With the weather still comfortable and families enjoying the great outdoors in most states, now is the time to prepare your home for the approaching winter.

A little planning and preventative maintenance go a long way towards cleaning and sprucing up your home and garden in readiness for the colder months ahead.

The benefits of forward planning

Regular home maintenance ensures that breakdowns or expensive repairs are not on the agenda — allowing you to coast into a catastrophe-free winter.

In addition, you will save on energy costs and eliminate the need for emergency breakdown fees with a sound winter-preparedness plan in place.

Taking advantage of clement conditions  

We know that soon enough the days will shorten as the night-time temperatures slowly plummet. You should use this trans-seasonal time wisely to fuel the imagination for a cosy-style scene-setting at home.

With the cold conditions fast approaching, if not already upon us, take action to prepare your home and garden for the cooler months to come.

Getting your home ready for the forthcoming season allows you to fully immerse yourself in the interior warmth of winter.

How to ensure your home is ready for cold weather

Here’s a checklist of must-do tasks for you to perform when preparing your house and garden for late autumn and early winter:

• Clean and cover your outdoor furniture
• Plant your bulbs for springtime flowers
• Clean the gutters and install gutter guards to prevent backups when the wet season hits
• Cleaning on and around your outdoor heating, ventilation and air-conditioning units-obstructions can cause up to a 30 per cent energy increase
• Prepare your chimney for cosy night-time fires with an annual safety inspection and cleaning
• Stock up on plenty of firewood for heating your home this winter
• Replace the batteries in your smoke detectors and other detective devices
• Prepare your heating systems for the heavy demands of cold weather use with seasonal maintenance
• Keep the cold weather at bay by replacing dry or damaged weather stripping on all doors and windows
• Check your home for drafts and potential cold spots
• Check your outside water spigots for leaks and put away all water hoses
• If you live in a particularly cold climate, ensure that all exterior-wall water pipes are insulated to prevent freezing and burst pipes
• Check all flashlight batteries and stock up on supplies for potential power outages.
• Prepare your generators and give them a test run
• Empty the fuel supplies from lawn-mowing equipment to prepare for minimal or non-usage during the winter months
• Check and trim your landscaping for dead or damaged tree limbs.

Last, but not least, sit back and admire your handiwork/maintenance efforts, as they will surely stand you in good stead for the chilly months ahead.