Walk Around Your Home Looking For This!
As we are all supposed to be taking in our morning or evening walks, getting that all-important exercise, take the opportunity to circle around the house before going inside. Why? Well, summer has sprung, and our plants and trees are growing like mad, and we don’t want said plants and trees resting on or against ANY part of the house! Seriously. So walk around your home looking for this: anything touching your walls, brick, siding, or roof. Call somebody ASAP and schedule a trim if you find anything touching the home you can’t handle trimming yourself. It could save you thousands of dollars.
A quick reminder to look around regularly
In the photo above, it’s clear that several maintenance tasks have gone unchecked at this home. Can you spot some of them in the photo? Well, the most obvious one is that plants should not be growing in your rain gutters! While some may consider this unimportant, it’s a no-no. This rain gutter is likely teaming with pine needles from the numerous pine trees you cannot see in the photo. Once the gutters overflow, bad things happen, and rain gets in behind the fascia and gets costly quickly.
What else do you see that’s a problem?
Okay, the sapling in the gutter was an easy one. How about another problem in the photo? Yep, that caulking along the trim and siding is shot. It must be removed and re-caulked as long as the wood isn’t rotted due to moisture and insects.
See anything else wrong?
If you said the paint, you may be right! When the caulking has deteriorated this badly, it usually means water has been getting inside, and that’s bad. But nowadays, caulk is built to last for years when properly applied. The same goes for exterior house paint. But in Houston’s harsh weather, your paint job will begin to deteriorate after 10-12 years. It gets chalky and possibly flaky and no longer protects the surfaces it’s applied to. This happens to coincide with the breakdown of caulk for a lot of homeowners.
But wait, there’s more!
The corner of the roof appears to have some flashing out of place or missing. With a gaping crack vertically down the wall this means that moisture is very likely getting in behind the exterior wall cavity. There is good odds that there is mold and mildew together with some rotted wood around the home if not in this spot.
Oh, and that tree you see at the top of the photo in the background… It’s not in the background; it’s got large branches dragging across the older asphalt shingle roof and causing damage every time it moves. When it rains or freezes, it rubs even harder. Roofs are not made for anything other than weather and Santa’s sleigh. Period. If anything ever touches or rubs your roof, you must deal with it ASAP.
Insurance will not cover this stuff!
Remember, your homeowners’ insurance policy will NOT cover things like the above. This is considered standard maintenance, like changing the oil on your car or washing your dishes. So, get out there, play inspector, and check your place out now and then. Call me if you see something weird, and I’ll help you as best I can. I’ve seen a lot of strange things, trust me. But seriously, get your exercise. And, now and then, check out your property. It’ll keep mole-hills from turning into mountains.
One more thing…
If you enjoyed this little exercise, let me know will ya? I’ll try to make it a regular thing to test your sleuthing skills on home maintenance. Stay cool and hydrate!
Blessings,
Vicky