How to Winterize Your Home (Before the First Storm Does It for You)

A house can last for generations, but its parts don't take care of themselves. A roof springs a leak. A pipe freezes. The furnace quits on the coldest night of the year, usually on a holiday weekend, when every repair service in town charges triple.

Don't wait for the first storm. A few hours of checking and fixing in the fall saves you a bundle on emergency repairs, and a lot of shivering.

Here's how to winterize your home, from the roof to the basement, plus the safety checks that matter most once the windows are shut for the season. Let's start at the top.

1. The Roof and Gutters

Start outside, with a walk around the house and a good look up.

•      Check the roof from the ground. Use binoculars to look for missing, cracked or curling shingles, and for gaps in the flashing (those metal seams around the chimney, vents, skylights and roof edges).

•      Clean the gutters and downspouts. Wear gloves and scoop out leaves and gunk, then run a hose through them to make sure they drain freely. Clogged gutters cause ice dams, and ice dams push water under the shingles and into your ceiling.

•      Point the downspouts away from the house, at least 3 to 5 feet, with extensions if needed, so water doesn't pool by the foundation.

•      Trim branches that hang over the roof. Snow and ice make them heavy, and heavy branches fall.

About ladders and roofs: this is the part where people get hurt. Work from a sturdy ladder with someone holding it, and keep three points of contact. Don't walk on a steep, wet, tile or wood-shingle roof, and don't go up at all if heights make you nervous. Gutter cleaning and roof repairs are worth paying for. If you spot problems, call a roofer now, before they become emergencies.

2. The Fireplace and Chimney

•      Get the chimney inspected every year, and cleaned as needed, by a certified chimney sweep. That's the NFPA's recommendation, because soot and creosote buildup cause chimney fires.

•      Burn only dry, seasoned hardwood. Skip wet or green wood, which makes more creosote, and never burn wrapping paper, cardboard, trash or evergreen boughs. They flare up fast and throw sparks up the chimney.

•      Clean out the firebox between fires once the ashes are completely cold.

•      Put ashes in a metal can with a lid, and store it outside, at least 10 feet from the house. Ashes stay hot for days.

•      Close the damper when the fireplace isn't in use, so your warm air doesn't go up the chimney.

•      Use a fireplace screen, and keep anything that burns at least 3 feet away.

Here's more on easy fireplace maintenance.

3. The Furnace and Heating System

On a cold night, your heating system is the last thing you want to break down. A broken furnace isn't just uncomfortable and expensive. A faulty gas or oil furnace can leak carbon monoxide.

•      Get a professional tune-up every year, before heating season. A technician checks for gas leaks, tests the safety controls, cleans the burners and inspects the heat exchanger. That's the recommendation from Energy Star and most manufacturers, whatever the age of the furnace.

•      Change the air filter every 1 to 3 months during heating season, monthly if you have pets or allergies. A clogged filter makes the furnace work harder and costs you money.

•      Clear the area around the furnace. No boxes, paint cans or laundry stacked against it. Keep anything flammable at least 3 feet away.

•      Vacuum the vents and registers, and make sure furniture and rugs aren't blocking them.

•      Electric baseboard heaters need only regular dusting and a clear 3 feet in front of them.

•      Install a programmable or smart thermostat. Turning the heat down 7 to 10 degrees for 8 hours a day (while you sleep or are at work) can save up to 10% a year on heating, according to the U.S. Department of Energy.

•      Reverse the ceiling fans to run clockwise on low. It pushes warm air down from the ceiling.

4. Protect the Pipes

Frozen pipes are the winter disaster nobody plans for. A burst pipe can pour hundreds of gallons of water into your house.

•      Disconnect and drain garden hoses, and store them.

•      Shut off the water to outdoor faucets from the inside valve, then open the outside faucet to let it drain.

•      Blow out the sprinkler system before the first freeze, or hire someone to do it.

•      Insulate pipes in unheated spaces (the garage, the crawl space, the attic, outside walls) with foam pipe sleeves.

•      Know where your main water shutoff is, and make sure everyone in the house knows too. When a pipe bursts, you don't want to be hunting for it with a flashlight.

•      On very cold nights, let faucets on outside walls drip, and open the cabinet doors under sinks so warm air reaches the pipes.

•      Going away? Keep the heat at 55°F or higher. Never turn it off.

5. Check for Leaks and Mildew

•      Seal the cracks. Look for gaps in masonry or stucco, between siding and window or door frames, and at corners. Seal them with exterior caulk to keep air and water out of your walls.

•      Check the places you never look: the attic, the basement and the far corners of the garage. Wall or floor stains, streaks or standing water mean a leak, and it needs fixing now.

•      A basement that keeps leaking is usually a grading or drainage problem outside the foundation, and no amount of caulk will fix it. Call a pro.

•      Peek under the dishwasher and washing machine, and at the pipes that serve them. Many have a removable panel along the floor. Small leaks can go unnoticed for months.

