Blog
Before the First Freeze: A Few Things Around Your Home You Don’t Want to Forget
Cold weather can arrive quickly. Taking care of a few things around your home before temperatures drop can help prevent problems when the first freeze arrives. You don’t need an elaborate winterization plan to get your home ready for the first freeze. A quick walk around your home (inside, outside, and underneath) can help you catch some of the most common cold-weather concerns before they become problems. Disconnect and Drain Garden Hoses Remove hoses from exterior faucets and drain them before storing them for the winter. A connected hose can trap water, which may freeze and expand when temperatures drop....
Your Home Is Talking: What the First Fall Rains Can Tell You
The return of rainy weather can reveal problems around your home that were easy to miss during the dry summer months. After a dry Snohomish summer, the first sustained fall rains put your home’s drainage and moisture-management systems back to work. Gutters begin moving water again, the soil around your foundation becomes wetter, and groundwater levels start to rise. That makes fall a good time to pay attention. A few early warning signs can tell you where your home may need attention before months of wetter weather arrive. 1. Your Gutters Are Overflowing Water spilling over the sides of your...
Not Sure Who to Call for Your Home Repair Needs?
Owning a home means there will always be something that needs attention. Sometimes it's a small repair, other times, it's a problem that isn't immediately obvious. You may notice water in your crawl space, a musty smell, cracks in your foundation, peeling paint, uneven floors, or a door that suddenly won't close properly. While the symptoms are easy to see, identifying what's actually causing them is often much more difficult. That's where many homeowners get stuck. The Challenge Isn't Usually Finding a Contractor Today's homeowners have no shortage of contractors to choose from. There are plumbers, electricians, roofers, painters, foundation...
Will Your Sump Pump Be Ready When the Rain Returns?
Why Late Summer Is a Good Time for a Crawl Space Sump Pump Inspection During the drier summer months, your sump pump may not have much work to do. With less groundwater entering the drainage system, it can sit for long periods without needing to run, which also means you may go months without giving it much thought. As summer comes to an end in the Seattle area and throughout Snohomish County, however, we begin heading toward the wetter fall and winter months when your crawl space drainage system may suddenly have considerably more water to manage. That makes late...
Do You Have Iron Ochre in Your Crawlspace?
Learn what iron ochre is, how to spot the warning signs and what you can do about it. If you've pulled open a sump lid or cleaned out a discharge line and found a slick, rust-colored, gel-like coating, you're looking at iron ochre. It's one of the most common (and most misunderstood) reasons a perfectly good crawlspace drainage system starts underperforming just a few years after installation, and it's especially common here in the Pacific Northwest where high groundwater and iron-bearing soils overlap. What Is Iron Ochre? Iron ochre is a slimy, rust-colored buildup that develops naturally in some soils...
When Temperatures Drop, Rodents Move In: Is Your Home Ready For Fall?
Summer may still be here, but fall will arrive before we know it. As temperatures begin to cool, there are a few things homeowners should be thinking about before the rainy season arrives. Rodent prevention is one that can easily be overlooked. Mice and rats seek out places that offer food, shelter, and protection from the elements. Taking a few preventive steps around your property now can reduce the chances of discovering unwanted guests later this fall or winter. Begin Outside Your Home Rodent prevention starts with the conditions around your property. Overgrown vegetation, debris, accessible food, and protected areas...
Summer Deck & Exterior Maintenance: Small Repairs That Can Prevent Big Problems
Summer is when homeowners spend the most time outdoors. Decks become gathering places for family barbecues, patios host friends and neighbors, and walkways see more foot traffic than any other time of year. It's also the season when many homeowners begin to notice the wear and tear left behind by a long, wet winter, making it the ideal time to inspect, repair, and protect your home's exterior. Unfortunately, it's easy to dismiss a loose railing, a cracked step, or a few soft deck boards as something that can wait until next year. In reality, small exterior issues rarely stay small....
Spend Your Summer Making Memories, Not Catching Up on Home Maintenance
Snohomish summers are short. After months of rain, gray skies, and cooler temperatures, summer finally arrives and suddenly calendars fill up with vacations, BBQs, camping trips, sporting events, hikes, festivals, and time spent with family and friends. Unfortunately, summer is also one of the busiest seasons for home maintenance, as many homeowners turn their attention to the projects they've been putting off all winter. Exterior repairs, painting, deck maintenance, fence staining, and other outdoor projects finally become possible and often start competing for those same weekends you were hoping to spend elsewhere. For many homeowners, the question isn't whether they...
How to Decide Whether to DIY or Hire a Professional for Your Home Repair Projects
One of the most common ways homeowners try to save money is by taking on projects themselves. With countless tutorials, videos, and how-to guides available online, it's easier than ever to learn new skills and tackle home improvement projects without hiring a contractor. And in many cases, that's a great option. There are plenty of maintenance tasks and smaller projects that homeowners can successfully handle on their own. The challenge is knowing when a project is truly a good DIY candidate and when hiring a professional may actually save you money, time, and frustration in the long run. The goal...
How to Maintain Your Home on a Tight Budget
Owning a home can feel overwhelming when money is tight and there are several things that need attention. Maybe there’s a small leak, peeling paint, worn caulking, or maintenance you’ve been putting off because there simply isn’t room in the budget right now. When larger projects are already expensive, it’s easy to feel like there’s no good solution. The reality is, many homeowners are in the same position. The good news is that maintaining your home doesn’t always require tackling everything at once. In fact, one of the smartest things you can do on a tight budget is focus on...