Summer Home Maintenance

Jul 1, 2020, 1:13 PM

The weather is right for spending days outside, heading to the beach or hiking trail, or simply visiting with friends — safely. It’s also time to get your house in shape. 

What tasks have you been meaning to work on in and around your home?

Keeping Cool

• Reverse fan blades — The point of a fan is to stir up the air, cool it, and blow it past you to cool you off. It’s an alternative to what can be expensive air conditioning, whether it’s an overhead ceiling fan or one sitting on a table.
• Use sun-blocking curtains/shades — They don’t have to be heavy “blackout” versions, but simply something that keeps out the sun. You probably have some kind of blinds or curtains on your windows already, but have they been cleaned recently? Years of exposure to the sun will change their color, in many cases. 

 

Outdoors

• Clear gutters — This is a pretty comprehensive way to do it, but simply scooping leaves, muck, and anything else that hasn’t flowed through your gutters and out the drain may be enough to keep them clean.
• Cut away tall grass around trees or building walls — A string trimmer (I call it a “weed whacker”) can get the straggling blades of grass the mower can’t reach. Another option is to build out an area around a tree or other object, like a little ring of rocks, and set up an edge that you can mow up to or on top of. 
• Clean fences — A wooden fence can be seriously damaged if it stays wet for too long. Clear away or cover up dirt under the fence that can soak up that water, or rocks that don’t let it drain away. On the other hand, you do want water — and soap — to improve the look of metal or vinyl fences.

 

Doors and Windows

• Review window screens for holes — A simple look at a window will reveal any damage to the thin metal mesh screen, and a kit to patch it up is relatively inexpensive. It only costs a little more to replace the screen material entirely. Other kinds of damage may include broken or cracked glass.
• Check window and door frames — You’re looking for scratches, missing paint, or other indications that a window or door is worn. Fixing this is also an easy way to improve the look of your exterior. 

 

You can protect the improvements you’ve made to your house with a Hastings Mutual Homeowners policy. The policy, the related Homeowners Coverage Plus insurance, and the Waiver of Deductible credit all help insure your house against a disaster like a windstorm — a disaster that could damage not just your house and your possessions, but could also destroy all the hard work you put into maintaining your house throughout the summer.

The Mutual Understanding blog and Hastings Mutual videos are made available for educational purposes only. The information referred to is not an official company statement, corporate policy, or offer of coverage. Refer to your insurance policy for specific coverage. There is no representation as to the accuracy or completeness of any information found by following any link on this site. Please contact your local independent insurance agent with further questions and for more details on any insurance policy-related information you read here.

© 2020 Hastings Mutual Insurance Company. All rights reserved.