November brings with it, for many, pumpkin-scented candles, cozy nights, and good eats. But it also is the last time to get your hustle on and ready your home for winter. Snow and ice could be in the forecast any day soon, and the more equipped your exterior is to handle it, the more likely you’ll avoid costly repairs in the spring.
Even if you haven’t even started yet, don’t panic; Perfect Exteriors, your exterior remodeling contractors of choice, is here to help.
Here’s a handy list of the most important exterior maintenance tasks you’ll need to complete before the first snow!
Check Out Your Attic Ventilation
Roofing ventilation, as we’ve talked about in our exterior contractor blog entry “Improper Attic Ventilation: A Silent Roof Killer”, needs to be adequate if you want to avoid moisture damage—and by that we mean rusty nails, sagging decks, and too-soggy insulation.
However, winter brings with it additional hazards for the improperly ventilated home: ice dams.
Made of water backed up behind a ridge of ice, these cold-weather conundrums can be brought on by insufficient ventilation, according to the University of Minnesota. They can cause roof leaks, so it’s best to look over your roof vents and make sure no insulation is covering them.
With any concerns, call a roofing contractor!
Clean Out Your Gutters
We touched on the importance of these in another home exterior contractor blog, “Three Things to Do to Your Roof Before Winter Hits.” Look there if you need more roof-specific maintenance advice.
The health of your gutters and roofing is intertwined. Gutters that are full of debris will quickly freeze over come winter, and this leads to ice dams and roofing strain, not to mention issues with your gutters themselves.
If you don’t have gutter guards, you’ll need to clean them multiple times to keep fall leaves from making winter mayhem.
Prepare Your Siding
While roofing protects your home overhead, siding protects it from, well, the sides—blowing snow and harsh winds have nothing on it! That is, of course, as long as it’s properly maintained.
Cracks, missing pieces, and even rot in the case of wooden siding can all compromise your siding’s ability to keep your family warm and safe; get a siding company out to the property before the first snow to go into winter prepared and with peace of mind.
Perfect Exteriors: Comprehensive Exterior Home Contractors
Whatever you need an exterior contractor for, we’ve got the versatile team and five-star service to make the experience a breeze. Give our Monticello office a call today at 763-271-8700.
