by: Chicamania Licensed under creative commons.

Maintenance

House maintenance is one of the ways that can extend the life of your house and therefore, maintain and even appreciate the value of your investment. In addition, keeping up with maintenance should provide a more comfortable living environment, decrease heating costs, save on larger expenses caused by deferred maintenance or neglect, and contribute to a better community. Saving money in this way means that we are less energy and materials and therefore contributing to a better environment.

At this time of the years a house inspection and a few precautions are in order. Before the heavy rains and wind we should:

• inspect the roof and look for any shingles that may be damaged or loose  and repair or replace as appropriate.
• check if the flashing, the metal used to shed water between different materials or used to direct water towards the gutters, are in good condition, and are fastened appropriately.
• if there is a chimney, inspect to ensure that it is in good repair and water proofed
• check and clean the gutters. At this time of the yeat they may collect leaves and other debris that may impair the roof drainage and cause further danage to other parts of the roof or the builidng envelope.
• check that all the doors and windows are working effectivly and close well. Check the weatherstrip in these openings to ascertaitn if they are still adequate.
• inspect the cladding and the foundation walls for any loose materials or cracking.
• ensure that the heating system is working well
• check the ventilation system, as this is vital in teh winter months to provide fresh air into the house

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 House maintenance is extremely important to keep the value of your investment.
 Good maintenance prevents leaks, drafts, condensation, saves energy, and may even prevent floods. These are some of the benefits of keeping a regular house maintenance schedule.
 Fall maintenance is especially important, because the extreme weather may accentuate any problems that may have developed.

In Vancouver, because of the number of trees we have, we often see the street drains plugged. Something similar happens with our house gutters, they need to be cleaned. This allows rain water to drain, not only preventing potential damage to the roof and walls but also avoid having too much weight on the gutters.

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