Yearly Home Maintenance in Alaska
If you're a fellow homeowner, investment property owner or property manager, you probably know all about unexpected expenses in regards to property maintenance. In this blog, let's look at a short list of some simple things we should be doing yearly to keep deferred maintenance a thing of the past.
Roof Maintenance
Most Alaskan homes are asphalt composition shingle roof. Mixed with out many trees of various genus’s, especially birch trees with floating leaves, we tend to collect a good portion of falls short-lived foliage on our roofs. It's important to clean them yearly at the end of fall, paying close attention to moss build up. Also remember, it is better to gently scrape asphalt shingle (if there is gunk build up) than it is to pressure wash, as pressure washing will greatly deteriorate the lifespan of your shingles.
Also, let’s not forget about our roofs in the wintertime. Did it snow more than 12 inches in 24 hours? Or is it really heavy, wet snow? SHOVEL IT! Or pay someone to shovel it. Trust us on this one.
Gutter Maintenance
Yes, this is a separate section of maintenance from the roof. Make sure your gutters are scraped clean and free from any blockage, preferably at the start of the first snow. By Anchorage's first snow, most leaves should have fallen and you're clear to clean them for the winter.
Heating System Inspection
Every landlord will tell you, heating and plumbing issues are the worst. They often arise when it's most inconvenience and bring the highest cost to homeowners for repairs. Avoid this slippery slope by getting your heating system and boiler inspected every year by a trusted heating or mechanical company. Inspections are relatively cheap, and help establish a working relationship with a company or handy man that knows your system.
Grounds Maintenance
Probably one of the least fun things on the list - pick up your garbage. I prefer to do this twice a year at least. One at the end of break-up (when the snow and ice first melts), then again right before the first snow. This will help keep your property pristine giving it that curb appeal that gives you pride of ownership in your home. If you skip out on this step, especially before winter, your spring will look like a dumping ground for all of Anchorage!
Crawl Space
Once a year, it's important to inspect your crawl space. Yes, you'll have to brave yourself against claustrophobia and arachnophobia. Don't worry though, inspection of crawl spaces rarely leads to a paramount of a JRR Tolkien book - you'll be fine! Look for random leaks, foundational issues, drainage issues on the exterior of the building and possible infestations. Brave going down into the crawl space once a year and you'll be glad you did!
Exterior maintenance
Unless you're doing a major overhaul, there isn't much to exterior maintenance. Look for loose siding, chipping paint and small imperfections to your buildings' exterior that could worsen over time. Take care of what you can with well-done cover jobs, and hire it out if you can't do it well. I've seen loose side boards lead to wood rot that cost a lot of money to fix. Don't let a small exterior issue turn into a contractor’s gold mine.
There you have it! Follow these easy steps to secure and maintain your building for the best long-term results. I'm a huge fan of the saying, "Pay today, or pay tomorrow."
Now you know what you should be doing, turn your "shoulds" into "musts" and you'll avoid big headaches later in your properties life.
For more informations, or if you have questions about Real Esate in Anchorage, Alaska, please contact our local Realtor James Cash at (907)-360-7448 or e-mail at jamesfcash@gmail.com
