Fall Home Preparation 101: Everything You Need to Know
Fall is in the air!
As the leaves change colour, the temperature begins to drop and students are in school, homeowners know that the summer is behind us and fall is officially here! With the change of any season comes the need for proper home care, maintenance and preparation.
Whether you’re a seasoned homeowner, you have just bought your first house or are currently in the market to purchase a home in Guelph and surrounding areas, knowing how to prepare your home for fall is imperative. In this article, we will cover everything you need to know about transitioning your home from summer to fall, effectively preparing for the new season.
Why Prepare Your Home for Fall?
As mentioned above, with the change in season comes a series of home maintenance and preparation tasks. This is to help ensure that your house thrives in every season, especially in Canada!
The question stands, why is it so important to prepare your home for fall? The importance of maintenance and prevention is to protect the elements of your home from the change in temperature, falling leaves, animals heading into hibernation, and for your personal safety and enjoyment.
Fall Preparation Supply Checklist
With the right supply checklist, you can set yourself up for success when it comes to preparing your home for the change in season.
Landscaping bags
Rake
Gardening gloves
Indoor and outdoor garbage bags
Cleaning supplies
Hedge clippers
Lawn Mower
Fertilizer
Storage bins
Furniture covers
Outdoor storage system
Leaf blower
While many of your fall preparation tasks will take place outside, there are many duties for the inside of your home as well. To streamline your process, you may want to dedicate one weekend to indoor responsibilities and another for the exterior of your home.
Slow and steady wins the race!
Indoors
Your home preparation for the fall can most definitely begin indoors. There are a number of tasks to be considered, for both your home and lifestyle, that make the transition from one season to the next simple and effective.
1. Store Summer Essentials
Begin by placing your seasonal summer items in bins, bags or boxed to be stored until next year. This can range from swimming gear, clothing and camping supplies, to decor, dishware, linens and more. Once items have been properly tucked away, you will have significantly more free space in your home.
2. Clean Your Home
Once the summer essentials have been tucked away, it’s time for a good cleaning! We suggest starting from the top and working your way to the bottom. Begin with dusting ceiling fans and light fixtures, then shelves and countertops. Once all surfaces have been dusted and properly cleaned, you can then work on cleaning the floors. This approach helps to ensure that debris from higher surfaces doesn’t land on your floor after they have been cleaned. While cleaning, don’t be afraid to move items and pieces of furniture. You would be surprised at how much dust can accumulate in a matter of weeks or months!
3. Maintenance and Repairs
Now that you have had a chance to inspect each room and area of your home, you can properly plan for any small projects or repairs that should be completed before the cold weather is upon us. This may include sealing cracks, repairing a window or weather sealing an exterior door or garage door.
Making these repairs may help with your winter utility bills as well!
4. Decorate and Equip Your Home
Now that your home is free of summer supplies, cleaned and ready for fall, it’s time to decorate! Bring out your fall decor and supplies as needed to enjoy another crisp season.
This could include seasonal decorations, pillow covers, warm cozy blankets, door mats, hiking boots, jackets, scented candles, and even a fresh pair of slippers.
Outdoors
Preparing the exterior of your home for the change in season is very important. These tasks and responsibilities can help to prepare your home for the change in weather, along with the inevitable first snowfall in the coming months. The sooner you prepare your home for the cold weather, the better.
1. Remove Clutter and Debris
The first step to preparing the exterior of your home for fall (and winter) is to remove clutter and debris. We suggest gathering a pair of gardening gloves, outdoor shoes, landscaping bags, and garbage bags for this task. You may also want to prepare for a trip to your local waste facility, if you have an excess amount of trash or larger items that need to be disposed of.
Begin in the front yard and slowly make your way to the back. Collect pieces of garbage, weeds, clumps of grass, discarded items - anything that really shouldn’t be on the ground or that you wouldn’t want sitting outside throughout the cold winter months.
Once all clutter and debris have been removed, you can proceed with your next steps!
2. Store Outdoor Furniture
Do you have a patio table, conversation set, outdoor chairs, or other pieces of furniture? Be sure to give each piece a proper cleaning before storing for the colder months. You may want to store your furniture in the garage, a shed, the basement, or simply underneath your deck or gazebo area.
If you choose to store your furniture outside, be sure to use proper furniture covers that will keep them safe and secure, no matter the weather or temperature.
3. Winterize Your Pool or Hot Tub
Are you the proud owner of a swimming pool or hot tub? While your pool must be properly winterized for the colder months, you may opt to use your hot tub throughout the winter. It is completely up to you!
For the proper steps to winterizing your pool and preparing your hot tub for fall and winter, we suggest speaking with your local pool and spa supply store. They will be able to help you find the right products and supplies to ensure that your outdoor water features are safe and sound until next year.
4. Prepare Your Landscape
In the spring and summer, many homeowners are proud of their evergreen lawns and jaw-dropping gardens. To help ensure that they remain in good condition for next year, you may need to prepare your landscape for lower temperatures and heaps of snow.
This may include using fertilizer, cutting the lawn, raking leaves, shearing bushes and plants, and even using landscape fabric to help protect them.
5. Repairs and Updates
Once the exterior of your home is clean, clear and ready for the colder weather, you will likely have had a chance to inspect the various areas and structures surrounding your home. This is a great opportunity to complete various repairs and updates before the colder weather is here to stay.
This may include sealing cracks, repairing your shed, filling a hole, transplanting a plant, fixing a loose board on your deck, or replacing a light bulb or fixture, among other things.
It will also be easier to make these repairs before the snow creeps in!
6. Decorate
Now that the exterior of your home is clean, safe and functional, now is the time to decorate!
For fall, many homeowners choose to decorate their front porch with seasonal items, such as:
Pumpkins
Bales of hay
Corn stalks
Pillows and blankets
Front doormat
Exterior lights
Mums and other seasonal potted plants
How will you decorate your house for fall?
Final Thoughts from Ghent Homes
With the right approach, you can effectively prepare your home for fall - inside and out!
As a homeowner, seasonal tasks and maintenance will always be waiting for you around the corner. These can become part of the joy that comes with homeownership. While it may be daunting at times, you can earn a sense of pride and satisfaction by protecting your investment and creating a home for your family that is safe, functional and enjoyable - 365 days a year.
