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The days are gradually shortening and the fall leaves are skittering about like restless hermit crabs. You’ve topped off your radiator, changed the wiper blades, retrieved the snow scraper from its summer siesta, and your trusty iron steed is ready for winter. Now how about your home? Our winterizing checklist makes this considerably more complicated task easier.

Beyond stretching your heating dollar further, the following tips can make your home safer and ensure it’s value for years to come.

Outside the House

Remove screens and install storm windows, especially if you have single pane windows.

Clean, inspect, and repair all gutters and downspouts. If you live near deciduous trees, be sure to clean them again after the last leaf has fallen. Install gutter guards to head off mid-deluge repair jobs later.

Prune shrubs, apply an extra layer of mulch to flower beds, divide perennials, and plant spring flowering bulbs like tulips, crocus, and hyacinth.

Turn off and drain hoses and sprinkler systems (though make sure to leave all taps slightly open), insulate exterior faucets, and clean all storm drains on or near your property.

Apply a light film of oil to any exposed metal of garden tools to prevent rusting.

Visually inspect (from the ground with binoculars is the most convenient way) your chimney and cap for signs of smoke or water damage or leaks. Check attic vent openings for nests or other blockages.

Inside the House

General Safety

Test smoke and carbon monoxide detectors and replace batteries if necessary.

Make sure windows and doors that serve as fire escapes can be opened in case of emergency. If you’ve painted your windows shut, a few strokes with a razor blade can ensure they’ll open when they need to.


Furnace Maintenance

Clean and inspect your furnace, which will save you any nasty surprises the first chilly morning you go to turn it on. Lubricate the blower motor and draft inducer motor, and remove all combustible materials from near the furnace or flu pipes. If you’ve never done this, hire a professional and ask if you can watch, as most of the chores are fairly straightforward and within the skills of the average homeowner.

Change or clean air filters before first use and regularly throughout the season.

Have your chimneys inspected by a professional, and get them cleaned if recommended.


Hot Water Efficiency

Check hot water faucets or shower valves for leaks.

Check hot water pipes in your crawl space or basement for leaks, and make sure all exposed pipes are insulated. In addition to exposed hot water pipes, insulate the first three feet of exposed cold water pipe that is connected to the water heater. If you have an older water heater, consider purchasing a cozy blanket for it; available for around $15, water heater blankets help your hot water stay hot.


Minimizing Heat Loss

There’s no point in heating the neighborhood this winter, so make sure to seal any cracks around windows or doors with weather stripping or caulk. If you have single-paned windows, consider installing inexpensive “tape-up” interior or exterior storm windows; this can reduce window heat loss by as much as 50 percent.

If you can see light under your exterior doors, it’s time for a new sweep or stop. If the budget is tight, simply roll up an old bath towel and lay or tape it snugly against the bottom of the door.

Help keep more of that precious heat where people gather most. If you have rooms you won’t be using regularly, consider some inexpensive weather stripping (or another towel) to seal off cracks around the door.

Keep your fireplace damper closed when not in use. You can add as much as 10% to your annual heating costs if it’s left open. Just remember to open it back up before your next fire!

Check your attic and basement/crawlspace for sufficient insulation. The rule of thumb: if you can see joists or rafters, it’s probably not enough. Puget Sound Energy recommends older homes have a minimum R-30 insulation in ceilings and R-19 in floors. And since newer insulating products are a lot less unpleasant to work with than the old tar-paper and pink fiberglass that was the standard, adding extra protection is less unpleasant than you might think.

Test your outlets on a cold day by holding a hand in front of one. If you feel cold air, pick up a few inexpensive and easy to install gaskets from your local home improvement store.

Use a setback or programmable thermostat, and if you don’t have one, consider installing one. Since it’s cheaper to heat a house from cold than to maintain an elevated temperature continually, set it to turn down the heat when you’re sleeping or away at work.

Reverse the direction of your ceiling fan so it blows upwards. This will keep all the warm air from staying at the top of your rooms.


Controlling Moisture

A single person can release 2-3 quarts of water per day into a home, merely through breathing and perspiring. Add to this laundry, cooking, and bathing, and you’ve got a great deal of excess water vapor looking for someplace cool to condense. With the older home, this often means single pane windows. To reduce this annoyance:

Don’t use your house to store or dry firewood.

If you don’t have an underground basement, brave the spiders and explore the crawlspace. Any exposed dirt or even thin concrete should be covered with continuous, black, 6-mil plastic sheeting. If you need to install some, overlap the edges of adjacent sheets at least 2 feet and extend them 4 to 6 inches up the foundation walls, making certain they don’t come in contact with the wood structure of the house. Such a vapor barrier can prevent a lot of moisture from entering a home through this oft-ignored space.

If you have an unfinished basement, check the foundation for leaks. These should be fixed by an expert (check for Waterproofing Contractors in the yellow pages).

Ventilation is vitally important in reducing moisture levels in older homes, so inspect and clean all your fans. If the blades don’t spin freely, apply some WD-40 or similar lubricant. If they are just plain old and make too much noise to be consistently used, consider replacing them. New models are much quieter and more efficient. Noise levels are rated by sones, and you’ll want one with a mark of 1.5 or less.

If your bathroom or kitchen fans are on simple switches, consider replacing them with a timing device, preferably one that allows up to an hour of run time. Leaving the bathroom fan on an additional 20 minutes after your steamy morning shower can assure the additional moisture heads outside instead of to your windows.


A Note on Ventilation

While it’s important to minimize the amount of unnecessary openings between your living space and Mother Nature, adequate ventilation is still essential, especially if you have a heat source other than electricity. A house with restricted ventilation can permit the buildup of toxic gasses like carbon monoxide, or prevent a fireplace or wood stove from properly drafting. While sealing cracks around doors and windows can retain heat, if there are insufficient escape routes, these cracks may be serving an important role in the adequate functioning of your combustion appliances (natural gas or oil furnaces, natural gas water heaters, wood stoves, or fireplaces). Check your local code for guidelines on how to properly ventilate your home, and seriously consider having a professional make sure your newer furnace isn’t breathing through an outdated airway.