Winters in London are usually cold and wet. Snow isn’t unheard of in London, while light showers are also pretty common.
If you’re caught off-guard by a sudden shower or cold breeze, it’s time you start preparing your home for the winters.
Typically, the peak winters in London last from mid-December till late February, with temperatures ranging between 48°F to 45°F.
However, the seasonal change can start as early as mid of September.
Nonetheless, here’s how you can prepare your home in London early for the winter season.
Preparing Your Home For Winters
It is best to start preparing your home for the winter season as early as possible. Although the weather is not so unpredictable most of the time, there are still gaps in between.
Besides, ignoring winter home preparation can cause several damages to your property, including frozen pipes and leaky roofs.
So, here’s how you can prepare your home for the winters before they arrive.
Shut Your Outdoor Water Supply
As a rule of thumb, you should shut off your outdoor faucets and sprinklers for the winter season. Even if you have frost-free taps, you should not leave them on through the season.
The chances are, they can quickly freeze the water in supply lines leading to burst pipes.
Turning off the outdoor valves and faucets would redirect the outdoor supply to the indoors. And the warmer temperatures inside would keep the water in lines from freezing.
Check Your Heating Systems
Speaking of the warmer indoors, leaving your heating systems inoperative for the off-season may have caused some damages to it.
In short, it is advisable to check your heating systems before firing them up for the winter season, especially if you have a gas-fired system.
Moreover, if the fireplace is too damaged to be repaired, replacing it with a better version is better. You can search for terms like fireplaces London online to find a suitable supplier within your budget. And you may even find a bespoke piece to spruce up your interiors within your budget.
Check Your Roof And Insulation
Another thing to check before the winter arrives is the roof and insulation of your home.
Roofs are notably the most common reason for inefficiently heating in homes, followed by faulty or damaged insulation.
Check your roofs for any missing shingles, gaps, or cracks. These gaps or cracks can give way to cold air entering and hot air escaping your home. But, make sure you don’t shut off the chimney unless you own an electric fireplace to heat your home.
For insulation, you can look for signs of mould and rust around window panes and door panels. These are the most common areas where water can easily damage the insulation of your home.
The Bottomline
The sooner you prepare your home for the winters, the better. There could be sudden cold breezes which may make you desire a heated, cosy indoors. Or there could be showers for days before the winters take on.
In either case, you would not want to freeze yourself and wonder why didn’t you get your home repaired for the winters.
