Getting Ready For the Winter

Many of us in the Norteast received a wake up call with the wind storm,Sandy. Communitues in the Norteast and further south suffered power outages, downed trees and power lines and other issues related to the storm. If we can believe the weather forecasters, we can expect more of the same problems that will be compounded by large amouts of snow and ice rather than by water.While we can not prevent the inconviences created by the weather,we can take some actions to limit storm related issues. While the weather is still realatively mild,we can trim trees and bushs. This can help avoid tree limbs causing damage to our or neighbors homes. Cleaning out gutters can help avoid ice dams and other water realated issues.Cleaning and tuning up our heating systems and help to avoid costly mid winter breakdowns and possible freezing of water pipes in the basement. Cleaning air ducts in forced hot air systems,cleaning filters in these systems can be helpful. If you have a hot water tank,try draining part of the water on a monthly basis. These actions can help avoid mid winter issues,help your systems run more economically and help pro long the life of the hot water tanks and heating system.