Outdoor Spring Home Maintenance for Homeowners
Spring is the time of year when the weather starts to improve and people begin getting in the mood to do home improvements. Spring cleaning doesn’t just mean throwing away unwanted items inside the home, it also means doing maintenance around the outside of the home. In places with long winter seasons, yards and exteriors of the home often go neglected for far too long. Here are 7 outdoor spring home maintenance tips to help improve your home.
1. Trimming Back Trees
Once winter has ended and the weather begins to warm up, trees start springing up in the fence line and branches on existing trees grow like wildfire. Within a matter of weeks, a home can look overgrown with new growth and unruly branches. Pruning back trees is essential spring home maintenance because, not only does it improve curb appeal, but those branches can also cause damage to roofs.
2. Cut Back Overgrown Branches
Overgrown branches should be cut back away from the roof of the home so they’re not touching any part of the structure. Limbs should also be trimmed back away from any power lines because this is a safety hazard and can cause a fire. It is also important to know that after cutting a low hanging branch it causes the tree umbrella to raise in height, giving more clearance to walk beneath.
3. Cleaning Up Brush And Bushes
Another part of spring home maintenance is clearing up brush that has grown in around the fence line and pruning bushes. Perfectly pruned shrubs and bushes become unruly messes during the springtime without proper maintenance. Cutting the stragglers and overgrown portions of shrubs will definitely improve curb appeal.
4.Clearing The Fence Line
Another problem that arises fairly quickly when spring arrives is unwanted trees and brush growing through chain-link and picket fences. It is important to cut the brush out of the gaps in the fence so that a tree or shrub doesn’t grow to full size and damage the fence. Not to mention, overgrowth of brush along a fence is unsightly and often lowers your home’s curb appeal.
5. Pest Control
When winter ends and the weather begins to warm up, insects begin to emerge. Fire ants and fleas are pests that seem to thrive in the springtime and pose more of a threat to backyards with animals and children. Springtime is a good time to inspect the yard for ant piles and get rid of them with a pesticide or some natural method. Spraying the yard for fleas is also a good idea if you have pets.
6. Cleaning Gutters
Throughout the winter when the leaves are dropping from the trees, gutters have a tendency to get jam-packed with debris. Part of springtime maintenance involves getting the gutters clean so the spring rain will have somewhere to go instead of pooling on the roof of the home. Gutter maintenance is a vital part of spring home maintenance because roof damage can occur if the gutters remained clogged with leaves.
7. Getting Ready to Garden
A vegetable garden needs to be planted in the spring so it will be ready to harvest during the summer months. Spring home maintenance includes picking a proper spot in the yard where crops will thrive. The earlier the ground is tilled and prepared for sowing seeds, the better chance of a bountiful harvest. There are great ideas for planting a kitchen herb garden this spring listed here.
Elite Home Inspections is a certified home inspection company offering home inspections and home testing services to the greater Louisville, Kentucky area. Contact us today to schedule your next home inspection!