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Fall home maintenance checklist
The short answer
Fall maintenance is about heat and frozen water: clean the gutters after leaf fall, service the furnace before the first cold snap, drain and shut off exterior faucets, seal drafts, and protect pipes in cold zones. Every item on this list prevents a specific, expensive winter event: ice dams, burst pipes, a dead furnace on the coldest night, or a chimney fire.
Work the list in October in most of the US, earlier in the north. The pattern is the same as spring, roof down, but the enemy changes from summer storms to freezing temperatures and a heating system about to run for five months straight.
Book the furnace tune-up early. Heating companies fill their schedules by the first frost, and the no-heat emergency call in January costs double the October tune-up.
Water out, before it freezes
- Clean gutters and downspouts after the leaves are down
- Drain garden hoses and store them indoors
- Shut off interior valves to exterior faucets, then open the faucets to drain
- Blow out sprinkler systems or book the service
- Insulate pipes in unheated areas: crawlspace, garage, exterior walls
Heat, ready and safe
- Book the furnace or heat pump tune-up
- Replace the filter and stock spares for winter
- Test the thermostat before you need it, on a mild day
- Bleed radiators and check boiler pressure on hydronic systems
- Have the chimney swept if you burn wood, and check the damper
- Confirm carbon monoxide alarms work: heating season is CO season
Seal the shell
- Caulk gaps at windows, doors, and where pipes and wires enter
- Replace worn weatherstripping: hold a lit incense stick near closed doors to find drafts
- Check attic insulation depth and the hatch seal
- Reverse ceiling fans to clockwise at low speed to push warm air down
- Service the snow blower and stage shovels before the first storm, not during it
Questions homeowners ask
What is the most skipped item?
Exterior faucet shutoff. One forgotten hose bib can burst inside the wall and flood a basement by spring thaw.
When is it too late to do the list?
Frozen ground and the first hard freeze close the water items. The heating and sealing items can still be done mid-winter, just with colder fingers.
Do I need a chimney sweep every year?
If you burn wood regularly, yes. Occasional gas logs need inspection on a longer cycle. Creosote buildup is the risk being managed.