8 Steps to Winterize Your Home in Dumfries, VA

When the temperature drops, it’s time to winterize your home and get ready for the long cold season. The cold temperatures in Dumfries, VA, can wreak havoc on your home. Here are eight easy things that you can do to winterize your Virginia home:

Add Attic Insulation

Whether you have a one-story home or one with multiple levels, consider adding attic insulation. Attics need as much as 14 inches of insulation, which forms a protective barrier between your home and the cold outside. Many homes in Virginia don’t have as much attic insulation as they need.

Protect Pipes

Pipes can freeze and burst when the outside temperature hits 20 degrees. They don’t freeze at 32 degrees because the ambient temperature in your home keeps them warm.

The best way to protect pipes is with pipe insulation. It doesn’t take much for a pro to cover the pipes with tubes that increase the temperature of the water flowing through by a few degrees or more.

Schedule HVAC Maintenance

Dumfries, VA, homes need routine HVAC maintenance, especially before winter arrives. HVAC maintenance can include both flushing your water heater and changing your filter.

Flushing the water heater ensures that you remove any debris that might be inside the lines to keep it running and working until the temperature rises. Changing your filter takes some of the pressure off your furnace and helps it run more efficiently to keep your home warm.

Get Rid of Drafts

One of the big reasons your home feels cold is that you have one or more drafts. Caulk and sealant are the best ways to care for those drafts. Foam sealants expand after you apply them to fill gaps, while caulk uses a latex and acrylic blend that’s resistant to water.

Install a Programmable Thermostat

A programmable thermostat lets you more easily control the temperature in your home. Setting the temperature at 68 degrees will keep your bills down. You can adjust the temperature when you’re out of the house or sleeping.

A programmable thermostat will work with your existing furnace, too. You can use an app to easily adjust it as needed.

Check the Gutters

You shouldn’t ignore your gutters once winter arrives because you risk ice dams forming. Ice dams occur when snow and ice drip off the root and then freeze in place. A single dam can do serious damage and even rip off your gutters.

Pros can install gutter guards that keep things from falling into the gutters and force liquid and debris to your downspouts. Removing any branches that sit close to your home can also prevent some winter damage,

Window Film

You can lose a lot of heat in your Dumfries, VA, home through your windows, even if you sealed the cracks you found. Window film comes in large rolls or sheets that cling to the glass and form a protective barrier. It’s suitable for use on every window in your home and every type of window.

There’s window film with a self-adhesive that requires no special tools to use. Others require a heat gun to seal the windows and keep the film on the glass. Both work well to block the cold.

Inspect Your Ducts

Leaky ductwork can cause much of the heated air in your home to end up in the wrong location. This is especially true when your ductwork travels through crawl spaces or other unheated areas of your home. Have your ductwork and insulation checked before the winter to ensure your heat can travel safely to your vents without leaking out.

Winter temps in Virginia can easily fall below freezing and cause more problems than you ever expected. To schedule heating repair or maintenance, call Brennan’s Heating & Air Conditioning and let one of our talented team members help you winterize your home.

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