Larry Caldwell
Super Member
It has been an unusually mild autumn here. We still haven't seen first frost, which normally happens in October, so I have had plenty of time to prep for bad weather. I was running tasks through my head and wondering if I had forgotten anything. So far;
Winter tires on vehicles and new wiper blades. First legal day for studded snows is November 1. Summer UV and heat kills wiper rubber. Test vehicle batteries. Winter kits in vehicles. You might think antifreeze, but that is one of my spring rituals. Service the cooling system before you need cooling.
Sweep and inspect the chimney. Service and inspect smoke/fire alarms. Cutting firewood is a winter project, so the wood shed was already full by Sept. 15. Check weather-stripping on doors and windows. Clean gutters again and again until leaves quit falling.
Get Christmas lights ready to turn on after Thanksgiving next week.
Service and test generators. I have four of them, one for the house and each outbuilding. This year I am adding a lithium battery UPS for the modem/router so our cell phones and tablets will work without running a &$&% noisy generator. The house generator runs on propane and the tank is full. The other generators are gasoline, but only run occasionally. 10 gallons of gas is plenty. The propane generator is a Home Depot 8/6 kw special only 4 years old, but the hoses all rotted and fell apart. Extreme fire hazard. I was not pleased.
Inspect and repair water system insulation.
Plenty of staples, other ingredients, and supplies if we decide not to go to town for a couple of weeks. We're retired, and if we don't want to go anywhere, we don't. The wood stove has a good cook surface and I have a gorgeous antique hand crank coffee mill, so the essentials of gracious living are covered.
Batteries. Tractor Supply had 1300 lumen rechargeable LED flashlights in stock for under $15 that will save me big bucks on AAA and AA batteries. 2.5 hours on high.
Waterproofing all my outerwear, greasing my boots so they can dry before I need them, digging out winter hats, caps, and gloves.
Yard and garden cleanup. Get the sprayer off the tractor and mount the blade.
What other seasonal tasks are appropriate this time of year?
Winter tires on vehicles and new wiper blades. First legal day for studded snows is November 1. Summer UV and heat kills wiper rubber. Test vehicle batteries. Winter kits in vehicles. You might think antifreeze, but that is one of my spring rituals. Service the cooling system before you need cooling.
Sweep and inspect the chimney. Service and inspect smoke/fire alarms. Cutting firewood is a winter project, so the wood shed was already full by Sept. 15. Check weather-stripping on doors and windows. Clean gutters again and again until leaves quit falling.
Get Christmas lights ready to turn on after Thanksgiving next week.
Service and test generators. I have four of them, one for the house and each outbuilding. This year I am adding a lithium battery UPS for the modem/router so our cell phones and tablets will work without running a &$&% noisy generator. The house generator runs on propane and the tank is full. The other generators are gasoline, but only run occasionally. 10 gallons of gas is plenty. The propane generator is a Home Depot 8/6 kw special only 4 years old, but the hoses all rotted and fell apart. Extreme fire hazard. I was not pleased.
Inspect and repair water system insulation.
Plenty of staples, other ingredients, and supplies if we decide not to go to town for a couple of weeks. We're retired, and if we don't want to go anywhere, we don't. The wood stove has a good cook surface and I have a gorgeous antique hand crank coffee mill, so the essentials of gracious living are covered.
Batteries. Tractor Supply had 1300 lumen rechargeable LED flashlights in stock for under $15 that will save me big bucks on AAA and AA batteries. 2.5 hours on high.
Waterproofing all my outerwear, greasing my boots so they can dry before I need them, digging out winter hats, caps, and gloves.
Yard and garden cleanup. Get the sprayer off the tractor and mount the blade.
What other seasonal tasks are appropriate this time of year?
