Home Care Made Easy

The term "spring cleaning" can bring on sighs and excuses of “maybe later”. But with this handy list that breaks down home maintenance by season, the light at the end of the tunnel will seem brighter than ever.

Step Into Spring

The cleaning list includes windows and window screens; outdoor furniture, gutters (so water drains away from the house), all bedding, transitioning from flannel to cotton sheets, bike maintenance, and power-washing decks, porches, walkways and your house's exterior.

The checking and readying list includes checking the blades on the lawn mower and adding/changing oil, checking the chimney and roof for any winter storm damage, testing smoke and CO₂ alarms and repairing siding damage and peeling paint.

The outdoor list includes weeding, planning garden plants, pruning evergreens, fertilizing the lawn and top seeding.

Summer Setup

Cleaning: Laundry vent and flushing the hot water heater.

Repairing: Sealing or re-staining decks and porches as needed.

Maintaining: Checking and servicing air conditioning before temps reach 80 degrees, mowing the lawn, staying on top of weeds, pruning spring-blooming plants, mulching the garden and edging gardens, sidewalks and curbs.

Changing For Fall

Cleaning and stowing: Mower, gutters, windows, screens, dehumidifiers, outdoor furniture, chimney, drain hoses and sprinklers, close the pool and transition the garage for winter.

Servicing and fixing: Snow blower, fireplace and seal cracks around doors and windows.

Outdoors: Pruning woody shrubs and roses, planting new bulbs, checking birdfeeders and potentially putting away or restocking firewood.

Winter, Winter Everywhere

Cleaning: Scrubbing cabinets, cleaning gardening tools, organizing and transitioning closets, cleaning and sealing tile grout, cleaning range hood, pulling out stove and cleaning around it, cleaning and storing grill if used during previous months, vacuuming behind refrigerator and cleaning the coils, changing furnace filters and vacuuming registers monthly.

Readying: Equipping cars with ice scrapers and winter emergency items, stocking up on walkway ice salt and snow shovels, testing and readying the snow blower, turning on the humidifier and touching up interior paint.

Outside: Pruning non-evergreen trees and covering air conditioning unit.

With a little care and planning, your home can be transformed into a relaxing, inspiring place to bring your dreams to life. Which projects will you tackle this season?