How to Update Your Rental Property for the Winter
Extreme weather has become more prevalent over the past few years and now is the time to update, prepare, and repair your rental property for the upcoming winter months. Extreme weather can strike at any moment, and stores can become quickly depleted of the necessary emergency supplies. Preventative methods will not only save you money but give you and your tenants peace of mind.
Buy an Air Purifier and Replace Your Air Filters.
Buying an air purifier is a good idea, especially if you have tenants who are sensitive to smoke, pollen, or air pollution. It is good to keep it on all year because it will continuously filter out unhealthy pollutants by sucking in air and trapping the molecules within it that can be harmful to human health. According to the EPA, it’s best to buy an air filter with a HEPA filter.
Filtering the air will lead to less overall dirt being trapped in carpets, corners, or floorboards. Plus, running it costs very little as most air purifiers do not use more than a hundred watts of power. For comparison, a typical lightbulb uses around fifty watts.
If your rental property has central heating or air conditioning, you should replace the air filters. Summertime means a lot of open windows, high amounts of pollen, and debris coming in that is full of pollution. There are a lot of factors that can affect the frequency of how often you should change the filters, but it’s recommended you should change it every thirty days to six months.
Weather-proof Your Doors and Windows.
Depending on the severity of the weather in your area, you can weather-proof your windows and doors with different methods. The first is vinyl strips, which can be simply glued into place with adhesive backing. This is a great method for windows and is easy to do on your own. For doors, a door sweep can help keep debris, cold air, and pests outside. You can also buy a door seal for the bottom which will cover the gap between the bottom of the door and the floor; cold drafts and snow will no longer be able to enter your rental property.
Stock Up on Emergency Supplies.
Again, depending on the weather in the area of your rental property, the number of supplies and what you will need may vary. For the most part, buying a generator will be a good idea regardless of the area. Power outages due to fires, snow, and extreme blizzards have become more common. Additionally, purchasing a few battery-operated LED lanterns to provide light is a great idea. Battery packs, USB cables, and regular AA or AAA batteries are also another invaluable addition to an emergency kit.
Final Thought
Preparing your rental property for emergencies and extreme weather conditions will pay dividends. Kindness and caring for the wellbeing of your tenants are free. The key is preventative maintenance; repairing the damage done to a home after a natural disaster can cost you more money than the cost of preparing your home for the elements. Think of it like this: it is better to be over-prepared, making an investment in the safe-guarding of your property than to deal with something catastrophic that could potentially displace your tenants. Happy tenants equal a happy life.