•      Check under the sinks, especially where the dishwasher drain hooks into the main drain. A drip at a pipe joint can often be fixed by snugging up the nut by hand. If that doesn't stop it, call a plumber.

•      Scrub mildew off the siding twice a year with a mildew cleaner or a diluted bleach solution, following the label. Rinse well and protect your plants. Left alone, mildew eats away at exterior paint.

•      Scrub algae and moss off walkways and steps with a stiff brush. Slick, slimy steps are a fall waiting to happen once they're wet or icy.

6. Seal Drafts Around Doors and Windows

In cold weather, warm air sneaks out through every tiny gap: around pipes and vents, along the seams between walls and floors, and around doors and windows. Wind pushes cold air in through the same gaps. As your house settles, and expands and contracts with the weather, those gaps get bigger.

The test: if you can see daylight around a door or window, or feel a draft, it needs sealing. On a windy day, hold a lit incense stick near the frame. If the smoke wavers, you've found a leak.

Weatherstripping

•      Stick-on foam is the easiest. Metal or vinyl weatherstripping lasts longer.

•      Do the whole door: one continuous strip along the top and both sides, plus a door sweep along the inside bottom.

•      Most kits come with instructions. It's a 30-minute job.

Caulking

1.     Use exterior-rated caulk. Latex (acrylic) caulk is the easiest: it cleans up with water and can be painted. Silicone lasts longer outdoors but can't be painted.

2.     Clean the area first and scrape out old, cracked caulk so the new caulk sticks.

3.     Apply a steady bead with a caulking gun.

4.     Smooth it with a wet finger or a damp sponge, and wipe off the extra before it dries.

Other quick draft fixes: foam gaskets behind outlet and switch covers on outside walls, plastic window film on drafty windows, and a door draft stopper (the fabric "snake") on the floor.

7. Winter Safety Checks

When the house is closed up for winter, these matter more than ever:

•      Carbon monoxide alarms: you need one on every level of the house and outside each sleeping area. Test them monthly, replace the batteries every year, and replace the alarm itself as often as the manufacturer recommends, usually every 5 to 10 years. CO is colorless and odorless. The alarm is the only way to know.

•      Smoke alarms: test them monthly, and replace any that are 10 years old.

•      Space heaters: keep them at least 3 feet from anything that can burn, plug them straight into the wall (never an extension cord), and turn them off when you leave the room or go to bed, as the NFPA recommends.

•      Generators: never run one inside the house, the garage or a basement, even with the door open. Keep it outside, at least 20 feet from the house and away from windows, as the CDC advises.

•      Never heat the house with the oven or a gas stove.

•      Keep a winter emergency kit: flashlights, batteries, blankets, water, a few days of food, a phone charger, and any medications.

8. Don't Forget the Outside

•      Clean and store the patio furniture, cushions and grill covers. Here's how to clean patio furniture before you put it away.

•      Get the snow gear ready: shovels, ice melt and a snow blower that starts.

•      Mark the edges of the driveway and walk with stakes before snow buries them.

•      Put the garden to bed. See 10 fall gardening tips.

Your Winterizing Checklist

There's no time like the present to get started. As an incentive, picture this lovely holiday scene: the guests are arriving, the heater is on the blink, the roof is leaking, and the chimney catches fire. This is no time to be a Scrooge.

Frequently Asked Questions

When should you winterize your home?

In early to mid fall, before the first hard freeze. That gives you time to schedule a furnace tune-up and a chimney sweep before they're booked solid.

How often should a furnace be serviced?

Once a year, before heating season starts, by a qualified technician, whatever the furnace's age. Change the filter every 1 to 3 months.

How do you keep pipes from freezing?

Disconnect garden hoses, shut off outdoor faucets from the inside, insulate pipes in unheated areas, let faucets drip on very cold nights, open the cabinet doors under sinks, and keep the heat at 55°F or higher.

What temperature should you leave your house at in winter when you're away?

No lower than 55°F, to keep the pipes from freezing.

How do you find drafts in your house?

Look for daylight around doors and windows, feel for cold air, or hold a lit incense stick near frames on a windy day and watch for the smoke to waver.

Keep Going

The house is buttoned up and the furnace is humming. Keep it running smoothly all year with these related guides:

•      Home Maintenance: Simple ways to keep your home in good shape, season after season.

•      Preventative Home Maintenance Checklist: The year-round list that heads off expensive repairs.

•      Easy Fireplace Maintenance Tips: A clean, safe fireplace all winter.

•      Easy Fall Cleaning Checklist: Get the house cleaned up and cozy before the cold sets in.

•      How to Clean Patio Furniture for Fall: Clean it, cover it, store it.

•      10 Fall Gardening Tips: Put the garden to bed so it wakes up happy in spring.

•      Christmas Tree Care Tips: Keep a real tree fresh and safe, far from the fireplace.

•      Holiday Safety Tips for Entertaining: Candles, cords and cooking fires, handled before the guests arrive.

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