Over 60% of the American population owns homes. Considering the unique benefits of home ownership, the higher that number the better. 

 

Do you know what’s not a benefit of ownership though? Maintenance, the big-time downside of home ownership that most people don’t talk about. Cleaning gutters, checking garage doors, inspecting roofs – the works.

If you own a house and don’t keep a proper house maintenance checklist, your house is liable to fall into ruin, which could lead to costly repairs down the road. Believe us when we say that you don’t want that.

To help get you on the right track, our team is going to run you through a few maintenance must-do’s that you can build on as you get into the habit of home maintenance.

Every Month

These are three core tasks that could use your attention every 30-days:

Clean Your Garbage Disposal

Have you ever walked into your house and asked yourself what smells? That smell you can’t find that makes you wince a little bit whenever you walk in your front door more likely than not is your garbage disposal.

Over the course of the month, your disposal gets clogged with all sorts of food and water. When that food starts to rot, you’re going to notice.

To fix these issues, run some soap and cold water down your disposal. Then, grind up some ice in there.

Finally, chop up a lemon and drop it in your disposal to mulch it.

Inspect Your Fire Extinguishers

If you have a fire extinguisher in your home (which you should), ensure that it’s working. How you test your fire extinguisher will vary from manufacturer to manufacturer.

Your best bet is to review your particular model’s instructions and carry out any suggested maintenance steps.

Look at Your HVAC Filter

If you have clogged HVAC filters, you’re breathing dirty air. That’s bad news, especially for people with allergies or asthma.

Check your filters and swap them out if they’re dirty.

Every Three Months

These tasks are important, albeit, not necessary to tackle more often than on a quarterly basis:

Check Your Garage Door

If you have an automatic garage door, you’ll want to make sure that its sensor is working to ensure it doesn’t damage your car.

Open up your garage door, stand in front of it, then activate its closure feature. If it doesn’t detect you, put a block of wood under the door to see if that causes it to stop.

If that doesn’t work, call a technician.

Cycle Your Water

Do you have unused areas in the house that have sinks, toilets, showers, etc.? If so, flush/run the water in those areas for a few moments.

Doing so will help your pipes stay healthy.

Alarm Tests

You know the drill. Check your smoke and carbon monoxide alarms. If they’re not working, check the batteries or swap them out.

This straightforward house maintenance checklist item can literally save lives.

Every Six Months

You should perform these house maintenance tasks on January and June 1st:

Inspect Fridge Coils

Your refrigerator is one of the primary hogs of energy in your home. Checking to ensure its coils aren’t clogged with dust can save you hundreds of dollars per year.

If you do have clogged refrigerator coils, vacuum them out.

Deep Clean Your Home

Twice a year, you should dedicate a Saturday to deep cleaning every corner of your house.  Wash screens, gut your basement, get under the house, and do anything else you can think of.

This deep cleaning can help you to prevent rodent infestations and other problems that tend to sneak past homeowners.

Once Per Year

Finally, we have our January 1st tasks. These annual house maintenance checklist suggestions aren’t comprehensive since there may be other things that should go on your priority list depending on your home.

The following should help you get started:

Clean Your Gutters

If you have clogged gutters, Nasi Roofing says that you could induce roof damage, gutter damage, and provide rodents with a place to build nests.

To avoid that, hop up on a ladder and start pulling out leaves and any other gunk you see from your gutter’s catches. Then, when things seem clear, run water through your gutter with a hose to give them a final wash.

Have Your HVAC Serviced

During cold winters and hot summers, you’re going to want your HVAC working well to ensure that your house stays comfortable and your utility bills stay manageable.

An HVAC professional can make sure that everything is running at peak performance.

Check Your Trees

If trees/branches on your property are starting to lean towards the street, your home, or power lines, contact tree trimming professionals.

If you don’t and something bad happens, you could be liable for damages.

Wrapping Up Our House Maintenance Checklist

Having a house maintenance checklist can help you organize everything you need to do to keep your house in order throughout the year.

Remember, our list is only meant to get the wheels turning in your head. It’s not meant to be comprehensive.

Be sure to add any tasks that make sense for your particular living situation. You should continue to stay proactive to keep your house in great shape!

Life begs a lot of questions. Our team at My Zeo offers a lot of answers.

Check out more of our lifestyle content to satiate your curiosity today!