May Home Maintenance Tips

PowerwasherTaking care of seasonal Houston home maintenance is a great way to extend the life of certain elements of your home and head off larger maintenance problems later. Keller Williams Northeast Realty wants to help you protect your home investment.

May marks the beginning of summer for Houstonians. While the North gets a break from their cold months, we are gearing up for our hot summer months, full of 110% humidity (with no rain), sun, and a great tan!

While working on your tan and trying not to get a heat stroke this summer, don’t forget about the things you can do to keep your home healthy and your budget from having a future heat stroke.

Indoor Maintenance for Houston Homes:

  1. Replace all flashlight batteries. This is especially important this time of year as June 1st marks the beginning of hurricane season for the Gulf Coast. For more information on Hurricane Season Preparedness, check out the National Hurricane Center.
  2. Check your dishwasher by looking for any signs of leaks. Confirm that the washer arm isn’t stuck by opening the dishwasher and manually spinning and lifting the washer arm. Make sure the drain hose arcs up to prevent backwash from the drain into the dishwasher.
  3. Clean your refrigerator coils to extend the life of your appliance. Instructions on how to do so are in your appliance manual or you can check the manufacturer’s website.

Outdoor Maintenance for Houston Homes:

  1. Clean and care for decks, patios, and / or porches. Look for peeling paint, sagging roofs, damaged stairs. Make sure the supports are not broken, weakened, or rotted out. Taking care of small problems now saves you from a costly repair job later.
  2. To keep your home looking new, clean or power-wash your home’s siding, sidewalks, and patio. This gives your home an instant fresh look. Be careful of powerwashing brick and painted surfaces as the powerwasher can remove paint and mortar.
  3.  Test and lubricate garage doors. This is also a good time to clean out all that clutter that seems to accumulate in garages.