

Not so fast, we aren’t done yet. To completely winterize your home, you’ll have to do several additional things:

• Wash the interior and the exterior of the windows. The next time you’ll need to deal with the task is in spring.
• Turn the mattresses to equalize the wear and make sure that you’re enjoying comfortable and relaxing sleep.
• Check the filters of your air conditioner and have those cleaned, especially if you plan to use the AC units for heating purposes.
• Clean the washing machine – fill it with hot water and a quart of white vinegar. Run it through the wash and rinse cycle to get rid of any buildup.
• Check drawers, shelves and the bathroom for mold or musty odor. Clean everything thoroughly and place some cat litter there to absorb moisture.
• Make sure that your humidifiers are ready for cold weather because the heating is going to make the air in your home particularly dry.

Here are some extra tips on humidifiers and the benefits that they can have on your health and home.

If you still feel that your home isn’t perfect, you may consider de-cluttering and reorganizing the closets. Once you’re done with these steps, you can sit down with a cup of hot chocolate and enjoy the transformation that nature undergoes with the change of seasons.