November Winter-Prep Home Checklist

November is a good month to get a house ready for cold weather. The leaves are mostly down, the ground is not frozen yet in most places, and you can still work outside without gloves that make everything clumsy.

This list covers general upkeep you can do yourself: looking, cleaning, testing and simple swaps. It is written for a temperate Northern Hemisphere climate. If your winters come earlier or later, shift it by a month.

Safety first. Anything that involves electrical wiring, gas lines or appliances, or the structure of the house is a job for a licensed pro. If you ever smell gas, leave the house first, then call your gas utility or 911 from outside.

1. Water and pipes

• Disconnect garden hoses. Drain them and store them inside. A hose left attached can hold water against the spigot.
• Shut off and drain outdoor spigots if your house has an indoor shut-off valve for them. Open the outside tap to let the line empty. An insulated foam cover over each spigot adds a bit more protection.
• Insulate exposed pipes in the garage, crawl space, attic, or along outside walls. Foam pipe sleeves from a hardware store slide on with no tools.
• Find your main water shut-off and label it. Make sure the valve actually turns. If a pipe ever bursts, this is the one thing you need to know fast.
• Plan for very cold nights. On the coldest nights, open the cabinet doors under sinks on outside walls so warm room air reaches the pipes, and let the cold tap drip on faucets fed by exposed pipes.

If a pipe does freeze, never thaw it with an open flame (a torch, propane or kerosene heater). A hair dryer and an open faucet are the safe route. If you cannot find or reach the frozen section, call a plumber.

2. Heating

• Check the furnace filter. Hold it up to a light. If you cannot see light through it, replace it. Write the date on the filter's edge.
• Book a heating service if you have not had one this year. A furnace, boiler or heat pump inspection is a job for a licensed technician, not a DIY task.
• Book a chimney sweep before your first fire if you have a fireplace or wood stove.
• Clear a three-foot zone around space heaters, the furnace, fireplaces and wood stoves. Move boxes, curtains and laundry.
• Never heat the house with the oven or stovetop.

3. Alarms

• Press the test button on every smoke alarm and carbon monoxide (CO) alarm. You should hear a loud beep from each one.
• Check the date on the back of each alarm. Smoke alarms should be replaced 10 years after the date they were made. For CO alarms, follow the replacement date the maker prints on the alarm.
• Replace batteries if your alarms use replaceable ones and it has been a year. Many people do this when the clocks change in early November.
• Count your CO alarms. There should be one on every level of the home and outside sleeping areas.

Adding a new hard-wired alarm or changing wiring is electrical work. Call a licensed electrician.

4. Drafts and the outside of the house

• Feel for drafts around windows, doors and outlets on outside walls on a windy day. Note where they are.
• Replace worn weatherstripping and door sweeps. Most are peel-and-stick or slide-in and need only scissors or a screwdriver.
• Clear the gutters once most leaves have fallen. Work from a stable ladder with someone nearby, or hire it out. If the roof is steep or high, do not climb it.
• Check the roof from the ground with binoculars for missing or lifted shingles. Leave any roof repair to a roofer.
• Look for cracks in the foundation or walls. Note new or growing cracks for a structural pro to look at. Do not try to judge them yourself.

5. Get the winter gear ready

• Shovel, ice melt and an ice scraper where you can reach them.
• Flashlights with fresh batteries.
• A few days of water, food and any medication you need, in case the power goes out.
• If you own a generator, plan where it will run: outdoors only, well away from windows, doors and an attached garage. Never run one inside, including in a garage. Installing a transfer switch is a job for a licensed electrician.

6. Write it down

• Write the date next to each job you finish. Next November you will know what was done and when.
• Note any repair you could not do yourself and who you called.