Spring Home Maintenance Checklist

Outside

Do this on the first dry weekend.

• Clear gutters and downspouts (1–2 hrs)
  Winter debris plus spring rain is how water ends up in a basement. Check downspouts drain well away from the foundation.
• Inspect the roof from the ground (20 min)
  Binoculars are fine. Look for lifted, cracked or missing shingles, and any sag in the line of the roof.
• Check the foundation for new cracks (20 min)
  Photograph anything you find so you can tell next year whether it moved.
• Service the lawnmower (45 min)
  Oil, spark plug, sharpen or replace the blade. A blunt blade tears grass rather than cutting it.
• Turn on and test outdoor taps (15 min)
  Run each one and watch for spray from a split pipe — the classic sign of a freeze you did not know about.
• Reseal the deck if water no longer beads (half a day)
  Splash a little water on it. If it soaks in, the deck is drinking every rainfall.

Inside

• Service the air conditioning before you need it (book ahead)
  Book it in spring. In the first hot week every engineer within fifty miles is already busy.
• Clean the dryer vent duct (45 min)
  Not the lint trap — the duct behind it. This is one of the most common house fire causes and almost nobody does it.
• Vacuum refrigerator coils (20 min)
  Dust on the coils makes the compressor run longer for the same cooling.
• Check window and door seals (30 min)
  Where you feel a draught in winter, you are paying for air conditioning in summer.

Every month

Ten minutes that prevent most of the expensive surprises.

• Test smoke and carbon monoxide alarms (5 min)
  Press and hold the test button until it sounds. Replace batteries yearly whether or not they chirp.
• Clean the range hood filter (15 min)
  Soak in hot water and degreaser. A clogged filter makes the fan useless and is a genuine fire risk.
• Run water in unused sinks and tubs (2 min)
  Keeps the trap full so sewer gas cannot come back up. Guest bathrooms are the usual culprit.
• Check under sinks for damp (5 min)
  Run a hand along the back of the cabinet. Slow leaks are cheap now and catastrophic in a year.
• Clean garbage disposal (5 min)
  Ice cubes and a cut lemon. Grinds off buildup and clears the smell.

Every three months

The jobs that quietly cost you money when skipped.

• Replace or clean HVAC filters (10 min)
  A blocked filter makes the system work harder and shortens its life. Monthly if you have pets.
• Test the water heater pressure relief valve (10 min)
  Lift the lever and let it snap back. If it does not reseat or does not release, call someone.
• Check the fire extinguisher gauge (2 min)
  Needle in the green. Also check nobody has moved it out of the kitchen.
• Inspect caulking around tubs and showers (10 min)
  Gaps let water behind the tile, which is the most expensive way to discover a small problem.
• Run a garage door safety check (5 min)
  Put an object in the path and confirm it reverses. Also check the auto-reverse on downward pressure.