With our severe weather in Central Oregon, there is a lot of things that should be done.   Here is a partial list of what we go through at Home Fridays for all our client.

1) Winterize the sprinklers by turning off and blowing out.  If there is a water feature drain it or make sure it has a heater for running through the winter (and turn on the heater). 

2) Gutters should be cleaned out and repaired.  Leaking or packed gutters can be major problem for ice dams during winter.  Gutters falling away from the house are also a convenient place for ice to build up.  Often times plastic clips are used to attach the gutters to the house.  These clips can not stand up to our rough winters and often break.   A metal clip is a safer bet.   If you use heat tape in the gutters or on the eaves – be sure it is turned on.   

3) Foundation vents should be closed and I like to use the styrofoam blocks.  I also cover most of the outdoor faucets.  The hoses should be removed (and moved into the garage).  There are so many faucets here that are not freeze proof – and why not spend the $6 for a little piece of mind.

4)  Annual furnace inspection.  By doing this you can extend the life of your furnace by 30%!  And the amount of damage that can happen when there is no heat — well lets just say a working furnace is priceless.

5)  Fireplaces – chimney’s should be cleaned regular.  All the wood should be ordered and chopped for the year.  Make a visual inspection of the fireplace to make sure no tuckpointing is in order. 

6) Take off the screen doors and window screens and store for the winter.

7) Check garage and other areas for outside pipe exposure (such as sinks, back bathrooms, or pump houses).  Make sure there is a method to heat the area - electrical tape and space heaters are common methods.

Stake out the driveway, walk ways and path to the garbage for snow removal.  Nothing is worse then trying to find the driveway under 2 feet of snow.

9) Change the batteries in the smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors.   Also, thermostats should have backup batteries replaced (some of them actually shut off when the batteries go dead).

10) Fall yard clean up.  The needles should be cleaned  so the grass does not die.  Trim up the bushes and trees and make sure nothing is on the roof.  Move dirt away from the foundation – making sure it is not on the siding. 

11)  Move the paint out of the garage, making sure it is in a warm place so it won’t get ruined.

12) Move the pots to the garage if they are not freeze proof.

13) The spa should be drained if not using it or checked to make sure the motor is in good condition.  Make sure the lid is in good condition.  A hot tub can evaporate in as little as 24 hours if the lid is left (or blows) open.  So it is very important to have all the tie downs in good condition.

14) Ceiling fans can be changed to run in revers and push the warm air down. 

15) Open all the doors and cupboards getting the ambient temperature of the house consistent. 

16)  We usually turn down the water heater as well if the house is not going to be occupied.

So as you can see there are a number of items to focus on when winterizing the home.  Let Home Fridays take care of winterizing for you!

It is that time of year when the critters are anxious to become your house guests.  It is not uncommon to find the mice trying to get in or the squirrels, even the birds.  We are busy at Home Fridays making sure the houses are secure and all the animals are excluded.  We have found a few interesting guests this year on our regular home wellness visits. 

At one house a racoon has moved in under the 2nd floor deck, above the hot tub.  He has found a perfect dry warm condo.  Unfortunately he likes to tear through the garbage in his free time.  The best way to get ride of ‘Ricky’ is to exclude him from his new condo and allow him to move on to a new area.  We hope Ricky finds a nice new home.

In another home the result of poor building practices allowed the birds to get inside the dormers.  The builder had left openings between the roof and a decorative dormer.  The birds and who knows what else, wanted to move in.   Imagine my surprise when I saw a bird on the inside of the window,  pecking to get out!   Thankfully, we got the bird out and the openings closed off. 

Most recently we have been combating squirrels – in a total face off!   They had a great hole in the ground with full access to the home crawl space.  When we closed off the access, they where not happy.  They went all around the house tearing up the foam foundation inserts and faucet covers – all in an effort to find a new point of entry.  It actually looked like snow with all the torn up styrofoam.   At this point the squirrels are going to need to find a new home.

If you don’t have Home Fridays checking on your home and making sure the critters are moving in – then be sure to check yourself and exclude all those unwanted residents. 

