Summer time is just around the corner. Even for us Puget Sound, Western Washington dwellers, prepping your home for the upcoming heat is one of the keys to an enjoyable summer season. Check out these tips and tricks on how to prep your home for summer time.
Prep Your Home For Summer Time
There’s a lot to think about when it comes to your summer plans – there’s family vacations, weekend getaways, barbecues, house parties and so much more! But before you can get to all the fun stuff, it’s important to evaluate how ready your home is for summer both inside and out. Check out these ideas for getting your house ready for the heat.
Get a head start on your outdoor home improvement projects.
One of the best ways to prep your home for summer time and escape the heat of your home in the summer time might be simpler than you think: go outside! Especially if your house gets direct exposure to the sunlight, the outside temperature might be an easy way to stay cooler in the summer. If you plan to take advantage of that this year, get a jump start on some projects to enhance the outdoor living at your house. Whether that means building a deck or patio, sprucing up your garden, refreshing your outdoor furniture, or even greening up your lawn, take advantage of the cooler weather and softer ground now to make being outdoors enticing and comfy this summer.
Purchase your cooling systems now to prep your home for summer!
If you plan to install an air conditioning or cooling system to prep your home for summer time, do your research and schedule it now. The closer we get to the sun and heat, the harder it will be to find and obtain what you need for your house. When it comes to an A/C in the Puget Sound, consider the pros and cons of a central air system vs. window units:
Central Air Pros: cools your whole home efficiently, can be up year-round with little maintenance and no removal, ready to go when you are ready, adds value to your home
Central Air Cons: an all in one unit is costly to install, very costly to fix or replace if it fails at any point down the road, and results in high energy bills
Window Unit Pros: affordable price range ($500 or less per unit), can be moved between rooms as needed, better control of when it runs and only cools the rooms you want it to when you want it to, easily replaceable if it dies
Window Unit Cons: not as convenient to move around, must be reinstalled if you put it away and decide you need it longer, no value added to your home
Use that switch on your ceiling fans to change rotation direction.
This one is just as easy as it sounds! Did you know that your ceiling fan can switch directions AND that change of direction has a purpose? In the winter time, you want your fan to spin clockwise to push the heat downward. In the summer, you should have your fans spin counter clockwise at higher speeds to help keep a nice breeze going through your home.
When you think about ways to prep your home for summer time, don’t get overwhelmed with options and ideas. Getting ready for the warm season can be as simple as spraying down your decks, pulling a few weeds, and purchasing some standalone fans to help air circulate in your home. After all, once the first hot day of summer hits those will fly off the shelves! Once you are ready to go, read up on great summer time party ideas and plan a few of your own this year!