Every fall millions of Americans who own vacation homes lock them up and leave to return home for the winter. Many vacation homes are located in areas that, though they provide a beautiful retreat in the height of summer, suffer some pretty harsh weather in the winter.
It is essential that these kinds of homes are adequately winterized to make sure that they are literally still intact when spring comes around again and their owners start making their weekend visits again. Here are some tips for ensuring that your Orlando Homes For Vacation Rental home will be ready for use whenever you need it.
Utility Use
Although at first it might seem like a waste of money, keeping a home’s heating on low throughout the winter can prevent all kinds of problems. There are any number of components in a house that are meant to be kept at or near room temperature and keeping the home from getting too cold protects them all.
Plumbing
Most people who own a vacation home know that pipes and plumbing are a big concern in the winter months. Rather than just turn the water off and hope that you were able to drain all the pipes completely call in a local plumber to make sure everything is done right. A frozen pipe that still contains even a little water and subsequently bursts can cause untold damage.
While the plumber is there have them check the lagging on your pipes and replace it if necessary. Some plumbers also advise adding a little anti-freeze to toilet bowls. If the heat goes out and the water inside a toilet freezes it could crack the china fixtures so doing this is a smart move that only takes a minute.
Even if you are pretty certain that your home will be safe for the winter, consider asking someone who lives locally to stop by every few weeks to check that all is okay. A quick look around during the months that a home is vacant can mean the difference between a problem being discovered quickly enough to be fixed before any damage is done and a problem that goes unnoticed long enough to cause hundreds or even thousands of dollars in damage.