It is amazing how much time I spend discussing dryers – do they work, are they hot enough, are they fast enough.  The bigger the house, the more laundry.  The more laundry, the more time it takes to get everything washed and dried.  If a home has more then 4 bedrooms (or some bunk beds) and it used a great deal then a second set might be just the ticket. 

When purchasing a large washer/dryer or a second set – what do you get?  Often we are attracted to the new High Effeciency machines.  We are now getting rebates for purchasing these machines.  I must say the dryers  are not worth it.  The HE machines have smaller motors.  What does that mean to you — longer drying times.  A large duet machine doesn’t even have a drying cycle less then 50 minutes.  So 5 sets of sheets and towels – assumming you can double up would be at least 4-5 loads.  At 45 minutes a wash and 50 minutes to dry — you have 5 hours of laundry!!! 

So how do you reduce this time – put in a second dryer or just use the big style, old fashion, energy hog dryers.  They are hot and fast!  And with 2 dryers – you cut off at least an hour.  Double the machines and you are down to just 2.5 hours.  

Of course there are other ways to cut down on laundry time – request your guests to do 2 loads before they leave.  Limit the number of towels and bedding the guests have access to.  I have found that if the sheets or towels are available – the guests will help themselves and RARELY do they do the laundry.  So if you have 2 sets for every bed and the guests use all those, plus all the towels and spa towels — well you might as well start your own laundry mat! 

It is a sad commentary on the area when home break-ins increase.  Recently we had a window broken on a home – the alarm went off and the intruder was scarred away.  With a quick response by local authorities (because the alarm is monitored and we knew that no one should have been in the house) significant damage or theft was averted.    This house is in a quiet area and it would have been easy access if the alarm did not exist. 

Until recently we had only a handful of homes with alarms.  But now I strongly encourage alarms.  Home Fridays is a great deterrent as we are in the house changing the lighting pattern and giving the house a more lived in feel.  But we are not there 24/7.  And that is when the alarm really comes in handy. 

We usually get the call that the alarm has gone off.  If the owners are visiting or someone is scheduled to be there – we run over to the house.  If no one is scheduled, we let the police respond and then go over.  Sorry, I am just not big and scary enough to drive anyone away from the house!  Sometimes it is a false alarm, but in this recent case it was not.  

We have heard stories about a moving van pulling up in front of a house that was for sale.  They cleaned out the entire house of furniture and everything.  It was months before anyone discovered the theft.  The neighbors – just thought they had sold the house.   Alarm service along with Home Fridays would have prevented that theft.

Another vacation home was slowly cleaned out by the thieves over a matter of weeks or even months.  The final straw – they left the door open.  So the pipes froze and the owner was alerted when he received an enormous water bill.  He drove out to his home and found the door ajar, water running through the house and the things the thief had left, out on the lawn.  A good monitored alarm system along with Home Fridays would have prevented that – our weekly visits will discover any issues and get them resolved.

Many of my clients rent their homes out through out the year to get extra income.    With down turn in the economy and the overall fear factor, rentals seem to be a bit slower this summer.  I recently stumbled across a great blog with lots of owner rental information.  Their article ‘What To Do If Your Peak Summer Weeks Are Not Fully Booked ‘  is great reading and can be found at http://tinyurl.com/qtr3vw   While Home Fridays does not find renters, we do take care of everything for the home between and during rentals.  There is nothing worse when a problem occurs and you are thousands of miles away and unable to resolve.  As the local contact for the guests, we can get the problem fixed quickly.  Whether it is a guest locking themselves out, an oven that doesn’t work or making sure the guests leave on time and the house is undamaged and prepped for the next guests.  Home Fridays is your solution for it all!

Spring is finally here – the sun is out and last night our low was above freezing (by just 2 degrees).   So it is time to make the mad rush for getting all the projects done before the next snow fall.  Sounds crazy, but that is how we think about summer at Home Fridays.  Just a few months to get all the maintenance items covered (painting, deck refinishing, repairs) while the weather cooperates.  It is also the busiest time of year for project management. 

