Winterizing Your Barrington Homes

As usual at this time of year our weather is like a yo-yo. We've seen a lot of rain in the last few days, it's been cloudy all last week, and now the cold is back with temperatures dropping into the 30's for the week ahead. Snow, dare I say it, will be here very soon. Now that winter is around the corner, winterizing your Barrington homes doesn't take long if you are living in your house.

The majority of homes here in the Barrington area have large lots and acreage. So let's take a look at what you can do outside to help you through the winter months:

Air conditioning units. Wrap the A/C condenser. This is done to prevent the constant water that gets through the top, freezing and melting which can cause damage. That said do not over wrap. We still need it to have air flow even though it's not in use. We buy a small tarp and cover the top and half the sides.

Ride on mowers. Remove the battery and bring it inside. Store it in the basement or laundry room, somewhere that you can keep it out of the way but off the floor - that would just drain it's power. When spring comes your mower will start right up.

Exterior water bibs. Undo your hoses, let them drain before it freezes and store in the garage. This stops water freezing inside and splitting the hose. If you have frost proof bibs no worry, if not consider buying bib protectors. This stops water inside the bib freezing and working it's way back into the house as it freezes and causes damage.

Got a long driveway? I have already put my snow markers in the ground. This helps us know where the driveway is to plow when we get a large fall of snow. We blow our own drive, others have service, either way it will protect your grass area from getting ravaged. Do it soon, as soon as the ground freezes you'll have a hard time getting them down far enough to stay in for the season. If you do blow your own snow, give it a quick sweep to remove any stones or other debris, to preserve your blower.

Ice Melt. About once a year we seem to get an ice event, you know, those days when you walk out and wish you knew how to skate! Get some ice melt from your local hardware store ready for that day.

Here's a funny story. When we lived in Deer Park, we had a house on a small hill at the end of the cul de sac. A local police cruiser was crawling the neighborhood and came down, yes down, the cul de sac. Of course it was that ice day we just talked about and he got stuck. Our ice melt was never going to be enough to get the poor chap up out of the cul de sac. We took him some hot coffee while he called for the township salt truck to come and salt the road. Prior to that even my husband had decided to slide down our drive to go to work....big mistake, he ended up in the shrubbery at the bottom in the circle inside the road. Between them they had a good laugh. he went on his merry way behind the salt truck and we used our ice melt to get hubby back up the drive, having decided he was better off working from home that day.

Snow! Our average snow fall is about 6 to 7 inches. As an average that means we get flurries, an inch here and there and them like last year we can get a 2 foot dumping of the stuff. If the snow on your roof melts then your attic insulation is not doing a very good job. Check your depth now or wait for a snow fall to see what happens. Be mindful of the sun though, even in the winter cold it will melt the snow from above.

FYI-Insulating in your attic is one of the easiest places to improve comfort and energy efficiency. Why, well warm air rises so if we trap it, it'll keep us warm. For more insulation information: http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=diy.diy_attic_insulation

Where to go to get supplies?I know you are all busy Christmas shopping. Don't put this off for too much longer though, it's weather dependent. We've got a Home Depot in Lake Zurich, Ace Hardware in Fox River Grove for those of us in Lake Barrington and my store, and Menards at the top of Route 53 on Lake Cook Road, so all Barrington areas are covered. Here are the phone numbers.

Home Depot Lake Zurich: (847) 726-0707

Menards Long Grove: (847) 963-0558

Ace Hardware Fox River Grove: (847) 639-4431

I hope these tips have been useful, I have done our drive, need to do the hoses, and then it's time to do the outside decorations. Perhaps should have done that yesterday while it was warmer!