Seasonal maintenance
Calendar-driven work — what each change of season asks of your house.
A practical summer home maintenance checklist for AC, gutters, irrigation, dryer vents, smoke alarms, grills, leaks, and outdoor systems.
Prepare your AC before hot weather with filter checks, outdoor unit cleaning, thermostat testing, condensate checks, and service timing.
A practical fall home maintenance checklist for gutters, heating, alarms, outdoor water, dryer vents, and winter prep.
A practical winter home maintenance checklist for freezing weather, alarms, HVAC filters, leaks, ice, and indoor safety.
How to inspect gas grill hoses, connections, leaks, grease traps, and safe placement before grilling.
The practical annual chimney inspection rule, what a sweep checks, and why cleaning depends on use.
What to check before freezing weather, including pipes, outdoor water, heat, alerts, and carbon monoxide safety.
A practical spring home maintenance checklist for drainage, HVAC, alarms, dryer vents, exterior water, leaks, screens, and outdoor safety checks.
A short checklist before any trip longer than a few days: shut off the main water, set the thermostat to vacation mode, hold the mail, unplug what doesn't need to run, and let one trusted person know you're gone.
Walk the perimeter, sniff the air, check the basement, and turn the water back on slowly. The first 15 minutes after returning from a trip are when you catch the small problems before they become big ones.
Before leaving the house empty in winter, set the thermostat to 55°F minimum, open cabinet doors under sinks on exterior walls, disconnect outdoor hoses, drain irrigation, and arrange someone to check the house every 3 to 5 days.
Open the pool when daytime temps reach the mid-60s consistently. Remove cover, reconnect equipment, prime the pump, run the filter for 24 hours, test water, shock and balance, run the pump 24/7 for the first week.
Test chlorine and pH 2 to 3 times a week during swimming season. Test total alkalinity, calcium hardness, and cyanuric acid every 2 weeks. Take a sample to a pool store monthly for a comprehensive check.
Rinse the hot tub filter every 1 to 2 weeks, deep-clean it with filter cleaner monthly, and replace it every 12 to 18 months. Heavier use shortens each interval.
In hot-arid regions (Phoenix, Las Vegas, Tucson, Albuquerque), summer maintenance prioritizes AC system health, sun damage to roofs and stucco, dust accumulation, and water for landscaping.
In Gulf Coast, Southeast, and Mid-Atlantic humid summers, the dominant maintenance theme is moisture control. Keep indoor humidity at 30 to 50%, clean the AC condensate drain monthly, check for mold in slow-air spots, and have hurricane prep done before season starts.
Most residential pools need 8 to 10 hours a day of single-speed pump runtime in summer to turn the water over at least once. Hotter water needs longer. Variable-speed pumps often run 12+ hours at low speed because the electricity cost is much lower.
Close the pool when daytime temps consistently drop below 65°F. Balance water, lower water level below skimmer, blow out lines, add pool antifreeze, plug returns, install skimmer plug, shock, add winter algaecide, install cover.
Change hot tub water every 3 to 4 months for typical use. Bather-load formula: gallons divided by 3, divided by daily-average bathers, equals days between changes. A 400-gallon tub with 2 daily bathers needs a change every 67 days.
Fall pest-proofing means sealing the gaps before pests move in: caulk exterior cracks, check the foundation, the dryer vent flap, gutters, chimney, and grill.
Summer maintenance protects cooling and catches storm damage: clear the AC outdoor unit, change the HVAC filter, check the grill propane, and seal cool air in.
When a hurricane is forecast, batten down the systems most likely to fail: clear gutters, check the roof, locate your shutoffs, and test the sump pump.