What goes through your mind when you think of summer? That much-awaited vacation perhaps? Prepare for your well-deserved beach holiday if you will, but don’t forget the home you’ll be coming back to. In this article, we’ll cover five practical tips on how to get your San Diego home summer-ready to ensure that your family gets the most out of the season.
By the time spring comes around, your gutters are clogged with debris – dirt, leaves, and twigs that have been washed by the roof from the rains. This litter retains water, and the resulting residue corrodes the gutters. Regular gutter cleaning prevents such wear and increases the lifespan of the gutters.
There are also chances of summer storms, where we have sudden heavy rains accompanied by strong winds. Such rains are short-lived, but their effect cannot be ignored. The wind deposits debris onto the roof and the rain washes it into the gutter. If you had not cleaned your gutters in preparation for summer, the high water volumes will spill overboard and could end up seeping into the foundation of your home.
Gutter cleaning can be a daunting task, but with the right tools and some practice, you can achieve impressive results. The quality of the ladder makes a great deal of difference. Invest in a sturdy, extendable ladder. It should be strong and relatively light since you’ll be moving it constantly from one point to the other. You can use a ladder stabilizer to avoid the ladder directly on the gutters and damaging them.
The stabilizer is a horizontal mount that patches onto the adjacent walls on either side of the ladder. The stabilizer can also be designed to hold onto the roof without touching the gutters. Do not attempt to clean the gutters while stepping on the roof; it’s just too risky. That said, here are some basic gutter cleaning procedures:
Your gutters are all clear and clean now. Should there be any summer storms, you can be certain that the water will be collected and directed away from the foundation of your house.
♦ Before going up the ladder, spread a plastic sheet underneath your working space to catch any debris. This saves you from doing additional cleaning afterward.
♦ Make sure the ladder is on solid ground. Start with the downspout area, scooping the dirt out with your hands. Make sure to use gloves as they’ll protect you from sharp debris. A plastic scoop will also do the job. Clean the section that you can comfortably reach, then move the ladder to the next section until you’re all done.
♦ Once you’ve cleaned out the solid debris, flush your gutters with a garden hose to wash away the finer remains. Start from the farthest end and work towards the drain spout.
♦ Once you’re done, look for any damages that can be repaired. If the gutter is sagging, which is common, you can mount a gutter hanger to hold it in place.
♦ While you’re up there, you can also carry out a quick inspection of the roof to see if any problems call for attention.
♦ Collect the debris from the plastic sheet and dispose of it appropriately.
During spring, San Diego trees and landscaping grow rapidly. By the end of the season, they’re all bushy and could do with a good trim. The most common tools used in trimming include hand clippers, hedge shears, loppers, and pruning saws. Pick your tools according to the size of the branches of your flowers, shrubs or trees.
Trimming isn’t just for maintaining an even shape. You also want to remove all dead, broken, discolored, deformed and crowded limbs. The blade of your tool should be sharp enough to make a single, smooth cut, as rough cuts take more time to heal. If you find yourself wiggling the cutting tool around the branch, then you’re using a tool that’s too small for that girth size.
Trimming your landscaping in preparation for the summer has the following additional benefits:
Don’t forget the lawn. Mow the grass and pull out the weeds. Summer mood is already in the air. Let your landscape usher in the season with a vibrant blossom that turns your home into a visual spectacle.
♦ Increases density of your plants, flowering, and fruits in the summer
♦ Form the plants to a particular shape and size
♦ Restore the vitality of old, overgrown shrubs
♦ Restore their original colors
The hottest months of the year are about to commence in San Diego, and the last thing you want is your HVAC malfunctioning in that sweltering heat. Servicing the air filter is the easiest yet the most crucial AC maintenance task. If you’re a novice in AC servicing matters, begin by familiarizing yourself with filter replacement or cleaning in the case of reusable filters. During operation, the filter gathers dirt, dust, and pollen which block the airflow, so the system is forced to work harder to circulate the air. This leads to high energy bills and insufficient cooling. A dirty AC also circulates the impurities around the house and could trigger asthma and allergy symptoms.
Clean the evaporator and condenser coils. The residue and dirt they collect over time insulates them and decreases their capacity to absorb heat. The condenser coils of the outdoor unit are especially exposed to dirt, making them less effective. You can spray the unit with a water hose, carefully avoiding the electrical box. Obviously, the power should be turned off. For the portable units, you can clean the coils with a cloth or soft brush.
Remove the outer covers and clean the fins by spraying them from the inside with a garden hose. Avoid using a pressure washer here as they can bend or damage the fins. Inspect for any bent fins and straighten them using a butter knife. Be gentle here; avoid going in more than half an inch so you don’t damage those tubes fixed in the fins. Ensure that you clean the area around the outdoor AC unit and eliminate anything that will block the smooth airflow. With these steps, you are sure to have your AC in tip-top shape all year long.
