Summer subsistence strategies

If you're like me (and most New Englanders) you savor the sweet smells of springtime and the ability to FINALLY get out of the house without wearing 12 layers of wool and poly under your down jacket. Along with the glorious experience of warmer temperatures is the ability to open up the house a bit and enjoy some fresh air and the timeless sounds of birds singing. This year feels like that experience has been multiplied. Even those living in warmer climates are experiencing the joy of getting out of our Covid hovels and enjoying the outdoors. Happy Summertime, everyone!

For the homeowners in the crowd, summer also brings with it some added responsibilities. Of course there is the standard lawn mowing and shrub trimming, but there are a few other items that need to be tended to. Most of these are simple DIY tasks that not only help keep your home looking great, but they also provide a much-needed layer of protection against further damage to your home as the seasons progress. Let's take a peek.

My roommate bought a power washer a few months ago and I secretly thought it was one of his (many) sillier purchases. Since then, I have used it numerous times and simply love the thing. We use it after particularly muddy mountain bike rides and even just after a few hundred miles on the road bike. It has many automotive applications as well and proved to be invaluable when I was stripping the (poorly applied, low quality) spray paint off of my new (to me) dirt bike.

My dad, on the other hand, uses his to wash the concrete pavers around his house and washes the house itself. And that's really what we're here to chat about today. "Power-washing your house is a great way to remove years of dirt and grime," notes Badger Realty agent, Norman Head. "It can bring back that new home shine and replicate the look of a new paint job," he continued. As I was putting the hose away one day (after cleaning the lawn mower) I sprayed the side of our home. I was baffled at the waves of dirty water that came pouring down the siding. An hour or so later I had washed the entire house and the whole thing simply shined. OK, not really "shined," but you get the point. Rent one for the day or just buy one. You'll find piles of uses for it, I promise.

My mechanic is always telling us the story of having his air conditioner cleaned a couple years ago. He tends to be a bit of a miser and watches his electric bill like a hawk. He claims his power bill dropped significantly that summer and it was all because of having his filters changed and the unit itself tested and cleaned. The routine maintenance can be handled by any DIYer. Hit up the interwebs and see what you can find out about your particular unit. It'll pay off in the longevity of your A/C unit and your power bill.

I handle the lawn/yard maintenance at our house. It's one of the items I love to do and chose as part of our work-sharing agreement. To that end, I am the one most often walking around the home, down the side alley and all around the back yard. The lawn is obviously handled by my mowing, but we do have a fair number of trees and bushes on the property. Every few weeks I grab the long-handled clippers and go on a rampage (not really).

If I'm walking from the garage to the backyard or down the stairs from the deck towards the hot tub and I'm hitting branches, they get clipped. I learned this from my summer working for Appalachian Mountain Club. While doing trail maintenance, if branches hit your shoulders, they were too close and got trimmed. My next "tour" around the house is going to involve any branches that are hitting the roof. There's a bunch that are currently resting on the garage. Those need to go simply for the benefit and longevity of the shingles. Take a cruise around your home and make sure the bushes, trees and shrubs are "in their place." If not, get clipping.

Lastly, since we seem to be moving on an upward trajectory, is the roof and gutters. With those branches resting on our roof, you can imagine after every good storm (and all fall!) we get lots of leaves and debris in our gutters. As I'm writing this I'm thinking that I have never actually checked on our gutters. Every day, when we stand at our kitchen sink and look out the window, we see our neighbor's gutter literally hanging on by a thread. You would think that would have prompted me to check them long ago! Alas, this weekend will be my time. Join me and let's all check our gutters. It helps keep the water flowing as it should and most certainly keeps things tidy once it gets cold again. See you on the roof!