Start the Year Off Right: January Maintenance List!

Start the Year Off Right: January Maintenance List!

It’s a new year, and whether you’re a new homeowner or a seasoned one, there are certain monthly home maintenance to-dos that should be checked off of your list. So, we’re going to make it easy for you this year. While we aren’t driving out to your home and rolling up our sleeves with you, we promise to provide a monthly maintenance checklist and some tips, so that you can maintain a safe, efficient, and well-functioning house! Deal?

Let’s get started. 

Change your furnace filters- Depending on the type of furnace and filter you have, you should change your filters pretty much every 30-60 days. If you’re not sure how often they should be changed, talk to your local HVAC specialist or consult your manual to determine which types of filters are most efficient and compatible with your system. If you’re like most people though, you probably have the regular, inexpensive ones that should be changed every 30 days. 

Basically, dirty filters end up costing you more money, lead to lower air quality, and can lead to major repairs. Dirty filters clog up your HVAC system, making it work harder. If your system becomes completely clogged, your heater won’t run properly and could even stop altogether. It’s always a good idea to have a professional come out for winter maintenance on your entire system as well, but simply changing the filters is easy enough to do on your own and save you money, keep your air cleaner, and help preserve your unit. 

Test Smoke Detectors and Carbon Monoxide Detectors- This task should be part of your monthly routine, according to FEMA, and shouldn’t take more than 5 minutes once you know what you’re doing. Most devices have an easily accessible test button. Just press this button, wait a few seconds, and you should hear a loud, piercing sound. So don’t save this one for nap time! :-) If you do not hear the device or the sound is faint, replace the batteries. If you’ve replaced the battery and tried again to no avail, replace the detector as soon as possible. 

You should also change the batteries at least once a year, so if you’d like to knock this task off your list now, go for it. You can also clean out your smoke detectors and simply dust them off to remove any debris that may hinder performance. 

You’ll follow these same steps with your carbon monoxide detectors, and you’ll want to check the dates on all of them as well. After 10 years, it’s time for replacements. If you have a home-security system that works in conjunction with your detectors, you will also want to consult your manual. 

Clean Your Garage 

This can be done in a variety of ways based on how you use your garage. For example, you might have a designated work-out area in your garage, use it as a woodworking area, storage, or simply to house your vehicles. Whatever the case and purposes, you’ll want to divide your garage into zones to make better use of each area. 

Every surface should be wiped down, and it may be time to bring in the big guns with bleaching certain corners and areas that are more susceptible to mold and get tough on any grease or fluid that may have leaked from your car that might be accumulating on your garage floor.  

Depending on what you store in your garage as well, you may want to take this opportunity to de-clutter, organize tools and materials, and donate what you don’t use. There are numerous DIY resources available on the internet and a quick search away, or you may have organization specialists in your area as well. If you set your garage up in a more purposeful manner and add some shelving and hooks for mainstay tools, you may just open up a lot more space for storage or perhaps a new area to put that bench press. 

Clean the Inside of Your Oven 

Ugh. This one stinks— sometimes literally— but cleaning out your oven should be done twice a year. Many ovens, especially if they were purchased in the last 5-10 years, will have a self-cleaning feature. You’ll want to use this to make your life a lot easier. But first, it’s always a great idea to locate your appliance manual and read-up on the specifics for your make and model.

Second, you want to be sure to remove anything that can be removed from your oven, including racks, so that they don’t warp. Obviously, remove pans and foil and large food particles that haven’t been baked onto the surfaces yet. Then, you’ll hit that self-cleaning option and you may want to hit the fan or open a window. Your oven will heat to safe, yet extremely high temperatures not typically used for cooking, unless your name is Sharon and you’ve had a recent encounter with Marie Callender’s pie. Still, you’ll want to ensure that pets and children stay well away from the oven at this time for their safety. 

While that’s happening, or if you don’t have a self-cleaning feature, there’s nothing a little baking soda and vinegar solution, coupled with some elbow grease can’t solve. Let racks soak in the sink if possible, and then grab a sponge and get to work! There are plenty of tips and tricks online as well and you can use various cleaning solutions that are green and safe for your family. 

Vacuum Your Refrigerator Coils

This is another dusty, dirty job, but you don’t want your refrigerator to stop working, especially with all of those yummy holiday leftovers and Super Bowl snacks that they’ll soon house. You’ll again want to consult your refrigerator’s manual and unplug your refrigerator for the duration of this task. Pull out your fridge from the wall. Vacuum and wipe down the floor and behind your fridge and locate your coils. You’ll either have them on the back of your fridge (if an older model) or on the bottom front of your fridge behind a grate. Carefully, pop this grate off. Grab your brush attachment on the vacuum and get to work! You may want to have a smaller paintbrush or similar brushing tool to really get in there and knock anything loose. 

Then, vacuum and wipe down your refrigerator and the floor before carefully replacing the grate in the front and sliding your fridge back into place. Finally, don’t forget to plug your refrigerator back into the wall. 

Grab a cold beverage from the fridge, cause you’re done with this month’s list! Go relax and take a break because you deserve it! 

Bonus Task: Take all of those manuals that you pulled out for this month’s checklist— and any others you may have found in the process— and create a home maintenance binder. Use protective sheets and just slip each booklet inside. You can even earmark those pages you used for this month’s tasks if you’re an overachiever or create a regular maintenance cheat sheet, so you’re ready for next month, next season, or next year when these tasks and appliances require attention again.