Is Your Home Ready For The Canadian Winter?

With winter on its way, it’s time to start thinking about winterizing your home. It’s best to start weather-proofing when the leaves change colors, rather than waiting until after the first snowfall. Snow, ice and wind can have devastating effects on your home if you’re not prepared for the worst Mother Nature has to offer.

Follow these tips for a safe and secure winter:

• Heat your home: Keeping a temperature of 18°C or higher will protect your pipes. The temperature inside your walls is much lower than the interior of your home. Maintaining a warmer interior temperature helps keep your pipes from freezing. 
• Check heating systems: Ensure the proper maintenance of fireplaces, furnaces, boilers and chimneys. Residential fires increase in the winter due to the usage of such heating systems. Keep up with routine servicing and double check fire and smoke alarms. You may also want to install a carbon dioxide detector. 
• Outdoor Maintenance: Gutter debris can cause a condition known as ice damming, which is when water cannot drain properly and instead seeps into a house and causes water damage. Consider installing gutter guards to prevent debris from entering and clogging your gutters. Remove dead branches from your trees; the weight of snow and ice can cause weak branches to break and damage your home or injure individuals on the way down. Keep walkways and entrances free of snow and ice. 
• Maintain pipes: One of the biggest winter risks is pipes freezing over and bursting. Some precautions you can take include insulating unfinished rooms like garages and attics, wrap pipes in heating tape, repair any cracks or leaks immediately and install an emergency pressure release valve in your plumbing system. Also, make note of where and how to shut off your water, and do so immediately if your pipes freeze to keep them from bursting.
  
• Plan for lengthy trips: Ask a neighbor or friend to check on your house if you plan to leave for an extended period of time. They can quickly address any issues that arise to prevent further damage. Before you leave, it’s a good idea to have a professional drain the water system to prevent pipes from freezing.

Speak with your insurance agent about what your homeowners policy covers. Most standard polices will cover damages resulting from winter freezes, including (but not limited to) burst pipes, interior water damage from ice damming and roof damage from weighty snow and ice.

Protect your home and family through the cold winter months. Call Excalibur Insurance Group at (519) 348-9150 for more information on Mississauga home insurance.