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8 Tasks to Complete Before a Vacation


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The world is opening back up again, and travel has never seemed more enticing. But before you go on a vacation for five weeks, you’ll want to be sure your house is ready to stay home without you.

Pre-Vacation Home Checklist

There are many aspects of your home that you may not think about daily, but that could cause major problems if ignored or left unprepared when you leave town. Here are our top tips to keep your home safe and worry-free while you’re away!

1. Invest in Lighting

Burglars seek out homes that have been vacant for long stretches of time. You can better deter burglars from targeting your home by investing in smart lights that can be set to a certain schedule, or even invest in some outlet timers that you can program to turn on and off at specific times of the day. Having a few lights on in your home while you’re away will make it seem like someone is still home — deterring any theft.

2. Check for Leaks

There’s nothing worse than coming home from a nice, relaxing vacation and walking into a flooded house. Check your pipes, outdoor faucets, sinks, and other water sources for leaks to ensure everything is safe.

3. Adjust the Thermostat

Adjusting your thermostat while you’re out of the house is a great way to keep your home at a manageable temperature and save money on energy bills. Modern smart thermostats have an ‘away’ setting you can use, but if you need to program your thermostat manually, aim for around 78 degrees or higher in summer and 64 degrees or lower in winter.

Leaving your thermostat running helps prevent extreme temperatures from affecting your home while you’re out of town.

4. Shut off the Main Water Line

Do you know where your home’s main water valve shut-off is? You should! Turning off the water supply to your home while you’re away is an easy way to prevent any leaks or accidental floods from burst piping. Don’t forget to turn on all faucets after turning off the water supply — this will help drain the water sitting in your pipes.

5. Clean Out the Fridge and Take Out the Trash

Pests can easily take over your home if you leave them with their three biggest necessities: food, shelter, and water. Clean out the fridge and take out the trash before you leave to cut back on the chances of coming home to a pack of rats in the kitchen.

6. Unplug Large Electronics

Unplugging your larger electronics can save you money on energy costs, but more importantly, it can help prevent electrical fires.

7. Close the Blinds

Closing the blinds is another tip that has a two-fold benefit to you: it’s another way to help prevent theft in your home and a great way to keep your home cooler by blocking it from the sun while you’re out of town.

8. Adjust Your Temperature Settings

Did you know your water heater has a ‘vacation mode’? Turning this mode on will lower the set temperature of your water heater, saving you money and energy.

NOTE: If you have a friend housesit, skip this step as they’ll likely need to use the water while watching the home. Additionally, any home that has a pool or hot tub will need to keep the connected water heater running as normal — if you lower the temperature or turn off this device, algae could grow in the pool.

Make sure your home and HVAC system are ready to handle a few weeks without you! Contact Grapids Home Services, Inc. at (616)-453-1099 to schedule an inspection today!

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