Top 10 Year-Round MaintenanceTips (NAPSA)—Many homeowners find that the key to reducing the potential for major repairs is to follow a regular home mainte- nance program. This will not only reduce the need to pay for costly repairs, but it will protect your home’s value. For example, by annually servicing a heating and air-conditioning unit, it will have fewer breakdowns, and the energy savings may pay for the cost of having to service the unit. Dan Steward, president of Pillar To Post, North America’s largest home-inspection service, offers this checklist showing the THIS HOME MAINTENANCE CHECKLIST can help to eliminate costly tips homeownersshould follow. Ongoing Maintenance Schedule the building to reduce the possi- top 10 year-round maintenance L) Test smoke detectors, carbon monoxide detectors and ground fault circuit interrupters— Monthly. UO Check caulking aroundall outside openings and joints of windows and doors—Annually in the spring. U Change furnace filters— Monthly during heating season. U Clean or change air-conditioning filter—Monthly during cooling season. U Clean gas and electric space heaters...be certain dust and dirt are not on heating coils—Monthly during heating season. OU Check slope of landscaping and paving (to slope away from repairs and give homeowners peace of mind. bility of water intrusion)—Annu- ally in the spring. UO Check fire-extinguisher gauges; refill or replace them— Annually. U Inspect roof for damaged or loose shinglesor blisters and damaged or loose flashings—Annually in the spring. LY Remove leaves from gutters and downspouts—Annually one to two times duringthefall. U Close shutoff valves to out- side faucets, water lines and sprinkler systems—Annually in the late fall in regions with winter freezing. For more year-round mainte- nance tips from Pillar To Post, visit www.pillartopost.com.
