Home Winterization Checklist: 35 Ways to Winterize Your Home

The magic of new-fallen snow is quickly lost when you feel cold air seeping under the doors. Don’t let winter winds howl at you this year – instead, follow our home winterization checklist to protect against heat loss, bursting water pipes, and high energy bills. These tasks are simple enough to tackle on the weekend, or if you can begin in the fall, you can take your time.

Even if you live in a mild climate with little cold weather, the items on our homeowners’ winterization checklist are routine maintenance tasks you’ll want to do each year.

How to winterize the outside of your home

There are several ways to prep your home for the winter months. First, let’s start with the outside of your home.

Inspect the roof 

If you’re up for a little climb, hoist the ladder, and let’s inspect the roof before it’s covered in snow. 

• Look for missing or broken shingles, a buildup of algae growth, and rotting wood. 
• While you’re up there, clean out the gutters and downspouts.
• Don’t forget the attic. After all, it’s the underside of the roof. Look for any signs of moisture or water leaking through.
• Check for blockage around the soffit vents and clear it away if necessary. Blocked vents could lead to ice dams which damage the roof. 
• Add attic insulation if needed.

Prep the patio

With the first spring thaw, you’ll be hankering for a burger on the grill. Make sure your deck is ready by taking a few precautions now. 

• Apply an extra coat of sealer to the deck if needed. 
• Secure or store any outdoor furniture light enough to blow around in the wind.
• Clean and cover the grill. Disconnect and store the propane tank and close the tank valve.

Secure the plumbing

If you live where the temperatures plummet below freezing in the winter, you’ll want to protect your home from burst pipes.

• Remove, drain, and store your garden hoses.
• If you don’t have freeze-proof outside faucets, prepare them by turning off their water supply and then opening the taps to drain any remaining water.
• Remove the water from your sprinkler system, or hire someone to do it for you.
• Ensure all exposed water pipes in cold places, like the garage, attic, or crawlspace, have insulation.

Protect yard elements

You may find joy in the clean, white appearance of a yard covered in snow. It hides the ugly brown of dead grass and flowers. But before the first snowfall, you’ll want to do the following. 

• If you have curbs, raised garden beds, or other things that could threaten cars or kids when covered in a foot of snow, keep them in view by installing fiberglass rods around them before the first snowfall.
• To protect your perennials, apply a heavy layer of mulch before the ground freezes.

Clean and store tools

Once the garden beds are mulched, the last of the flowers cut, and the final mow complete, it’s time to clean and store your lawn and garden tools for the winter.

• Sharpen all blades and oil the handles on rakes, shovels, and other tools.
• Follow the manufacturer’s instructions to drain the fluids from your power equipment and store them.

Inspect your snow shovel, snow blower, and other winter tools and place them in an easily accessible location.

How to winterize the inside of your home

As the days get shorter and the temperatures grow colder, move your winterizing efforts inside. Implement these winterization tips to enjoy a lower heating bill and a more energy-efficient home this season.

Prepare your heating system

• Regularly change the filters in your central HVAC system. A clean furnace filter allows for better airflow, which improves the system’s efficiency.
• Before you need the heat, test it. Or, have a professional HVAC technician inspect everything and ensure it’s running properly and efficiently.
• If your heating system runs on propane or fuel oil, contact your provider to have them top off the tank.
• Whether you have a smart home system or not, installing a smart programmable thermostat will lower energy costs.

Clean the chimney

• If you heat your home with a fireplace or woodstove, hire a professional to inspect your chimney rather than DIY the job. Professional chimney sweeps use a special camera with a lens on the end of a long cable. It goes deeper into the chimney than you can see with the naked eye. They’ll use it to look for hairline cracks in the flue that could lead to a chimney fire.
• Unless you cut and haul your firewood, order what you’ll need for the winter now to have it on hand. Make sure to store it under cover away from the house.
• If you don’t use your fireplace in the wintertime, prevent warm air from escaping your home with a chimney balloon. These inflatable balloons go up the chimney to seal it off during the colder months.

Prevent any fires

More home fires happen during the winter months. To help prevent this catastrophe from happening, complete the following steps.

• Replace the batteries in your smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors.
• Inspect your fire extinguishers to make sure they are fully charged. 

Stop the drafts

There are all kinds of places in a home where air leaks occur. As warm air rises, it draws cold air into the house through any crack or crevice it can find. To prevent cold air from entering the home, follow these tips. 

• Remove your window air conditioners and store them in a safe place.  
• Install storm windows and doors if you have them.
• If you don’t have storm windows or doors, seal old windows and apply weatherstripping, caulk, door sweeps, or window film where you feel drafts.

Keep warm

Once you have warm air in the home, you want to keep it wrapped around you like a cozy blanket. To do this, follow the steps below.

• Hang heavy drapes at all the windows to block any cold air. Keep them closed even during the day unless the sun comes through the window.
• Reverse the direction of your ceiling fan blades. In winter, they should rotate clockwise on low to direct warm air trapped at the ceiling back down into the room.

Winter prep: other things to consider

In addition to winterizing your home, you can do a few other things to prepare for winter weather.

Prepare an emergency kit

In case of a power outage, fuel shortage, or other wintertime crises, you’ll need a kit with the following emergency items.

• Candles or lamps and oil
• Flashlights
• Batteries
• Bottled water
• Food that doesn’t require cooking
• Backup phone batteries

Stock up on a week’s worth of groceries

Always have at least a week’s worth of groceries during storm seasons. And don’t forget prescription medications, baby needs, pet food, and water.

Stock up on salt and sand

Keep ice melt and sand on hand to treat walkways and prevent falls. 

Inspect and test the generator

If you have a generator, ensure you have enough fuel and that it’s working properly before you rely on it. To check the cost of installing a whole-house backup generator in your area, refer to our generator installation cost guide.

Winterize your home before the first snow of the season

Winter storms can be beautiful. But the splendor of glistening snow and heavy-laden pines is quickly lost if your chimney smokes, ice dams cause your gutters to sag, or your heating bills go through the roof. Wintertime is also a fun time. Snowball fight, anyone? But you’ll miss out on the fun if you have to play catch up on home winterization tasks. Start early. And, if you can’t get to all of them before the first storm hits, hire someone to help you.