Winter Home Prep: How to Protect Your Rhode Island Home from Water Damage, Mold, and Structural Issues
New England winters can be unpredictable, with fluctuating temperatures, heavy snow, and sudden storms. As Rhode Island homeowners, preparing your home for winter is crucial to prevent mold growth, water damage, and costly structural repairs. Here are four essential steps to winterize your home and protect it from the harsh winter elements.
1. Inspect Your Roof and Gutters
Clogged gutters can cause water to overflow and accumulate around your home’s foundation, leading to potential water damage and structural damage. Make sure all gutters drain properly, and are free of rust, cracks, or broken pieces.
A great way to prevent water damage and potential mold infestation in your home is by ensuring your roof and gutters are in top condition.
Damaged roofing shingles can also cause leaks in the home, and with heavy New England snow, you want to make sure your roof is in good working order.
2. Seal Cracks and Gaps
Checking for cracks and gaps around windows, doors and your foundation is crucial to ensuring moisture does not find its way into your home. A simple fix for this would be to use caulk or weather stripping. This helps to prevent moisture getting into the home, which then can turn into water damage or mold.
Sealing cracks and gaps helps with keeping heat in your home and moisture out. Over time, houses settle, which can cause unwanted gaps in framing. Take a quick scan of your home to look for them.
3. Service HVAC and Other Systems
Servicing your HVAC and other systems serviced ahead of winter is important. The main reason being you want to ensure your home has heat ahead of a cold winter.
However, the second reason is to make sure it functions properly to avoid frozen or burst pipes. Frozen or burst pipes are a hassle and can cause a lot of damage to your home if it happens.
4. Trim Trees and Landscaping
Cutting back on any overgrown, or overhanging branches and bushes is a great thing to do ahead of any season. Nor’easters and snow storms can cause branches, trees and brushes to fall onto houses and cause potential structural damage.
By following these simple preventative measures, you can greatly reduce the risk of water damage, mold, or structural damage to your home during the wintertime.
