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Is
Your Home Fully Protected Against Winter ?
In
winter you should naturally take more precautions than in
summer. Some years winter “hits harder” than others. Quite
often people will go away on holiday and it is warm. They
don’t leave their heating on (or if they do not very high)
and think they will not have problems. A few days after the
holiday has started the weather turns very bad at home, freezing
conditions for example and upon their return from skiing or
a winter break in the Caribbean they arrive home and the ceiling
is on the floor and water is gushing out. This is bad enough
on a house, but could even worse if you are in apartment below
What
you should do: This applies just as much to a person renting
as an owner occupier. First of all you can turn off the water
supply whilst you are away and drain the system down, but
this means it all has to be set up when you return and can
take time. Instead people can keep the heat on at a low temperature
and also put in a frost stat. These are not very expensive
and if the temperature drops below four degrees centigrade,
the frost stat will activate the heating system..
It
is no good just turning the water off at the mains as there
is still normally water in the property – pipes – radiators
and internal tanks.
Before
winter sets in check the condition of the roof. Make sure
there is proper guttering and all tiles are secure and remember
if you have a conservatory or area with a glass roof below
to ensure the builder has installed good quality wire mesh
to stop tiles slipping if they are loose and if they have
snow on them, they would be much heavier.
Check
the roof space inside – you should insulate the attic and
if there are pipes and water tanks there they should be fully
covered in a suitable insulation material. You could have
a situation of a family in Ireland who went off on their winter
holiday to the sun. They didn’t take any precautions for the
house and when they returned found the water storage tank
had burst and half the ceiling was on the floor. If you have
not got a light in the loft, have one installed – helps so
that you or your contractor can see properly for a close examination.
If
you don’t make sure you have taken adequate precautions, you
could possibly find that when you go to make an insurance
claim, the claim is declined by the insurance company. It
doesn’t cost a lot to prepare a property and even a relatively
new property should be checked from time to time as insulation
can wear out etc. The cost of keeping a property warm whilst
it is unoccupied should not be too expensive. You don’t need
the hot water to be on much and if for example it is rental
or for sale property that is empty between tenancies – it
is much more welcoming to walk into a warm place than one
that is cold, damp and probably smells.
Philip
Suter is a Director of JML Property Services, http://www.jml-property-insurance.co.uk
a UK based company offering Insurance products on line (and
there is more information about insurance cover for whatever
weather at http://www.jml-property-insurance.co.uk/adequate_building_insurance.htm
) a holiday home advertising service - http://www.jmlvillas.com
and management training with in the uk. He is a very experienced
property consultant with over 30 years work in the Residential
letting business and served in the national council of ARLA.
He is a Fellow of the National Association of Estate Agents
(NAEA) and a Member of The association of Residential Letting
Agents (ARLA) Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Philip_Suter
©Philip
Suter jml Property Services January 2006
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