Autumn Checklist

Property – Exterior

Roof – Check your roof covering for any slipped or missing tiles or slates. Better to get them dealt with now than wait until you find a leak.

Gutters – Do you live near trees?  Will your gutters need cleared before the weather turns?

Chimney/flue – Have you had it cleaned this year?  This may affect your household insurance if you don’t have it checked regularly.

Windows – Are your exterior window seals intact?  If not a heavy rain with wind may cause water to enter your home.  Draughts from windows will make your home much more difficult to heat.

Drains – Are your drains clear of obstructions?  Would it be wise to create a small run off channel?

Wood pile – Is your wood pile still in good enough condition to keep your wood dry?

Shed – If you have a shed, is it waterproof, is the lock still secure etc?

Property – Interior

Doors – Do they all close properly and keep out draughts and keep the heat in? If not can you fix them or maybe make draught excluders?

Toilets – Are they all working properly and seem in good enough condition to last the winter?  Better to deal with any small leaks now before any water may freeze.

Drains – Have you cleaned the drains in your sink/bath/wash hand basin?  This could be a good time to use drain cleaner so you don’t have any problems in bad weather.

Windows – Check the seals to make sure you are keeping out as much cold as possible.  Also you may want to look at putting bubble wrap on the glass.  Have you managed to find heavy curtains or blankets to go over the windows in cold weather?

Preps

Freezer contents – this is a good time to use up a lot of your freezer stock and possibly defrost your freezer ready to restock for winter.

Self preserved food – Check all your self preserved food to ensure it is still suitable for use.  If it is old then you may want to start using it now and restock.

Inventory stock pile – Check best before dates and make sure you are rotating your stock as required.

Cold Weather

Wood – If you have a wood burner, now is the time to start stockpiling wood and making sure you will have enough to get you through as long as possible.

Blankies

Any kind of covering to keep you warm is useful.  It is even more useful to know where there are in your home.  Check for damage/damp etc and air out now before they are needed.

Flasks – Time to get out the denture cleaning tablets and give your flasks a good going over.  Check if they still keep your drinks warm and for how long.

Socks – Do a sock inventory, matching up as many as you can and find those big wooly socks that you put away when the weather got warmer.

Boots – Do your boots need polished to update the protection against rain and snow?  Do you know where you put them at the end of last winter?  Time to find and prepare winter footwear.

Coats/Waterproofs – Find and check your outerwear, you don’t want to find your jacket is no longer waterproof when you are in a storm.

Hats/Gloves

Again this is time to go find all these and check that they are still in good condition.  Also the time to start knitting wrist warmers.