Vacation Tips for Your Home

6/24/2019 (Permalink)

We hope you have a wonderful relaxing and enjoyable summer no matter where the road may lead you.

School is out and summer is officially here. It’s vacation season!

No matter if you are choosing a staycation and making daily road trips, traveling across country or venturing overseas; it always seems to be top of mind to stop the mail and newspaper (or have a trusted neighbor gather them), have a plan for our pets, and clean out the refrigerator. But what about the important parts of our homes? The water, fire alarms, and smaller appliances. We tend to see an increase of water losses in the summer months because people go away and then come home to overflowed toilets, broken hot water heater tanks and washer pipes. We don’t want to see your return to home after a nice relaxing time turn to chaos. Below are some tips on preparing your home for vacation to hopefully make your return a little less stressful.

Water

Just like life there are so many pros and cons to this and you need to use your best judgment and what you are comfortable with in your home while you are away. But here is the deal, unless you shut off the main supply of water coming into your home, the water will sit in pipes, toilets, and faucets. Without anyone home to notice, if any of the pipes or lines fail, water will continue to run as if the source has been turned on and is running. This could leave you with a flooded home causing serious water damage and headache upon your return. Once you locate the main water shut off, it is an easy on and off, and brings you a little peace of mind.

Theft

We live in a social media world where we want to share everything the minute we are doing it. This also lets criminals know when your home will be vacant and for how long. It’s tempting to post pictures of your fun carefree time in Cabo or amazing ski trip in the mountains. Police will advise against this. You never know who might have access to your social media feed even if it is private. Police also suggest alerting them to your vacation. In many towns they will add your street to their patrol route as a precaution. As much as you want to share, it’s better to be safe than sorry and post once you return home.

Smoke Detectors

No one will be home and you never know what might be lurking behind your walls. Electrical fires happen every day! Before you head out, check your smoke alarms and be sure your batteries are new. No one wants to get a call from a neighbor that their house caught fire while sipping an ice cold beverage on the beach.

Trash & Dishes

While many of us keep it top of mind to make sure we have an empty dishwasher, sink, and trash barrel. In the rush to get out the door to catch a flight or beat the traffic we will brush off these items. Leaving a full waste basket in your house or dirty dishes is an open invitation for rodents to enter. Save yourself the hassle and take the extra 5 minutes so you can return to a rodent free house.

Small appliances

Unplug the coffee maker, television, toaster, alarm clocks, etc. No one will be home to use them anyway! This will help save energy in your home as well as help prevent any fire that might occur if there was a power surge while you are away.

These are just a few suggested tips to consider when preparing for your home for vacation. We hope you have a wonderful relaxing and enjoyable summer no matter where the road may lead you. If upon your return, you do find yourself in a situation requiring a little assistance, SERVPRO of Salem/Plaistow is always here to help.