Calgary Real Estate Blog

Holey moley, were those record-breaking weekend temperatures pretty great, or what? I hope you managed to get some outdoor time with your family to soak up this rather stellar chinook.

Don’t let the disappearing snow fool you, though: we’re still in the dead of winter, and have more -30 days ahead of us. With that in mind, it’s not a bad idea to ensure all this runoff isn’t going to damage your home when the party’s over: check for pools of standing water near your foundation, and take this opportunity to repair and clean out your downspouts. If for some reason you decide to turn the water back on for your outdoor hoses, don’t forget to shut it back off and drain the hoses again before anything bursts. If your flower beds have perennials, like strawberry plants and the like in them, ensure they don’t get too dry after the snow cover disappears – otherwise they might not come back.

And for those of you not subscribing to Edmonton’s push to keep Christmas lights up through February to make winter more bearable, now’s a good time to box up those LEDs too.

Otherwise, get out there while the sun is shining and get some colour on your pasty self!

Chinooks are also a great time to house shop – to chat about your options, give us a call!

The white stuff has fallen again, this time in a much more seasonally appropriate manner than September’s snowpocalypse (I can’t believe spell check doesn’t have a problem with that word), and it’s time to double check your home is winterized if that hasn’t been done already. One key appliance for Calgarians over the next several months will be the furnace, and you want to make sure that puppy is running smoothly and reliably; a 10:00 pm emergency repair call in -30 degree weather could cost you a small fortune.

It’s a wise idea to contact your favourite trusted furnace specialist sometime in the fall for a tune up, just to ensure everything’s running as it should. There are a couple things you can take care of yourself as well, though.

Your furnace filter should be changed every one to three months, and some recommend that cheap fibreglass filters are actually better for your furnace than expensive high efficiency ones; check with a professional to be sure of what’s right for your system. Check your air return ducts for drafts, and seal with metallic tape any that you find. There are several more steps that more industrious homeowners can do, but unless you’re a confident do-it-yourselfer, call a pro.

Also consider creating setbacks on your digital thermostat, lowering the temperature when you’re away or asleep, and raising it back up again when you’re around. This can lead to some significant cost savings on your gas bill – up to 15 percent according to the Canadian Centre for Housing Technology – as long as you are prepared to find the right balance. Lowering the temperature by too much can lead to an uncomfortable house, high humidity, and reduced airflow, which may not be worth the money saved; a two degree change is the safest bet, offering some savings with little downside.

Have any other tips for keeping your house warm? Share them in the comments!

Looking for a new house to enjoy this winter? Contact me!

Ordinarily I can get a little annoyed by people posting on Facebook about the weather: yes we all have windows, we’re aware that it’s unseasonable in some way, this is not brand new information to anybody. Sure, it’s a Canadian tradition to be obsessed about forecasts – things can change drastically day-to-day around here, unlike, say, Mexico, where it’s pretty much always sunny and beautiful and where I’d like to be right now – but it just seems unnecessary to broadcast one’s limited opinion on the weather to friends and family. Still, I can hardly blame anyone for expressing their frustration with our latest batch of snow in any way they can. I mean, seriously: it was 20 degrees last Wednesday, and looked like mid-December by Saturday? Not cool.

What’re you gonna do, though, besides put off removing the winter tires for a couple extra weeks? One thing you can do with this extra indoor time is to make a list of maintenance projects your home needs, and get cracking. Paint door jambs, change your furnace filter, check the hot water tank, and so on. Maybe you’re due for some new appliances, and now’s a great time to research and shop. Doing these little jobs as they come up doesn’t take a whole lot of time, but staying on top of minor maintenance keeps you from having an indomitable to-do list a couple years from now.

As for the snow, be careful with the shovelling – it’s wet and heavy, after all – and keep an eye out in your basement for signs of water leaking in. Then close your curtains and pretend you’re in Mexico.