Prepare your home for Winter5 November 2018 | Admin Prepare Your Home for Winter With the cold, dark nights drawing in, now is a good time to winter-proof your home to protect it from the cold snaps and adverse weather conditions that come with the chilly winter months. Along with crucial maintenance checks to keep your home in tip-top condition over the winter, this is the ideal time to spruce it up in time for spending more time indoors as the days get shorter. Winter Maintenance for the Home To ensure your home has the thermal protection it needs while keeping the energy bills as low as possible, it’s important that windows and doors are watertight. Leaks and drafts not only make your home cold and uncomfortable, they can create damp and cold areas which can cause serious damage if not caught early. Brush and self-adhesive foam draught excluders are a cost effective and easy to install solution to the problem and can make a massive improvement to the thermal efficiency of your home. To combat leaks such as those found in gutters and window frames, use a hybrid polymer sealant such as CT1. It can be used in the most extreme weather conditions and even applied under water, and will create a watertight seal instantly. Now is also the time to look at your loft insulation and the insulation of pipework. Loft insulation should be at a depth of at least 270mm. You can lift your loft floor with 2400mm x 600mm tongue & groove chipboard flooring that is resistant to moisture and comes in smaller sheets to make getting them through a loft hatch easier. Clima-flex pipe insulation is a great way to protect your pipes if the weather drops below freezing. Treating external timber will protect the finish and integrity of any garden structures. Fences, decking and sheds should be treated with a good quality preservative to give them extra protection against the winter weather. Now is also a good time to give your external doors an extra coat of a microporous wood treatment, such as Sikkens or Sadolin to stop water ingress. Is Your Home Winter-ready? While it can be easy to get caught up in the interior design of your home, it’s important to get the foundations right and that starts with weather-proofing the external structure. Call Atlantic Timber on 0161 928 1696, or email us at info@atlantictimber.co.uk for more about preparing your home for winter. https://www.housebeautiful.com/uk/decorate/looks/a2253/autumn-winter-home-interior-design-trends/ https://www.idealhome.co.uk/news/home-decor-trends-2018-191244 https://www.diydoctor.org.uk/projects/autumnchecks.htm |