Hey there!
Now I know what you all might be thinking – you’re not a homeowner, what do you even know about house maintenance? Well for as long as I could remember, cleaning and organization have always been somewhat of a family affair in our house. From spring cleaning to summer gardening, maintaining and continuous upkeep up around the house were activities everyone had to participate in. Maybe it’s an immigrant parent thing? Who knows! What I do know is that as we slowly approach the end of this sunny summer, there are a lot of things that need to be done before sweater weather creeps up.
Here is a simple checklist to help you get your home ready for fall:
1) Clean out your garage and storage rooms
After misplacing my drill charger last week, I was forced to clean out and organize everything in our garage and basement storage room. You would be surprised at how messy these spaces get over the summer – with pool floaties, power tools, bikes and camping supplies, it is time for a huge clean out. August is the perfect time to clean out everything in these room and re-organize your stuff to prepare for the coming fall and winter. I suggest taking a weekend to go through all of your summer junk and pack up what you don’t need. Whenever we clean out our garage we usually give the floors a good power wash as well.
2) Freshen up with a coat of paint
Nobody likes painting in the cooler months, so as summer winds down, now is the time to freshen up your home with a coat of paint. For less than $40 for a can of paint, this is an inexpensive way to give your home a clean new look. Painting your exterior finishes like garage doors and window sills will help seal any cracks and preserve your wood to survive the winter. Depending on how much time you have, you can even stain your deck or fence to brighten up your property.
3) Wash those dirty windows
Not everyone thinks to clean their windows, but while the weather is still bright and sunny, now is the best time to do it! Grab a power washer and spray down all your windows to get rid of any dirt that has been built up all summer. Take this time to also reseal your window frames with silicone caulking and wash your screens.
4) Closet clean out and reorganization
As the weather starts to get cooler you’ll notice clothes getting longer, so now is the perfect time to start packing up your summer shorts and pulling out some sweaters. Go through each closet and get rid of any clothes you don’t wear anymore (donate them to your local charity if you can!) and make some space to transition into fall and winter clothes. Add some shelves or use storage containers to keep things organized.
5) Replace your air filters
With your A/C running all summer, it’s definitely time to replace those filters in your home. If you don’t have any already at home, you can grab them from your local hardware store. This is relatively inexpensive but will make a huge difference on the air quality in your home.
6) Pack up your outdoor furniture
Give your outdoor furniture and accessories a wash and start packing up what you don’t need. It is easy to forget about cleaning your outdoor living items, but this is something you can do closer to September. Hose down your patio sets and clean any gazebo netting to remove dust and bugs. Take time to look around your yard and put away anything you don’t want left outside during the fall.
With only a couple weekends left of August, these are just a few things you can do to wrap up a great summer!
Cheers,
Vips
gill with a drill 