Top 9 Home Maintenance Tips for New Homeowners
Given the option, not many people would volunteer to spend their weekends cleaning rooms and fixing leakage problems. However, it’s necessary unless you want to end up with worse issues later on.
Anyway, don’t fret because we’re here to help you out if you need a little assistance with your maintenance. Check out these tips, which can serve as a handy checklist for new homeowners!
1. Check the smoke and carbon monoxide detectors.
Smoke and carbon monoxide detectors are important. However, many homeowners ignore or forget them.
That’s a problem. You see, these little devices can effectively cut the risk of fatal fire accidents in half if the alarms are properly working.
Unfortunately, since most of them are not checked, or worse, forgotten, their batteries may expire. Some detectors also don’t go off because they’re broken.
Even though these detectors usually have a lifespan of 5-10 years, they still have to be checked periodically (once or twice a month) to make sure that they are still working.
These detectors come with a test button, and all you have to do is use it and see if the alarms will be triggered once you hold down the button. Also, if you are testing the detectors, make sure that you have someone walk to your house’s rooms to check if the alarms can be heard throughout your property.
2. Do routine HVAC maintenance.
Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning (HVAC) maintenance is also an essential part of your home maintenance routine. This is because it is the mechanical system responsible for maintaining a comfortable temperature and atmosphere in your home.
A lot of problems can occur in the HVAC system, including corrosion, leaks, blown internal fuses, short cycling, overheating, and other issues that may affect the distribution of hot or cold air.
Complex mechanical system issues can cause these problems, so it might be better to let a specialized maintenance service provider handle the job for you.
For you to stay on track with your HVAC maintenance, you can think of it this way – hire a local HVAC electrician or technician near you to tune it up before the heating season and schedule another one before the cooling season.
That way, the electrician can do preventive maintenance procedures or repairs that the system may require before the start of the season so you can conveniently use it without problems.
3. Know where the utility shutoffs are located.
Some of the essential resources used in the house every day are water, electricity, and natural gas. However, if it’s necessary, would you be able to shut them off?
As a new homeowner, you have to know where the utility shutoffs are located so that you can avoid extensive damage from happening if there’s an emergency or accident.
We also advise that you take the time to educate other people in your household to ensure that everyone knows where they are.
4. Maintain your outdoor area.
Another thing that homeowners have to tend to is their outdoor area. Whether it’s a small plot of land or a spacious lawn, properly maintaining it can significantly upscale the value and appeal of your property.
Naturally, if you live in a serviced apartment or a furnished apartment, this may not be much of a problem for you, but if you rent or own a house, of course, it’s another thing you have to take care of.
One of the simplest things you can do to your garden is to add some fresh greenery and flowers. Don’t worry if you don’t have the time to deal with regular maintenance and care – you can get the same aesthetic effect by using artificial grass on your lawn.
On the other hand, if you have the budget and you want to upscale the look of your spacious outdoor area, we recommend that you look into some of the best landscaping service providers we reviewed.
These professionals can help you choose what design to incorporate into your garden, handle the regular maintenance it requires, and even install the fixtures that can best highlight the beauty of your landscape.
5. Hire a professional service provider to deep clean your house.
No matter how diligent you are in cleaning your house, there are still spots and corners that you will miss. Besides that, without the right cleaning equipment and procedures, your furniture, blinds, drapes, upholstery, and carpets can deteriorate at a faster pace.
If you wish to have sparkling surfaces, clean floors, and nooks and crannies that are free of dust and dirt, it might be best to hire a professional cleaning service team.
On the other hand, if you always go home late and don’t have the time to do housekeeping tasks, we suggest that you check out our review of the best companies for maid services in Dubai.
Among other things, being able to hire an expert crew to do all the deep cleaning for your house can bring you peace of mind that this task does not need to be accomplished by you anymore, and it will be one less thing for you to worry about.
6. Look out for leaks or signs of water damage.
Before you buy a house, it’s vital to check if there are signs of water damage or if there might be potential causes of water damage in the property. These early signs of damage, when not fixed immediately, can cause extensive and costly structural problems in the future.
But don’t worry because all these can be avoided if you detect the signs early. With that in mind, here are the telltale signs of water damage you should look out for:
- Water stains or slight color discolorations on walls
- Dampness or humidity on surfaces such as walls and counters
- Excessive mold buildup
- Peeling paint or warped floorboards
If you observe any of these signs, inspect your roof, walls, and ceiling, as well as every corner or crevice of your house. Searching for water leaks can be a tedious process, but this is the best way to know what course of action is needed to resolve the issue.
Don’t wait for your walls or foundation to collapse before starting the repairs.
If you know that you can’t fix the leaks by yourself, we suggest that you get the help of a licensed plumber in Dubai. Aside from fixing the leakage, they can also give you preventive maintenance tips to avoid this problem from happening again.
7. Check your indoor and outdoor caulking.
Indoor and outdoor caulking is also an essential part of your home because it helps seal your house and create optimal insulation to prevent excessive moisture and airflow inside the house.
Drafts and poor insulation caused by old and damaged caulking can lead to an unexpected increase in utility bills, so make sure that you replace your indoor and outdoor caulking every five years or so.
Besides that, caulking is also a key step done prior to painting because it helps seal gaps, cracks, and holes on surfaces. It is mostly done on baseboards, trims, or moldings of windows, bathrooms, kitchens, and laundry areas.
For example, if you plan to have your bathroom painted, the painters will first check if there are holes or any irregularities on the surface before they proceed with the job. They typically use a caulking material or sealant to fill in those imperfections to create a smooth surface for painting, so the outcome looks clean and uniform.
8. Stop the pests from invading your home.
Are you aware that one of the biggest threats to your home is not even easy to spot? Pests or silent destroyers, as other people call them, may cause extensive structural damage to your house without you noticing it.
Critters like termites and carpenter ants can infiltrate and cause a lot of trouble not just in your outdoor living space but also inside your home.
In addition to that, pests like rats, cockroaches, and bed bugs can cause serious health risks to all the occupants of your house, so it’s best to stop them from invading your property.
If you’re experiencing a severe infestation problem, you can get the help of a professional pest control team in Dubai who can provide you with an effective preventive maintenance plan and quick solutions to get rid of these pesky visitors.
9. Keep your gutters clean.
Another home maintenance task you should not overlook is cleaning your gutters. This part of your house, together with the whole roofing system, plays an integral part in collecting and guiding rainwater off your property to prevent water damage.
However, debris, dirt, and even the falling leaves from the trees in your property can clog your gutters and cause them to overflow. When this happens, the water may run off to your house’s foundation and compromise its structural stability.
Moreover, a dirty gutter can be an ideal hub for pests. That is why you should make it a point to clean your gutters at least twice a year.
Of course, if you have several trees around your house, you can also hire a handyman to clear out your gutters at least once every three months.