5 Spring Home Maintenance Projects

A properly maintained home has fewer repair bills. Here are a few spring home maintenance projects that are easy to forget about.

Owning a home isn’t easy. Everyone expects a new car or computer to need some maintenance, but no one hands you a manual when buying your first home.

Once you move out of apartments and rentals, it’ll be up to you to take care of all the repairs you’ve never had to worry about before.

Here are a few annual maintenance projects that are easy to forget about. Neglecting these tasks year after year could cost you big bucks in future repair bills someday.

Check Heating and Air Conditioning

Replacing a heating or air conditioning system is not simple or cheap. It’s much easier to have them inspected annually to prevent disrepair.

Heating

Test the pressure and temperature of your water heater.

If you feel that your house isn’t holding heat as well as in previous winters, you should have an insulation company inspect the quality or age of your insulation. If your insulation needs to be replaced, some options include foam board, loose-fill, batting, rolls, or spray foam insulation. (See How to Insulate an Attic for Lower Energy Bills.)

Air Conditioning

Have your central air conditioning system inspected before summer hits. Replace filters according to the manufacturer’s instructions and clear debris from the outdoor condensers or heating pumps. (See Perform Your Own Annual Air Conditioner Inspection.)

Clean the Chimney Flue

If you have a fireplace, you’ll need to get your chimney cleaned out regularly. A clogged chimney will make your home dirty and your fires smoky and increase the chances of chimney fires.

After a winter of soot and ash build up in the chimney, it’ll desperately need a good sweeping out. Do it in the spring or summer, after you’re sure you won’t need to use it anymore. The earlier you get it done, the more time you’ll have to make necessary repairs.

Have your chimney inspected again right before burning season, just in case any critters have built nests or homes inside.

Inspect Roof and Clean Gutters

If you feel comfortable with heights, get up on the roof every summer and inspect it for loose shingles, leaks, cracks, and other signs that it might need to be repaired. Don’t try to fix it yourself unless you have experience. Roofing is dangerous work and should be left to professionals. (See Inspecting Your Roof for Winter Damage.)

Along with a roof inspection, you should clean out your gutters once a year. If leaves, mud, and other debris build up in the gutters, the gutters can crack, collect mold, and cause other problems. Scoop out the worst of the debris, and then rinse out the remaining dirt with a garden hose.

Cleaning gutters can be just as dangerous as roofing work, so if you decide to do it yourself, make sure you take appropriate safety precautions. Wear gloves, use a stable ladder, and make sure that someone knows what you’re doing so that they can aid in case of emergency or injury. (See Affordable Gutter Cleaning Options.)

Aerate Lawn

Your lawn needs attention just like the rest of your house does. You should aerate and fertilize your lawn every spring to keep it green and healthy. Here’s a basic step-by-step how-to:

• Water your lawn thoroughly for two days before you begin.
• Make sure you know where sprinkler heads or other obstructions in the grass are so that you can avoid them with the aerator.
• Rent a core aerator from a garden center (usually $30-$75 for a few hours).
• Run the aerator over your lawn once. Be careful not to double back over any area.
• Leave the soil cores on the ground after you finish. They’ll only take two to four weeks to decompose naturally.

Spring Clean

Spring cleaning isn’t just a phrase to toss around every March. It’s not exactly home maintenance, but it’s a vital undertaking if you want your home to run smoothly for the ensuing year. Plus, regular, thorough cleaning can prolong the life of ceiling fans, carpeting, flooring, and other parts of your home.

Winter is the prime time for collecting clutter, and who wants to organize the garage when it’s below freezing outside? (See How Much Is Clutter Costing You?.)

Take the early spring months to do a thorough airing out. Here’s a short checklist to get you started.

• Wash the outside windows
• Hose down siding
• Take a few loads of clutter to a charity, distribution center, or have a garage sale
• Clean the carpets
• Reseal grout lines
• Defrost the freezer
• Wash walls
• Clean ceiling fans

Related: A Frugal 5 Day Spring Cleaning Plan for People Who Don’t Like to Clean

Purchasing a house isn’t as simple as signing papers and unpacking all of your boxes. When you buy a home, you buy all of the problems that come with it. Take the time to compile a list of these and other household chores you need to stay on top of; create your own home manual, and you’ll avoid expensive, unexpected repair projects that leave you wondering why you wanted to become a homeowner in the first place.

• Preventive Home Maintenance Tasks for the Frugal Homeowner
• DIY Repair of Ripped Window and Door Screens
• DIY Deck Clean-Up and Repair
• Spring Cleaning Your Home’s Exterior Inexpensively
• Do-It-Yourself Home Siding Cleaning

Reviewed April 2024