The last snowstorm is hopefully behind us and it’s time for warmer temps and summertime! Prepare your home for warmer evenings, barbeques and keep up with the maintenance of your largest investment. Remember, you can avoid feeling overwhelmed if you do a little bit of regular maintenance with each new season.
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Turn on Your Sprinklers
You had your sprinklers winterized last fall to protect your system and pipes from freezing temperatures. Turn your system back on if you haven’t already done so. You can do this yourself in about 10 minutes or hire a sprinkler company to come do it for you. This is a also good time to check your sprinkler heads for damage and repair them as needed.
A good rule of thumb is to wait until Mother’s Day weekend to turn your system back on since that’s around the time we usually get our last snowfall. If you turn it on before then or we have a late season freeze, be prepared to do a quick drain on your system before freezing temps move in. It can be a pain, but should only take about 10 minutes and could avoid costly damages.
Replace Plants/Trees as Needed
The Front Range can be hard on plants, shrubs and trees with summer hail as well as early or late season snowstorms. Now is a good time to replace anything that didn’t make it through the winter. Heindrich’s Tree Farm here in Colorado Springs is a great resource for information about protecting and caring for your landscaping. Their Facebook page is very helpful to follow for tips when we have early or late season snowstorms: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100031551105499
Related Reading:
Fall Home Maintenance
Winter Home Maintenance
Prep Your Grill
Get ready for summer BBQ’s (burn bans permitting) by prepping a bit now. After all, it’s so sad to go grill a nice steak and realize the propane tank is empty. Make sure your propane is ready to go if you have a gas grill. Give your grill grates some TLC and clear out any debris from the bottom of your grill. Click here for more tips to prep your grill for summer.
Protect Your Roof
If it’s been a couple months since you cleaned out your gutters last fall. If you live in an area with lots of trees, you should consider an extra gutter cleaning to prepare for summer rain.
Drainage
It’s common for Colorado Springs to have frequent thunderstorms in our summer afternoons. Take advantage of one of these downpours to observe the drainage around your house and address any issues, if needed.
- Do you have a positive grade that guides all the water away from your foundation?
- Are the gutters performing well and there is little to no overspill from your gutters?
- Are all your downspouts extensions in place and not crushed?
- Do you have washout anywhere that there is a drainage problem?
Knock Out Those Weeds
Gardeners and lawn enthusiasts rejoice when we get plenty of rain because it means extra savings on water bills. Sadly, rain also makes the weeds grow faster than normal.
- Pay special attention to noxious weeds. They sometimes look very pretty and can be mistaken for part of the landscape but they are hazardous to native plants. Assume that most thistles are a noxious weed. El Paso County Noxious Weed Control Book.
- Colorado will thank you if you choose not to use chemicals to remove your weeds. Take a look at the tools below to make your weeding-life easier without using chemicals – and maybe save your back:
- For weeding in between pavers: Stainless Steel Patio Weeder
- You may have seen this garden claw on infomercials and it’s a great tool!. It helps you loosen soil and just pick the weeds instead of pulling: Garden Weasel Claw Tool
- This fork tool helps grab weeds at their base making pulling a bit easier: Ergo Scratch Garden Weeder
Wood
This is a great time to look at your deck and siding to check for wood rot or exposed wood that needs painting, staining or repair.
Mitigate Wildfire Risk
It’s vital to fireproof your yard in Colorado Springs, especially if you live in a wooded area or have lots of mature landscaping. Invite Firewise USA for a free fire mitigation consultation around your home. Note: Firewise recommendations supersede any HOA rules, but reach out to your association anyway to let them know what your plans are and that all changes have been recommended by Firewise. Some of their main recommendations are to eliminate fire fuel under your deck and on your property and to create or maintain a 15 foot defensible space around your home.
A little bit of routine maintenance in the summer can help your home stay in top shape through the warmer months. Questions? Need a contractor or professional recommendation? Give us a call: 719-219-9739.
