Winter House Safety

Reader Mary provides some tips for when you go away on a vacation
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When you go away for a winter vacation, are you one of those people who wonder if they left the stove on or the iron plugged in? Make your vacation carefree by taking these precautionary steps to prevent major damage to your house and appliances. 1. Have a friend or neighbor visit several times while you’re away or have someone housesit. They will be able to monitor the state of everything in your house. If you are having someone stay the whole time you are away, most of the following will not be necessary.

2. If you are not having someone stay in your house turn off the main water supply. This will eliminate the possibility of a flood if freezing does occur.

3. Clean out your fridge. Remove any milk products, vegetables, meat, or other produce that will go bad. When you return the last thing you want to find is that your fridge died the first day of your vacation and now your house smells like a compost pile. If you want to be thorough clean your fridge with baking soda and soapy water before you leave to remove any mold and odor that might grow while you are away.

4. Turn the heat to about 55 degrees. This will keep the pipes from freezing.

5. Shut off the gas supply.

6. Unplug everything! Even if you have shut the breaker off, it is probably a good idea to unplug everything. If you are leaving the fridge on, you will not want to shut off the breaker, but you will want to make sure everything else in unplugged, especially computers and other expensive electronics. This will prevent power surges from causing too much damage.

7. Make sure all windows and doors are closed tightly. Any drafts that can get in will cause the heater to run more often while you are away, wasting power. If you want to seal the windows off completely, use a plastic window insulator kit. This will stop any drafts from sneaking in.

8. If you live in an older house where the taps are prone to freezing, you may want to pour a little bit of anti-freeze into your drains and toilets. This is unnecessary in most new homes.

9. Check the expiry date and labels of any medications you will be leaving. You don’t want to return home to find that your prescription has expired. Don’t forget over the counter medicine as well. Make sure that it will still be usable when you return.

10. Install a timer that will automatically turn on one of your lights for a few hours a night. Empty houses can be tempting to thieves and vandals.

11. Walk around the outside of your house to check for items that could be used to break windows or otherwise gain entry to your home. Ask your house sitter, or the person who will be picking up your mail to have a look around outside while they are there.

If you use these tips, your house will stay safe while you enjoy a nice, relaxing winter vacation.

Content provided by Mary at PartSelect.com
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Thank you Mary for your tips. I always forget to unplug everything when I leave and the timer idea is great for the added safety of a 'lived in' look.

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