Home Living Tips

Add a big, dry towel to the clothes dryer when drying jeans and it will cut the drying time significantly.When you take down Christmas lights, wrap them around a square of cardboard for storage and place them in a large bin labeled Christmas

1. When making fruit salad, mix in orange juice or grapefruit juice to keep the fruit from browning
2. Before you buy those home appliances, read this FIRST! Awesome tips http://t.co/vaH62AIJ
3. Fabric softener sheets work great for cleaning base boards and marks on the wall. Bonus: smells great!Chalk isn’t just fun for drawing, place it in the damp areas of your home (like your basement) to absorb excess moisture and repel mildew.
4. 12 of the best natural laundry tips ever. Love the black pepper trick http://t.co/PURgfz3k
5. It’s not the dryer that shrinks clothes, it’s leaving the clothes in there for too long causing them to over-heat.

Spring Tips

Spring is here! As the temperature rises and birds sing, it is that time of year to give your lovely home a look over. Here are some points to keep in mind as you get out and do spring maintenance.

1. Change your furnace filter. A dirty filter makes your furnace work harder and hotter. Both these conditions reduce the life of your furnace and furthermore, it keeps your interior air cleaner and healthier. If you have a HRV, clean the filters and remove the core for cleaning along with the interior of the unit. If you would like some info on how to do this, contact me(ancoeinspections@live.com). If you feel this may be out your comfort zone, ask your HVAC technician during your annual tune up how to maintain your unit.
2. Step outside and try to view the condition of your Roof covering. You may need to step back across the street or even walk around the block and peak between neighbour’s homes to get a view of the backside. Any shingles missing? It is common to have shingles blown off during high wind storms when a tab loses it’s seal. Any signs of localized erosion from upper roof downspouts terminating onto lower roofs below? How about possible damage from pests and animals like your neighbourhood raccoon? It is always good practice to have a Roof tune up performed to check for these things, as well as assess the condition of caulking and flashings along with any possible exposed nails that may exist.
3. Have a look around the perimeter of your home. Make sure the grading of the ground slopes away from the home to help shed surface water away from the foundation walls. Make sure gutters and downspouts are secured plus extended away from the home as this reduces the saturation of the soil near your foundation/basement walls. If you live in a newer home with plastic storm drainage piping, your system may still perform quite well; however, many Municipalities have asked that home owners disconnect them and terminate them above ground to help with storm water management. If you have window wells and no covers on them, it is time to remove any debris such as leaves and paper that may have accumulated in them. Inspect the caulking around windows, doors and any wall penetrations. Common penetration areas are your Refrigerant lines for you A/C, Gas pipes, water spigots, Exhaust vents and plastic pipes for high efficiency furnace and water heaters to name a few.

These are just a few of the many things that are part of home ownership and hopefully some of these tips have reminded you of some things to jot down for your “to list”. Enjoy the warmer weather and have a great Spring.

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