October is the month that temperatures begin to steadily decline in the St. Louis area. That means that it’s time to start getting your home ready for the colder weather! So what are some things you can do to get your home ready for the upcoming heating season? Take a look at the five fall home maintenance tips we listed below!
5 simple fall maintenance tips to get your home ready for colder weather
- Schedule your annual furnace tune-up. Scheduling a furnace tune-up should be at the top of your fall home maintenance to-do list. A tune-up will ensure your furnace is in shape to take on the cold weather and take care of any potential problems with your heating system that could lead to safety hazards in your home. The beginning of fall is one of the best times to schedule your tune-up because you can beat the rush before maintenance appointments begin to book up.
- Check on your air filter. With the summer season nearly behind us, it’s important to check on your air filter. Because air is sent through your filter every time that your HVAC system is running, summer is one of the seasons that your filter can clog up the fastest. If you haven’t been checking, changing, or cleaning your filter every month now is the time to do it!
- Reverse and clean your ceiling fans. When you reach the point that you don’t think you’ll be using your ceiling fans to cool your home for the rest of the year, you’ll want to reverse the direction of all the fans in your home. This helps warm your home during the heating season because it forces warm air down to the floor. In addition, now is a good time to clean and dust off your fan blades because dust tends to build upon them, which can decrease the quality of the air in your home.
- Prepare your doors and windows. Nobody likes to feel cold drafts indoors when it’s cold outside, and your windows and doors are some of the most common places that outside air can get into your home. You can help prevent cold drafts by caulking, weatherstripping, and sealing up your doors and windows.
- Check your CO and smoke detectors. The heating season is when we use things like fireplaces and gas furnaces that can pose safety hazards if they aren’t used properly or are experiencing operational problems. That’s why it’s important to replace the batteries in your smoke alarms and carbon monoxide detectors and test to ensure that they are working correctly (we’ll have more on CO detectors later this week!)
If you have any questions about these fall home maintenance tips, or if you’d like a heating or cooling system serviced or installed in your home, contact Jerry Kelly Heating & Air Conditioning, your Saint Charles, MO, heating and air conditioning company (https://www.jerrykelly.com/). We service the St. Louis area, including towns like Weldon Spring, Wentzville, and Winghaven.
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