Clean up your home for autumn
by Heather
I noticed the yellow autumn leaves on the road for the first time yesterday. Our part of Northern California has such funky weather that we get some gloriously colored leaves just as the temperatures start to heat up.
In addition to back to school, there are shorter hours of daylight, and colder evenings to look forward to. Since we’ll be hunkering down and spending more time indoors, what about a nice fall cleaning spree to get ready?
Indoors
• Change your furnace filters
• Check the batteries on all of your smoke and CO detectors
• Clean out your cupboards. Make a list of recipes that use what you already have on-hand. I like to call this “eating from my savings account”
• Pack away summer items like sun hats and bring out the cozy stuff
Did you find any nonperishables in your cupboard that you don’t think you’ll eat? Donate to a food bank.
Outdoors
Avoid strains and back injuries by stretching and warming up. Unless you are 10 years old and still made of rubber, you’ll need to prep your body for yard work.
• Clear all tripping hazards from porches, lawns and sidewalks for those darker evenings
• Check the caulk, seals and weather stripping around your home. What can be a small repair now will save you loads on heating this winter. Not particularly handy? Call in some help
• Clean the debris from gutters. Just as with weatherproofing, call in reinforcements if climbing up a ladder just isn’t your thing. DIYers, see Whitney’s tips
• Wash and store outdoor toys and furniture. Set aside toys your kids have outgrown for a yard sale. Clean them and price them now so they’re ready to go
• Dig up your garden and turn the soil. Can you plant fall crops where you live? Wear knee pads or use a rolled-up towel to protect your back and joints
Diane Laney Fitzpatrick offers more tips for giving your house a fall cleaning on Suite101.com.
Once you get your house prepared for the cozy months, you are more likely to be able to sit back with a cup of tea and enjoy the autumn. Wear a sweater for me!
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