As the colder months approach, preparations should be taken to protect your home, and maintain your safety during these fall and winter months.

The most obvious items to address center around keeping your home warm, hence your furnace and proper insulation.  Preventative measures should be taken to ensure that you remain safe and warm inside your home.

• FURNACES: regular annual maintenance inspections should be performed by a licensed HVAC technician to keep your furnace in good repair.  Cleaning or replacing filters monthly will also keep your system operating efficiently.
• OIL HEATERS:  like furnaces, oil heaters require annual inspections and maintenance.  Your annual inspections should include inspecting the chimney, cleaning pipes to remove soot build-up, replacing filters, checking oil pressure and cleaning the oil filter bowl.  Oil supplies will also need to be checked.
• FIREPLACES:  periodic cleanings should be performed by a chimney sweep to remove soot and creosote build-up to prevent chimney fires.  It is also a good time to ensure that woodpiles are suffieciently stocked for the winter months with well-seasoned wood.  Wood piles should be located in a dry location and in an area away from structures to prevent wood destroying insects (such as termites and beetles) from entering through weep holes or cracks.  If your fireplace has ceramic/gas operated logs you should still have your chimney cleaned by a chimney sweep each season.
• INSULATION:  inspect windows and doors for leaks.  Sealing air gaps and replacing cracked window panes will not only make the colder months more comfortable, but will also assist in making your home more energy efficient and lower heating costs.
• SMOKE DETECTORS:  This may be one of the most important items to check and often the least remembered.  This is a perfect time to replace your batteries in all your units; the cost of a 9V battery is much less expensive than a non-working smoke detector that goes unnoticed until it's too late!