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While you’re checking your roof, pay close attention to the eavestroughs. Ensure they’re still fitted snugly against the roofline — and once the leaves begin to fall, ensure they’re kept clear.
This is also a good time of year to think about adding more insulation to your attic if you don’t have enough. The attic needs to be a cold zone so that heat doesn’t rise through your attic, melting the snow on your roof, which could lead to ice damming. Signs of ice damming could present as water stains on your ceilings, and in the winter time, bare spots where there should be snow, as well as icicles.
Checking the foundation
If left unchecked, cracks in the foundation can eventually lead to big water leaks. If you already see cracks in your foundation, letting them go through another freeze-thaw cycle during the wintertime could make them bigger and more dangerous.
Small cracks typically aren’t too big a concern. Keep an eye on them: If they don’t get any larger over a few months, you can usually fill them with an epoxy injection.
When the cracks are larger — about 1/2 an inch (1.25-2 cm) in width, call in a foundation pro right away. You’ll want to start those repairs as soon as possible. Depending on your climate, I wouldn’t recommend doing a foundation job in December or later — at that point the ground has likely already begun to freeze, and work should wait until the spring thaw.
Closing the pool
I love my pool, and it always makes me a little sad to close it at the end of each season.
