| Did you know that home maintenance carries with it | | | | to keep it in great shape. That way it will keep you |
| five major benefits to you, the homeowner? They are: | | | | safe and comfortable while you live in it and will fetch |
| - Enhanced home value | | | | a good price if you sell. |
| - Money savings | | | | Real estate professionals have a phrase that applies |
| - Improved safety | | | | to a well maintained home: curb appeal. A home's |
| - Increased comfort | | | | value is affected by its outward appearance and |
| - Energy efficiency | | | | that's what the phrase 'curb appeal' refers to. The |
| Considering the benefits, home maintenance is | | | | value of your home is going to be higher if the roof is |
| definitely worth doing on a regular basis. Failing to do | | | | well cared for, the doors and windows are tight, and |
| regular home maintenance can lead to illness, injury | | | | the landscaping is neat, because potential buyers will |
| and even death (carbon monoxide poisoning is one | | | | find it more appealing, so you'll likely get a higher price |
| example). A few of the important areas you need to | | | | than if it were otherwise. |
| maintain are: | | | | However, you'll need to maintain your home, even if |
| - Windows and doors that allow drafts in | | | | you don't plan to sell, just to maintain your original |
| - Subfloors that are becoming spongy | | | | investment. Even as simple a task as replacing the |
| - A furnace that may be producing dangerous levels | | | | filter in your furnace can yield big dividends, when it |
| of carbon monoxide | | | | comes to keeping the value of your home high. It's |
| - An air conditioning system that will probably fail in the | | | | simple to see why this is true. When the filter is |
| heat of summer | | | | clogged, the motor must work harder to push air |
| - Smoke detectors with dead batteries | | | | through it, straining the fan belt, bearings and other |
| Your home can be a much safer place for you and | | | | components, causing the life of the fan to be |
| your family if you will adopt a simple home | | | | shortened, necessitating the replacement of the entire |
| maintenance plan. For example, changing a smoke | | | | fan assembly. There's a big difference between a |
| detecter battery could save your life or the lives of | | | | $2.00 filter and a $500 repair charge. |
| your loved ones, and only takes five minutes. So, as | | | | So as you can see, it's much less expensive, in the |
| you can see, doing a few simple fixes on some things | | | | long run, to maintain, than it is to repair when things |
| and inspecting a few others, on a regular basis, can | | | | break down. The first thing to do is to identify those |
| pay huge dividends. | | | | parts of your home that require regular maintenance |
| Your house is a comfortable place to live because of | | | | and make a list. Inspect each of them periodically and |
| the systems that are built into it. You may not have | | | | make repairs where needed. When buying materials, |
| thought of it that way before, or you may have taken | | | | buy the best you can afford. |
| the systems in your home for granted, but either way, | | | | This will ensure maximum benefit and you'll find you |
| sooner or later, one or more of them will break down; | | | | make repairs less often, so you'll save money in the |
| resulting in, at best, a lot of discomfort or, at worst, | | | | long run and you'll be protected from inconvenience |
| tragedy; home maintenance can prevent that | | | | and even disaster. |
| breakdown. | | | | Here are just a few things you need to check each |
| For example, your home has incorporated into it an | | | | year: |
| electrical system that powers lights, refrigerator, | | | | - Gutters and downspouts |
| microwave, water heater, your washer/dryer and | | | | - Window trim and door frames |
| many other appliances. You may not think about this | | | | - Sprinkler timer batteries |
| system each time you flip on the light switch, take milk | | | | - Furnace |
| from the refrigerator or do a load of laundry, but you'll | | | | - Air conditioner |
| soon find yourself without these things and a lot more, | | | | - Chimney spark arrestor |
| if your electrical system breaks down. Most likely it will | | | | - Water heater anode and dip tube |
| happen when you can least afford it, too. | | | | - Water heater burners, tank and flue |
| Many of these systems have moving parts like | | | | - Fireplace and chimney |
| motors, belts and gears that make them subject to a | | | | - Refrigerator condenser coils (vacuum) |
| lot of wear and tear over a period of time. Some are | | | | - Smoke alarms and CO2 detectors |
| simply made of materials that naturally degrade over | | | | - Indoor gas line connections |
| time or are subject to attack by insects or mold. In any | | | | These are just a few of the many items you'll need to |
| case, you can avoid the major inconvenience that can | | | | inspect on a yearly or, in some cases, monthly basis. |
| result from such a breakdown, by adopting a schedule | | | | There are many more areas you need to inspect and |
| of simple maintenance. | | | | repair but they are beyond the scope of this article. So, |
| Whether your home is an investment, a place to live or | | | | as you can see, you have a lot of work to do; and |
| both, chances are it's the biggest single expense of | | | | there's no time like the present. Good luck. For more |
| your lifetime. If you bought the home as an investment, | | | | information, go online and search for home |
| in the hope of making some money on it when you | | | | maintenance or check your local library. |
| sell, then it makes good sense and pays big dividends | | | | |