Make Maintaining Your Home a Cinch in 2019

​It should be an easy thing to do, maintaining a home, right? Well, if you're not careful, minor maintenance and repairs could turn into huge problems. In this blog post, HOCOA will provide you with an up to date guide that will help you maintain your home throughout 2019! It's not an "all-inclusive guide," but should cover most of the items in your home and let you see or uncover areas that you may not have looked at before!

January – Clean your kitchen lighting. Takes about 10 minutes. Use a microfiber cloth or duster on glass shades and fixtures. Also, de-clutter this month, look room by room. Choose one and finish it first before moving on to the next. Donate, sell or throw away those items you no longer want or need. Check your carbon monoxide & smoke detectors. If you have old ones, change the battery each year. 

February – Clean those baseboards and vents, if you have a reasonable duster or vacuum with a brush head and extension. Worst case scenario, take a broom, find and old t-shirt and secure it over the bristles. Also, clean light fixtures in the living room and dining area. If you have a chandelier and want to do a deep clean, take it down and wash the parts with a solution of one part vinegar to three parts warm water. 

March – Watch college basketball. Just kidding! You could watch some of the game and get all of this done. Wash and fluff pillows and bedding. That is, bedding that may be in the guest room. Also, this is a good time to vacuum underneath the bed. You know all of those “dust bunnies” can accumulate over the years. Also, flip the mattress so you don’t wear it down in one place.

April – What a great month! Get your heating and air-condition system serviced. Please, oh please, do this. This can help your system last for many years. Vacuum any debris from the furnace blower and change the intake filter. Oh yea, go outside and clean gutters, check your deck and wood exterior features for any damage or debris. You might want to power wash and put on a new coat of wood sealant.

May – Check for an emergency kit, first aid, batteries, flash light, matches and battery powered radio. Also, make sure everyone that is capable of using and knows where the gas shut off valve is on the house. We haven’t a had a big earthquake in a while, but when we do, you want to make sure you have the wrench and know how to turn off your gas supply. Oh, now go ahead and clean those light fixtures in your bedrooms.

June – Have your ducts cleaned once every couple of years. If you have pets, or bad allergies, you may want to get them cleaned every year. Also, it will put less pressure on your HVAC system. Check the dryer vent, too. This is a place where fires can happen if you don’t have a clear vent. Clean windows and now clean the light fixtures in the other bedrooms!

July – Time to deep-clean the fridge and freezer. Clean the dishwasher. Clean the sides and the front. Open the door and check to see if anything is blocking the trap where the water drains. Next, on an empty load, put in two cups of white vinegar on the bottom and run it one time. Now, clean the ceilings, the corners and any fans.

August – Call up the old chimney sweep. Get it inspected and cleaned if necessary. Get it done now because if you wait until October or after, kiss any hope of a decent appointment goodbye. Also, this is a good time to touch up any paint in you home. Clean the light fixtures in the living and dining rooms.

September – Go outside and trim stuff! Any overgrowth and dead branches, check near the foundation of the house to see if any roots are pushing up against the house. Now look at your doors and windows. See if any caulking or weather stripping is necessary. Go ahead and clean those light fixtures, fluff the pillows and vacuum under the bead.

October – Get your HVAC system serviced by a licensed pro. Vacuum sweep the garage and de-clutter the garage. Service any kind of outdoor equipment 

November – Clean the gutters again, and make sure that they are clear and drain properly. You don’t want to run into a problem where a new river has formed into your house because of a broken gutter spout. Dust the baseboards, clean the master bedroom light fixtures, dust ceiling corners and fans.

December – Congratulations you made it! Vacuum the lamp shades or use a lint roller to clean spots. Make sure to spot clean any furniture. Before you hang any holiday decorations, pull them all out and assess what you want, what you haven’t used or won’t use anymore. Three piles = use, donate and throw away. 

I hope this gives you a road map of things you can do to maintain your home throughout the year without taking hours each time to do it! As always, you may call, text, or email us with any questions or ideas. We are here to help and want to stay San Diego’s #1 Live and Local Home Repair Network!