Prep your gutters for April showers

Most people delay their gutter maintenance jobs until the autumn, but a good spring clean before the wet weather sets in is a smart move that can save you potential pain in the pocket down the line.  

April is the wettest month of the year and if your gutters aren’t ready to withstand the showers, now is the time to do something about it. Over the late fall and winter, tree leaves, branches and other debris falls onto our roof and down into our gutters, collecting over time. In the winter, this can lead to ice dams and other hazards, but in the spring, it prevents gutters from working properly. A gutters main job is to create a pathway for water to move away from your home and through a downspout to deposit in a safe place away from your foundation. This system is vital to a home; it makes sure water can flow freely and not cause leaks in your roof, attic and walls. But if your gutters are blocked up, the water has nowhere to go and has no choice but to flow over, creeping up into your roof shingles and down through your siding. This kind of damage is costly to repair and entirely preventable, so get your gloves on and let’s get to it. 

To give your gutters a good clean you’ll need a ladder, a lawn bag or bucket, a small hand rake and a hose. Don’t be tempted to spray debris down the downspout with water; it’s likely that branches and leaves will get stuck inside, which will then clog it up and leave you with a whole new mess to deal with.  Start at the downspout opening and work your way backwards, collecting gunk away from the downspout and disposing it into your bucket. Work in small sections and don’t let your bag get too heavy – it could throw you off balance and land you in the emergency room. While you’re making your way around the house, check for any gutter damage, such as sections coming loose. You want to make sure you get those fixed while the weather is good. Once you’ve finished the cleaning, you can give each section a good spray with the hose to check and make sure the water is running through and you don’t have any hidden build-up in those downspouts.

If gutter cleaning is a job you’d rather not take on, hire a contractor to complete the maintenance and then speak to them about putting gutter guards on your home. These wire or mesh overlays are installed on top of the gutter and prevent debris from entering the channel in the first place. They offer a great solution to a messy job and will provide you with peace of mind for years to come. 

Chimney Inspections – it’s a dirty job, but someone has to do it

With the last snowfall for the season behind us (fingers crossed), you probably won’t be lighting any warming fires for the next eight months. But before you start celebrating, consider performing a routine maintenance check on your fireplace, chimney and flue to ensure it’s in tip-top shape for next winter. It’s a dirty job, but fireplaces and chimneys are involved in 42 percent of all home-heating fires, so a preventative annual inspection should definitely be on your spring-cleaning list.

First, if you have a regular wood-burning fireplace, remove all the old ashes with a shovel and bucket and get rid of any residual materials with an industrial vacuum or heavy-duty hand broom and dustpan. It’s important to note that during winter you never want ashes to accumulate to more than two inches in depth.  Also, remember that ashes are just disintegrated wood, so feel free to discard them into your compost pile.  Once the ashes are cleared, you can remove any soot and fire stains with a spray bottle of soapy water and a tough, wire scrub brush. If stains are really stuck on there, a muriatic acid solution will do the job, which is available at most hardware stores.

Once your fireplace is squeaky clean, it’s time to inspect the flue. Look up the fireplace, inspecting for any cracks or damage. You’ll also want to keep an eye out for creosote build-up, which can be highly flammable and result in chimney fires if not removed properly. If you see any blockage, cracks or deposits during a visual inspection, you’ll want to get the flue looked at by a professional.

Now comes the hardest part – the chimney. Firstly, make sure that you are comfortable on a roof and using a ladder. If you aren’t, leave this part of the job to an expert. Look around your chimney and remove any leaves or debris that may have piled up over the winter. If your chimney is open and you don’t use it often, it can be a great nesting place for birds and small animals.  Don’t let this happen; invest in a wire screen cover to ensure nothing from the outside can get in. Also, take a look at the mortar between the bricks to make sure it is in good condition and nothing is cracking or crumbling. If mortar needs to be replaced, remove the damaged segments and re-pack them with weather resistant ready-mixed mortar from the hardware store.

You’ll also want to inspect your flashing, which is where the chimney meets the roof. This should create a watertight seal, so make sure nothing looks loose or like it’s coming undone, otherwise you could be at risk for a leak. If the seal is at all damaged or wearing away, you’ll want to get it repaired immediately.

I can’t reinforce enough that chimney maintenance is a must, and something that shouldn’t be brushed off. If you don’t know what to look for or aren’t comfortable taking on the job, get a certified chimney sweep to give you a thorough inspection. The peace of mind in knowing that your home is safe from preventable fire hazard is worth the price of a simple assessment.

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Help! My house temperature changes with the seasons

A question came in from a reader this week that I think will resonate with a lot of you. She asked:

“Dear Bob, my husband and I live in a Cape Cod that was built in the 1960’s.  The house gets unbearably cold in the winter and very warm in the summer, to the point where we almost can’t use the second floor. Why does this happen and what can we do to fix it?” 

Well, reader, you’re not alone. This is a common problem in Cape Cod style homes that were built in the 1950’s and 1960’s. Back then, building codes were much more relaxed and energy efficiency was unheard of, so homes were built with very little insulation or ventilation. What’s happening in your case is that the outside weather is coming in (because there isn’t enough insulation to protect your home against the intrusion) and then the air is getting stuck in the attic and seeping down into the second floor (because there is no ventilation to let it out). What’s worse is that the moisture in the air is also getting trapped; giving you a potential mold exposure problem that can easily go right from your attic into your lungs. 

So what do you do? First, test to see if I’m right. Take advantage of a free insulation inspection from a local area professional to see if your insulation is up to scratch. If you haven’t had the house insulated since it was built, I can guarantee it’s not. If you’ve recently bought a 1950’s or 1960’s home, now is the time to pay close attention.

Today, we measure insulation by its “R-Value” and the higher the R-Value, the better the insulating properties. In the 1960’s, R-Value wasn’t a popular unit of measurement and instead, most insulation was measured by its thickness in inches. To give you an example, if a typical 1960’s home was insulated at all, it was probably fitted with an R-10 value, which equates to a little over three inches of thickness. The recommended R-Value for Connecticut’s climate according to EnergyStar today is between R-49 and R-60 for an uninsulated attic and between R-38 and R-49 for a home with a few inches of preexisting insulation. So as you can see, times they are a changin’.

If your house is the victim of extreme temperature changes, the easiest and best way to regulate it is to build that barrier of protection. A professional can tell you how much insulation you need and can also perform an assessment to see if any mold has formed in the attic and walls. It’s key to remember that adding insulation will change the way your home breathes, so make sure it is fitted with proper ventilation to allow for appropriate airflow. If you just experienced a cold winter at home with energy bills to beat the band, this springtime project is one you can't afford to miss. 

Would you like more information or to request a free inspection? No problem, please feel free to get in touch.