Summer maintenance is so much more than keeping your lawn nice!
Owning a home is great, but it certainly demands a lot of upkeep! In a place like Pittsburgh, your house experiences all sorts of strain from Mother Nature: bitter cold, heat waves, heavy rain and wind—the list goes on and on. All of this adds up to different seasonal influences that tear away at paint, break down your sidewalk, and create many other headaches for homeowners to manage.
We want to ensure every Pittsburgh homeowner has the proper resources to keep their home in tip-top condition regardless of season (check out our fall maintenance checklist here). With summer in full swing, here’s what you should make time for over the weekend:
1. Paint your exterior. Summer is the perfect time to touch up dull, chipping paint. But remember: Painting a house takes much more skill than repainting your bedroom! If you haven’t done it before, you may want to start in the back of the house or bring on a professional crew. If you can’t afford a professional paint crew at the moment, consider doing simple touch-up work on your own.
2. Clean your screens. From vents to windows, get cleaning. Take your window screens into the yard or bathtub and gently scrub them with soap and water. You can also take a vacuum to your laundry filter, A/C filter, and any other vents in the house, including your bathroom fan.
3. Check your play equipment. Take care of your children’s pretend homes as well! Check monkey bars for loose screws, ensure swings are bolted in place, and look for faulty ladders rungs. Repair everything early in the summer before they receive too much use!
4. Animal-proof your home. Now that summer’s here, bugs and animals are searching for a way in. In Pittsburgh, that means your house is a prime target for mice, ants, stinkbugs, and the occasional bird or squirrel. To keep these adorable creatures outside:
Trim tree branches so they’re at least eight feet away from your roof. Any closer could give squirrels easy access to the top of your house.
Check your window screens for tears. If there are any rips, either mend or replace the screen.
Check the caulking around doors and windows. Any gaps could provide an easy access point for ants and other bugs.
Check your attic and basement. In the attic, look for broken windows, rotten boards, or anything else an animal could wiggle through. In the basement, check your windows, doorways, and walls for any cracks.
5. Mind your entrance—all the way to the street. If your driveway has any cracks or potholes, consider having them patched. In addition, you can have your walkway and front steps power washed to their former just-installed glory.
6. Add a fresh layer of mulch. Not only does mulch look and smell great, but it also cuts down on unsightly weeds.
7. Tune up your cooling system. Your summer maintenance checklist isn’t complete without keeping cool! If you have central air, it’s often best to call in a technician to service your system. Without keeping your cooling system clean, you run the risk of fire. If you use a window unit to get through our humid summer months, give it a thorough cleaning. Before doing so, check for insects or nests. From there, start with cleaning the condenser coils. Dust and buildup here (which can happen during storage), can make your A/C unit work harder and possibly cause fires. Once that’s clean, scrub the air filter and water pan.
Staying on top of your home may be challenging, but it’s worth it in the long run! Investing the time now prevents bigger problems down the road, and you’ll get the satisfaction of having a beautiful living space.
Still, we understand if looking at the to-do list makes you feel restless. After all, people love buying homes in the summer! If you’d like to discuss home options, contact us at theblocks@theblocksintheburgh.com or 412.926.7976.
Cheers,
Julie & Ted