The recent months have seen homeowners spending more time shovelling snow rather than enjoying it. When the first hint of real summer strikes the urge to just pack up and rush off to a vacation at the beach is overwhelming to say the least. It’s also during this urgency that home owners forget to pay attention to some crucial details about leaving the house for extended periods of time. This is totally understandable, but what happens when it hits you at the beach? Now you spend your vacation worried. Try to keep these quick steps in mind before taking a plunge in the lake.
Set Up A Schedule For Your Lights
The last thing you want is to let the burglars know you are on vacation, so use the timer on your lights to help deter a break-in. If you don’t have a timer then you can just get one installed. The reason you want to use a timer is because you’ll save a lot of money on the electric bill and it will seem like somebody is actually inside the house. Use a couple of rooms and set their lights to go off at certain times.
Disconnect Electrical Appliances
They are used on a daily basis, but home owners don’t realize that some appliance go on stand-by. This means that they are using power that is going to cost you money. These appliances will typically have some kind of light burning or an electronic display. Entertainment units tend to go on stand-by along with microwaves and computers. The fridge is the one appliance you’ll probably want to keep plugged in. You won’t have to worry about a storm knocking any of these appliances out as well.
Don’t Waste Energy
When you know you are going to be away for a long time then set the temperature on the thermostat so that your heating and air conditioning is supplying the empty rooms. A suggestion is to set it at 16 degrees Celsius during the winter and to keep it around 28 degrees during the summer. Don’t forget to keep the adjusted settings in order to prevent an override of old settings. If you won’t be gone too long then keep the air-conditioning system on, because this will protect the home from excessive temperatures. It helps to avoid fixing frozen pipes cracked walls when it gets too cold along with protecting hardwood floors during the summer. In terms of your water heater unit, there should be a vacation setting which will let it run accordingly.
What To Do With The Fridge
If you are going away for some time then you have two choices. You either leave the refrigerator as it is and only get rid of food that are going to expire, or you can empty the refrigerator and unplug it. Many people prefer to plug it out because it will be easier to clean. Never let the fridge run empty.
Let The Neighbours Know
Assuming there is one neighbour that you really trust then it’s recommended that you inform them about your trip. Let them know when you will be leaving and when you are coming back, along with contact information if something goes wrong. You can also ask them to check in every now and then to make sure everything is still in place. A good way to help deter burglars is to get your neighbour to park his or her car in your driveway for the time-being. Just watering the garden will also work well.
