We’re looking forward to our first winter in our new home. There’s something special about winter nights in front of the fire as you enjoy your favourite movies. As the colder weather is creeping in, it can get you wondering about all sorts of things. How long until Christmas? Have we enough gas/oil? What soups should we start to make (winter is soup season after all – check out some of our favourite soup recipes)?
But one thing that needs to be looked at sooner rather than later is how to get your home ready for winter. Not only will it help you to be prepared for anything and everything that could come your way, but it can help you to save money on your energy bills.
With winter quickly approaching, we thought we’d share four tips for getting your home winter ready. Check them out below.
4 Tips to Getting Your Home Winter Ready
1. Clean Your Gutters
Autumn brings leaves that fall, and winter brings freezing temperatures. And when the two are combined, it isn’t going to be a good thing for your gutters and your home. A large collection of leaves can sometimes lead to some water collecting, and as the temperature hits freezing, this isn’t good for your guttering. These conditions can lead to blockages, cracks and in some cases leakages.
Take an afternoon and get up on a ladder and investigate the state of your guttering. If it needs cleaned and you are happy to do so, fire ahead before the weather gets worse. If you’re not comfortable on a ladder, there are plenty of people out there who will clean your guttering. Yell.com and Yelp can be a good place to find someone, while it’s also likely your friends and family may know someone. Don’t leave it too late!
2. Emergency Equipment
Some parts of the world are going to have much riskier winters than others. But being prepared is always a good thing to be. Have you got any salt/grit that can be used on the path or roads when it is icy? Have you thought about getting silent generators as a way to backup if your electricity cuts off? Have you got a snow blower or even a shovel to help on the days that you might need it? Have you a supply of oil/gas in case of an emergency?
Having a few things in and ready to go if you need them is always going to be a good idea. It’s also advisable to stock up on the basic foods when the weather starts to get colder – things like bread, milk, butter, water and canned goods are always worth having additional items of just in case the weather means you can’t leave your home for a few days. These are more extreme cases, but still worth preparing for.
3. Service Your Boiler
We opted for gas for the heating of our home (and indeed the cooking hob), and one thing that has been flagged on several occasions is the importance of an annual service. Having your boiler serviced is something that will cost a little bit of money, but it is worth the investment to ensure you have an efficient boiler and heating during the winter months.
You need to check that the boiler is safe first of all, and then you need to check that the heating will all be working. Make sure you get a gas safe registered engineer to carry out any gas boiler inspection. Visit gassaferegister.co.uk to find a registered engineer near you.
4. Check Your Energy Tariff
If like us, you’ve probably put your heating on over the past few months, and are also likely starting to use more warm water, and indeed have lights and other appliances on for longer. This will only continue into the winter months, and now is the time when you are most likely to start noticing an increase in your electricity prices. But what tariff are you on at the moment? It can really pay to check the tariff that you are on at the moment, and then see if you can find a better deal. Uswitch.com can be a great website to compare electricity tariffs.
Have You Got Any Winter Ready Tips?
Have you any tips for getting your home winter ready? What is the first thing you look to do when the winter evenings draw in? Let us know in the comment section below.
Until next time, stay warm 🙂
Helen, Nial & Lewis
Main image via Pixabay
Welcome to Pikalily, an award-winning food, travel and lifestyle blog. We are Nial and Helen, a happily married couple from Northern Ireland, who share a passion for food and travel among many things. We became parents to our beautiful boy Lewis in 2017. Follow our adventures through the blog.
