Albuquerque winters are truthfully about as unpredictable as the rest of our year. Some days are quite pleasant – but, other days, Albuquerque in the winter is bitterly cold. If you’re a homeowner in Albuquerque, it is important that you protect your investment from the cold.
For protecting your home from the elements of Albuquerque in the winter, we have a few tips we think you should follow.
1. Make the investment in weather stripping
If you haven’t heard of it, weather stripping is used to make your home airtight. It is sold at most local hardware stores and can be applied to windows or doors in your home.
Keeping cold air out of your home is important not just for comfort and climate control but for keeping energy costs low and extending the life of interior finishes.
2. Protect your pipes from Albuquerque in the winter
Pipes are one of the most important pieces of residential infrastructure but they also are one of the most exposed. To protect your home from Albuquerque in the winter, there are precautions you should take.
- Remove all water from outdoor pipes or sprinklers by draining them
- Disconnect and drain all outdoor hoses
- Cover outdoor faucets with insulators available at local hardware stores
Identiify and insulate exposed pipes – potentially in the garage, basement or outside of the home
3. Give your heater a checkup
When Albuquerque in the winter gets chilly, Burqueños want nothing more than to crank up the heater and make a warm pot of posole or green chile stew. To make that a reality, however, you must make sure your heater is in good working order.
You may consider going the DIY route here or maybe you’d prefer to hire a professional to check on your furnace. Regardless, you should at least change your filter. Maybe even consider installing a programmable thermostat with maintenance and filter reminders.
Tip from the experts: Reverse the direction of your ceiling fan blades. Everyone thinks about using fans in the summer, but they can help you stay warm in winter too. Set the blades to turn clockwise to circulate warm air from the ceiling down into the room.
4. Inspect and clean your fireplace
New Mexicans love having a fireplace in the home. If you’re a homeowner fortunate enough to have a wood-burning fireplace in your home, you need to inspect and clean it as winter approaches.
To have the fireplace inspected and cleaned, it is best to contract the services of a professional. However, some basic maintenance steps you can take are to keep the flue closed tightly and keep the glass doors closed, if present on your particular fireplace.
5. Don’t forget the plants
If you have landscaping outside the home, you’ll need to protect your plants from the elements of Albuquerque in the winter. Take potted plants inside and surround outdoor plants with mulch or with a plastic covering. Don’t forget to remove the covering when temperatures are warm so your plants can continue to grow and thrive!