Summer is around the corner in San Diego and the sun will be at its brightest. Making sure your windows and doors are spotlessly clean is the best way to get the most light into your home, as well as to ensure every opening is functioning properly.
Start by patting away the dust with a cloth or a duster. Then use your cleaning solution, which can vary depending on the type of window, but a basic mixture of dish soap combined with water will do in most cases. For small windows or those with multiple small panes, use a sponge. For large windows, a squeegee is ideal. If the window is higher than you can reach, you can attach a squeegee to a broom handle or an extension pole.
The interior of the windows is easy to clean; they’re mostly just dusty. The exterior is often dirtier since it’s exposed to water runoff, bird droppings, minerals, grime, and so on. Consider stronger window cleaning solutions for these stubborn stains. Use a spray bottle to dampen the windows, and let the solution sit for a couple of minutes before washing. If the squeegee is making squeaky sounds, add more soap to the solution. After washing, spray clean water to rinse.
The drying part is crucial; you want to leave your windows clear and streak-free. The quality of your squeegee makes a great deal of difference. A sharp rubber blade makes solid contact with the surface leaving it spotless. Leaving streaks indicates that the blade has become blunt and should be replaced. For small windows, wipe with vertical downward stokes. When cleaning a large picture window, use horizontal strikes, starting from the top and overlapping each stroke by a couple of centimeters. In between the strokes, wipe the squeegee blade with a lint-free cloth.
Don’t forget the screens. Pop them out and scrub them with a non-abrasive brush. Use a water hose to spray both sides to eject any particles trapped inside the mesh. Leave them to dry before putting them back. If you’re cleaning multiple screens of different sizes, put a small mark on them so you can be certain what goes where. Alternatively, you can leave them to dry under their respective windows. Finally, ensure that you wipe any remaining water spills on the windowpane, sill or frame using a lint-free cloth.
Start with the front door as it’s probably dirtiest. Begin with a basic dusting to eliminate loose dirt. The cleaning solution to use mostly depends on the material of the door. Is it wooden, metallic, PVC, fiberglass or composite? There are specific cleaning solutions for each of these materials. With that said, a mixture of dish soap and water is acceptable for most doors.
Scrub the door with a cloth or a soft brush, rinse and wipe dry. Follow a similar procedure for the other doors in the house. When cleaning sliding glass doors in San Diego, use the window cleaning tip given above to ensure that they’re left streak-free. If your doors are wooden with staining, you can include some polish in the final wipe to give them a vibrant glow. Finally, wipe the knob with disinfectant to kill germs.
No matter the size of your yard, you can set up a porch where you can relax and enjoy the summer breeze. It is advisable to have the area enclosed to provide shade from the scorching sun. You can have translucent walls/roof to let in the light. As for the entrance, there’s a variety of patio doors in San Diego that you can choose from.
How exactly should your outdoor seating area look like? Well, that part is up to you. Employ your creativity to come up with a unique space that caters to your needs. Here are six ideas that you can incorporate:
The options for your summer patio can be as conservative or as wild as your imagination can get. You don’t have to break the bank either. You can easily use the materials within your reach to come up with something cozy and convenient. Just make sure that you use weatherproof materials that can withstand the sun and the occasional rain. Go for fabrics that don’t fade from being exposed to damaging UV rays. Lighter colors are ideal for this. Indeed, vacations don’t last forever, but with these tips your San Diego home will remain an inviting haven even in the throes of the summer heat.
♦ Use the perimeter wall as a backdrop for the seats. Prop benches against the wall, and you already have the framework for the seating area. You can now spruce it up with cushions and throw some pillows around for extra comfort. Add a table so it can double up as a dining area. If you don’t have natural shade from trees, you can also build a gazebo.
♦ Utilize the corner of your garden to accommodate an L-shaped seat. This works even with relatively small spaces. Add potted plants so that the space blends into the nature of the surrounding garden.
♦ If you have enough space, you can include a separate dining table. Having your meals outside in the summer breeze is a welcome change. Throw a barbecue grill into the mix for fun gatherings with friends and loved ones.
♦ Consider the hanging seat options – hammocks, swing seats, bubble chairs, and so on. You can hang them on trees in your yard. If you don’t have suitable trees, you can build wooden/metallic frames for the seats to hang from. You can also opt for seats that come with their own stands.
♦ Get inflatable seats – they’re easy to handle as you can deflate and fold them when you need to use your yard for a different purpose.
♦ Install a portable swimming pool for a perfect quick getaway from the summer heat. Your kids will also love it!
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