Maintain your home, health
There is plenty you can do to keep your property looking tidy during winter.
Regular property maintenance is important for the health and well-being of you and your family, as well as ensuring your property value is retained and/or increased.
Winter can bring slippery pathways so if you have any around your home, it’s time to get rid of the moss, mould or lichen causing the problem. Buy a spray from your favourite garden centre, hardware or local Wet & Forget store or alternatively, you can spray on a household bleach and water mix of cup of bleach to 4 litres of water. Be careful not to get the bleach solution on your plants or lawn, paintwork, yourself or your pets.
In older houses it is important to prevent rats and mice from entering your house through the roof, so get rid of branches and creepers that hang over or near it, by cutting them back with hedge clippers or secateurs.
It is also important to keep your climbers controlled regularly to prevent them from becoming a rodentfriendly bridge access to your roof.
Apart from clogging up guttering, downpipes and drains, if leaves and organic litter are not removed regularly, the composting material can cause tin guttering to rust and erode and in turn water will pour on to the ground below, gouging it out or drowning the plants in the garden directly beneath it.
Repairing wooden windowsills and repainting them will spruce up your home and patch painting any areas on the exterior walls where the paint may be worn or faded can make a huge difference to the look of your home. Just be aware if you are trying to improve a small patch on a large wall, the existing paint may have faded over the years, so you may need to paint the whole surface.
A water blast on any home will always improve its look and get rid of spiders and other insects that live on the exterior. And to deal to those cockroaches, ants and other creepy crawlies that may be nestling in your home, a pyrethrum-based pest bomb released in each room is the easiest and safest option.
Bringing in a professional to clean out your fire flue is important so your fireplace continues to run efficiently and effectively.
Cleaning out your heat pump filters will do the same. Check your heat pump instruction booklet for ‘‘how to’’, or search the web for an online copy for your brand of heat pump by typing in ‘‘heat pump instruction booklet NZ’’.
Underfloor and ceiling insulation is important for a number of health and home-comfort reasons too, and add value to your home.
If you think you may be eligible for financial help to install it, ask about a Warm Up New Zealand Healthy Homes grant by emailing palmy@energysmart.co.nz or free phoning 0800 777 111.
If you are not eligible you may well be able to add payments to your rates over the next nine years, so it’s worth calling even if you are renting. It’s all about keeping you and your family, healthy.
And last but not least, if you have cats and/or dogs in your home at any time during the day or night, don’t forget about flea infestations. Contrary to popular belief fleas are around in winter as warm homes can simulate the perfect breeding ground for them, and the outdoor fleabreeding cycle only slows in the cooler months, it does not stop. Not seeing fleas on your cat or dog is not a true reflection of whether they have them or not, so be sure to flea powder your animals, their beds, kennels and sleeping places or use a reputable flea medication. If in doubt, ask your vet.
Remember, the old saying ‘‘A stitch in time saves nine’’ will always hold true when applied to your home maintenance schedule.