What, if any, resolutions have you made for the new year?
We think you should include the health of your home (think living environment) in your New Year's Resolutions.
Most people spend over half of their time inside their homes. It just makes sense that your homes health can greatly affect your family’s well being.
One basic element that can greatly affect the air you breath in your home is your furnace filter. Whether you own your home or rent you should check and change your furnace filter regularly. A clogged air filter will allow all that dust and debris that should be filtered out to be re-circulated back into your home. This can cause chronic allergies and especially be dangerous for people with asthma or other respiratory conditions. It can also increase the Cost of energy bills.
There are many components inside your home that can cause unhealthy living conditions if neglected. Take steps this year to take care of your living environment and live healthy inside your home.
1. KEEP UP WITH SEASONAL MAINTENANCE
Like a health physical, a home maintenance schedule is important for every home's upkeep and well-being. Continuing to check up on your exterior, appliances, heating and cooling, plumbing, security, and electrical systems will help prevent breakdowns, save money, and keep your home looking its best. Use this home maintenance checklist to help schedule your seasonal updates, repairs, and cleaning, along with a handful of monthly tasks. If any of the jobs go beyond your skill level or lead to more involved repairs, hire a professional to help.
2. GET YOUR EXTERIOR HEALTHY
A few simple tips toward maintaining your siding, foundation and roof will keep your home and its exterior in good shape for years to come.
- Cut back your landscaping. Keeping plants cut back will protect your siding, foundation and roof from moisture rot, insect intrusion and damage.
- Keep your siding clean. Washing your siding can give the overall appearance of a healthy glow and provide a healthy environment at the exterior.
- Repair damage to siding. While cleaning your home's exterior, check for any needed repairs and have them repaired by a professional as needed.
- Clean your gutters. Keeping gutters clear of debris will extend the life of your roof and keep water away from your home. When gutters are full of debris the water from rain or melting snow has nowhere to go and will sit in the gutter causing damage to your roof, siding and foundation over time. Gutters are designed to move water away from your homes exterior to prevent unhealthy conditions and water intrusion to the interior.
Call a professional to clean gutters and inspect them for repairs. We recommend seasonal cleanings in the spring and fall.
3. CLEAR THE CLUTTER
Organizing and ridding your home of clutter is one of the least expensive ways to get your home healthy. What one person calls clutter another calls collections or treasures, so the first step is to figure out what qualifies as clutter. Clutter is bad for your physical and mental health. Too much clutter can be a fire hazard. Dust, mold, and animal dander that collect in cluttered homes are all bad for allergies and asthma.
4. PREVENT BATHROOM MOLD
Water runs frequently in bathrooms, making it moist and humid, an environment that allows mold to thrive. When people don’t clean the surfaces or dry them off, mildew begins to form. If it isn’t removed, it develops into mold.
Mold is relatively harmless, but given the right circumstances it can definitely cause some irritation. If you have pre-existing allergies or COPD or some sort of respiratory condition, the spores can actually irritate the lining of your lungs and can increase your risk of asthma attacks or COPD exacerbation. Keeping surfaces dry and free of moisture is the key. Take care of your homes health for the health of you and your family. If you have fans in the bathroom and they aren’t clearing out most of the moisture in your bathrooms after five to 10 minutes, your fans may not be moving enough air. Fans are certified by the volume (cfm, or cubic feet per minute) of air ‘exhausted’ out of the room. To find the recommended fan capacity for your bathroom, simply multiply the bathroom square footage by 1.1 (assuming an 8-ft. ceiling; for a 9-ft. ceiling, multiply by 1.5). Hire a professional to inspect and clean your bathroom fans for optimum home health.
5. SAFETY AND HEALTH
Your families safety should be at the top of your get healthy resolutions. One of the most important elements of your homes safety components are your smoke detectors. They provide insurance in case of a fire emergency. You hope you never need to use them but you want them to be there and in good working condition if you do.
Smoke detectors do not last forever. They should be replaced about every 10 years. Check to see if your detectors are yellow. If they are yellowing in color - they need replaced. If your detectors have a grease or dirt buildup, that can account for some yellowing. However, if they aren't dirty and are still yellow, that means they are old. This is a visible design feature from manufacturers that gives people a reason to replace them at an appropriate age. It is also very important to make sure that you have the right amount of smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors installed for your health and safety. https://www.nfpa.org/Public-Education/Staying-safe/Safety-equipment/Smoke-alarms/Installing-and-maintaining-smoke-alarms
Keeping dryer ducts clear of lint buildup is another way to make sure your homes health, keeps your family safe. Lint buildup can be a fire hazard and cause excessive energy use.
Call a professional to clean and inspect your dryer ducts.
Whether you rent or own your home, keeping your home healthy can keep you and your family healthy this year. Make your New Year's Resolutions for your home today. Call to schedule. One Call Property Solutions, LLC for all of your home maintenance needs. We're there when you need us. (208) 490-6713
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