While our owners are out of town, they often want something done at the house – remodel, decks refinshed, painting, floors refinished,  just to name a few.  It is so much easier to get these things done when no one is living in the house.  But if you are far far away – how do you keep track of the contractors?  That is where Home Fridays comes in – we act as your local eyes and ears.  Managing, cajoling and sometimes beating on the contractors to make sure everything gets done.  Several of my owners just leave a paint chip on wall and we make sure it gets painted before they return.  Recently we picked the exterior colors, worked with the local home owners association for approval, hired the painters and made sure the entire project was completed before the first guests arrived for the summer.  It makes our clients lifes easier as they don’t have to live through the mess and can relax at home, knowing that everything is taken care of.   So I am off – we have a number of project running that need my attention.   If you need help with your second home – just give us a call!

Recently we had a late night emergency call when water was flowing from a clients house into the neighbor’s yard.  A quick trip to the house and a little detective work identified a problem with the water feature.  The water was working hard to fill itself up – and then the water was running out of the feature and directly into the neighbors yard.  All easy problems to solve, but not something that can go unattended until the owners are back in town.  Just another reason you want someone watching the house and be sure they are available 24/7.  Because we all know these issues don’t happen at 9am on Monday mornings. 

Water features are amazing and so relaxing to have in the yard.  But without proper maintenance they can make a big impact in a  negative way.  The pumps need to be cleaned and the water ways need to be maintained.  Be sure that the pumps are cleaned out weekly – especially when the pine needles and leaves are falling.  The pumps can get clogged and then water runs out over the pump, instead of draining.  With the auto fill water, the water feature becomes a big water pump for the yard.   Also, over time the walls of the feature can freeze, thaw, settle and get dislodged (sometimes dogs an people can play a part as well).  If the water path is disrupted, it can run out onto the yard and again the pump will just fill up the yard.  Or in the case of one of our owners – filled up the neighbors yard!  One of our clients has a beautiful water feature and 3 big dogs who love it.  Over time they had moved enough stones out of one area to allow water to escape the planned flow.  The water pumped into the neighbors yard and no one was happy. 

Lowell Lamberton and Brian Shawver just wrote an article for the Cascade Business News where they used Home Fridays as an example.  Check it out http://tinyurl.com/p97ppl

As the building industry has gone through changes, many contractors and leaving the trade, the area or just not renewing their license.  There has been and increase in the number of unlicensed contractors.  Check out this report of a recent sting operation.  http://tinyurl.com/cguj4s   It is important to verify that the contractor you are thinking about is licensed.  Go to your local contractors board to see listing, check out records and learn how to protect yourself.  Here is a link to Oregon Contractors Board to see how you can find a contractor and check their license http://tinyurl.com/c2h7sb

It is that time of year — as we open the doors the the wonderful spring day, the mice want an invitation in. 

One of our clients has a few dogs and when visiting they often have the doors open.   Unknown to anyone, the visitor moved in before they left town…

When I arrived at the house, I was so mad that the cleaners didn’t pick up everything.  There was a pile of stuff that they just forgot to pick up.  I started cleaning up after the cleaners as I said a few choice words under my breadth.  As I went through the house checking everything I kept  finding piles they had forgot to  pick up.  In the upstairs bathroom I found evidence that changed my mind  – it was rat poop on the counter.   It wasn’t sloppy cleaners.  It was a dreaded pack rat!   I was scrubbing my hands in scalding water – totally gross!!!

We laid some traps and got ready to rid the house.   Unfortunately there was a house full of guests scheduled for the weekend.  My clients didn’t want to tell ayone about the unexpected house guest.  So each morning one of the owners would get up early to clean up any evidence left by the rat during the evening.  All went well until the big dinner event….

As the guests arrived and everyone is enjoying a wonderful evening the owner spots the rat running back and forth between the stove and fridge.  She effectively keeps the attention away from the kitchen for most of the evening.  But of course a ‘helpful’ guest just had to see it and announce to the entire party ‘look there is a rat in your kitchen’.   A few bottles of wine and a good knife, enthusiastic guests and the problem was resolved. 

Not much of a lesson – just keep the doors or screens closed if possible.  And if you are having a party and the rat is loose, know that he will make an appearance.