Conduct Your Own Annual “home Inspection” to Identify These Hidden Problems.

Posted on September 3, 2024 by resourcefulman

Home maintenance is a marathon, not a sprint: there is always something to fix, clean, or replace. If you’re going to keep your home in good condition for as long as you live, you’ll quickly learn to perform regular maintenance . But no matter how vigilant you are, some things always go unnoticed for various reasons. If one part of your home is working as intended and isn’t causing you any problems, it’s natural to ignore it.

However, it’s precisely this reactionary approach to home maintenance – waiting for disaster to happen before doing the necessary work – that leads to using buckets to catch leaks in your bedroom at 2am on a stormy night. An annual inspection of your home, especially those things you don’t think about every day , is a good way to stay informed about the overall condition of your home and prevent problems that may be brewing right under your nose. Autumn is also an ideal time for this: summer heat and humidity have passed, winter cold and snow have not yet arrived, and there is still enough daylight to work. Here’s a short list of things to check in your home during your annual DIY inspection.

Unprecedented spaces

It’s sometimes surprising to think about how much of our homes we don’t interact with. There are spare bedrooms that we rarely go into; dark, dusty places we avoid, and lots of hard-to-reach places. But in places you don’t often pay attention, problems arise in secret before they decide to make themselves known at the worst possible time, so this fall, check out some places you don’t usually see:

Attic

If you don’t go into your attic often, look for the following:

Spots on the underside of the roof that may indicate a slow leak.
Signs of mold
Make sure all ventilation holes are clear.
Look for signs of animals or insects.
Check the insulation for mold, water stains, animal damage and depth—it should be at least a foot deep between joists.

Cellars and Cellars

Even if you use the basement for storage (and even if it’s finished), you should go down there and move things:

Test the sump pump, if you have one, by pouring a bucket of water into the hole to make sure it is working properly.
Look for water stains on the floors or walls, which may indicate water penetration and damage.
Inspect the walls – look for cracks, crumbling stonework or bulges.
Check the humidity; ideally it should be between 30 and 50%.
Look for signs of rodents or insects.

Roof

You’re not a roofer, but you can look for telltale signs of trouble ahead:

Loose shingles
Cracks on a flat rubber roof
Loose or weathered flashing material around vents and chimneys.
Reflection
Inspect your gutters to make sure they are not clogged with debris or coming off the roof.

You can do all of this from the ground, but you can also use an inspection camera or a drone with a camera to get a better look.

Unused places

Finally, you might not think that having a spare bedroom that you never use would be a problem, but you should stop by and look:

Dampness or high humidity, which may indicate water penetration.
Stains that could indicate a water or roof leak
Anything unusual (smell, temperature, sound) that you might not notice unless you are in the room.

Moving Parts Testing

Next, check all the moving parts of your home: make sure that all doors and windows in all rooms open and close correctly, without much force. The windows should close easily and you won’t have to check the door to make sure it closes. If you find that your windows or doors are not working well, you may need a little lubricant. But they may swell from water penetration, or the house may simply settle, but this may indicate it’s time to replace them.

The seals on windows and doors can wear out over time, shrinking, or cracking when exposed to heat and sun. Look around the edges of your doors and windows for flexible seals that keep drafts out when they are closed. If you notice any gaps or damage, you can remove the old seal and replace it with a new seal . Remove damaged or peeling caulk and reseal using exterior caulk labeled for doors and windows.

Fill in the cracks

Outside the home, inspect exterior walls and landscaping surfaces for cracks. While sidewalk cracks may not pose an immediate threat, any crack outside your home will allow water to pool, and when it freezes, the crack will widen and further weaken the material, so it’s a good idea to fill those cracks. Using patching compound , you can fill and seal cracks in driveways, sidewalks, and other flat surfaces with relative ease. Cracked siding can be temporarily repaired using a few replacement siding pieces and caulk , and you can also repair small cracks in the stucco on the exterior or use a pre-made stucco patch. A few minutes of running the caulking gun will help prevent water penetration and save you a lot of problems later.

If you discover a more serious problem with your driveway, such as shifting concrete or large gaps or holes, you may need the help of a professional to fix it. September is also a good time to rake gravel walkways and check steps and paver paths to make sure they are not shifting.

Check your steps

Stair treads can squeak and wear, especially on outdoor stairs, so inspect your steps carefully to ensure there are no damage or loose treads. If you notice loose or squeaky stair treads, try inserting a screw through the top of the tread into the track underneath to tighten it. If there are treads that are badly worn, you may want to have them repaired by a professional to ensure your steps are safe. You can also apply non-slip tape to prevent falls in wet or icy weather.

Check electrical

You don’t have to be an electrician to perform a basic home inspection of your electrical infrastructure:

Visually inspect the electrical panel. Look for scorching or discoloration around the switches and call an electrician if you notice anything.
Check that all outlets in your home are working. To do this, you can buy a voltage tester or simply carry a small lamp with you around the house.
Check that all light switches in the house are working. Look for flickering lights and if you see them, call an electrician.
Outside, make sure no tree branches are interfering with electrical wires (or any other wires, for that matter), and consider trimming trees if there are any—those branches can pull out wires during a storm.

Check the plumbing

Just like with your electrical system, you can perform many common sense checks using just your eyeballs:

Make sure all faucets, faucets and toilets are working properly, especially in the basement or guest baths that get little use.
Make sure the water pressure is reliable at each fixture.
Check all drains to make sure they drain quickly and do not overflow.
Inspect the base of toilets and under cabinets to ensure there are no signs of leaks.
Take a look at your water heater: Any signs of rust or leaks , even minor ones, may indicate it’s time to buy a new one. Try draining it to check for sediment.
Inspect seals around bathtubs, showers, sinks and toilets. Replace anything that has become unusable.
In your backyard, patio or deck, check outside water faucets for leaks. Disconnect and drain the water from the hoses and, if possible, turn off the outside water supply.

Clear all filters

Your home uses a variety of air filters to keep indoor air clean, and now is the time to check and clean them all, including all air conditioners (even window units) and vents, your furnace, and even your vacuum cleaner.

Look for rot and bugs

Finally, look for dry rot and insect damage on the exterior of the home, especially on window and door trim, wood decks, and cladding underneath the roof. Bubbling paint, soft spots (if you can stick a screwdriver into the wood without much effort, it’s rotten), or visually warped areas are all signs of potential rot. Rot can be removed if it is not too widespread or severe, but you may need to call a professional if you find a lot of it.

You should also check for signs of invasive insects such as termites, carpenter bees and carpenter ants, which often nest under a window frame or anywhere the wood is covered with something, creating a cozy little spot where they can settle in and chew . your home. Catching these infestations before they turn your home into something that looks like Swiss cheese can save you a lot of headaches.

What not to do with your own hands

Fire extinguishers

If your fire extinguisher hasn’t been checked or charged for a year or more, September is a good time to have it checked. This is one area that you should not do it yourself: you should find a certified fire dealer to inspect your fire extinguisher. If you are unsure who is available in your area, you can always ask your local fire department for advice. If you don’t have a fire extinguisher , now is the time to get one—it’s the best $35 to $50 you’ll ever spend on home safety.

Chimneys

If you have a wood stove or fireplace, late September is often the start of fireplace weather. Before you light your first fire, making sure your chimney is free of creosote deposits and is in good working order can help prevent chimney fires as well as make your wood boiler more efficient at heating your home. Although creosote logs can help prevent creosote buildup, annual inspection and cleaning is recommended to be on the safe side.

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