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Brrrr ! Most of us are past the degree at which we can spend all twenty-four hour period potter around alfresco , take care of lawn and garden job . For that reason , most of our must - do project for this calendar month are indoors and focus on getting the firm ( and your family ) quick for winter . DIY tasks like caulk , hearth maintenance , and insulating the attic are all about keeping you ardent , and lowering your utility poster . Because October is also Fire Safety Month , we certainly ca n’t ignore the fastball detectors this calendar month .
1. Patch Concrete
crack , scrap , and collapse sections of concrete driveways , walkway , and porch will worsen over the winter , and when that happens prepare the hurt will cost you . Make repairs now before the weather take a turn and you ’ll save time and money . Tofix cracks in concrete , first get rid of sluttish rubble , then apply your repair material with a trowel or drift and rent the mixture cure . Ourresearched guide to the good concrete cracking fillersandconcrete patcheswill assistant you select the right product for your project .
2. Insulate the Attic
While temperatures fell outside , you’re able to still stay quick and keep your vigour bills low withproper insulation . dome are one of the biggest culprits when it occur to wintertime Department of Energy loss , so set up yours for winter by installing idle filling or battattic insulationbefore the cold-blooded weather hits .
3. Update the Mudroom
October means it ’s sentence to pull out the boots and expectant jacket , but you ’d better have a place to store your wet and muddy outdoor wearing apparel . If you have amudroom , update it with a fresh coat of paint or an sum storage bench . Those without mudrooms could pose a boot wrack in the entryway and clean out the hall closet to make elbow room for the coats . Cold - weather condition dweller with ample space should conceive empower in aboot dryer , likePeet ’s 4 - shoe electric shoe and boot dryer , an upgrade you ’ll be especially thankful for come January and February .
4. Winterize the Lawn
If youtend to your lawnnow before it goes sleeping for the winter , it will grow back better than ever come spring . Spread a thin stratum of fertilizer — too much will burn the supergrass — and make full in fragile maculation with “ nerveless season”grass seed . Also be certain to aerate your lawn to forestall thatch establish up and keep air , wet , and nutrients flowing to your lawn ’s roots . TheYard Butler manual coring aerator , one of the top picks from our editors’hands - on test of the good lawn aerator , can help you get the task done without spend a bundle .
5. Reverse Your Ceiling Fans
Heat rise , which is why it ’s a good idea tochange the direction of your roof fanin the fall . You desire it to turn clockwise now , thereby pushing hot tune down and assist it circulate throughout the way . This modification is light to make on newerceiling fans , which usually have a substitution that reverses the sword direction .
6. Disconnect the Garden Hose
As gardening season comes to an end , so does the motive to water our plots on a regular basis . While you ’re outside fertilizing and aerating the lawn this calendar month , commemorate to disconnect yourgarden hosefrom the exterior spigot . Not doing so can cause any water left in the hosiery to boom , freeze , and damage the spigot , and perhaps even the paries or pipes it ’s sequester to . A plumber ’s call to mend it all is one spring disbursal you could do without .
7. Seal the House
It takes more energy , and more money , to fire up a draughty sign . That ’s why it pays to treat order of payment before you even interchange on the furnace . Inspect window frames and doorway jamb , both inside and out , for hole , cracks , or crumble caulking . Install weatherstrip to fill up gaps in door soma and windows , and apply freshexterior caulkwhere call for to seal off up your home . In a few months ’ meter , you ’ll be glad you take the time to keep whistling winter fart at bay .
8. Check the Detectors
October isNational Fire Prevention Month , so take the time to review your home safety program . Do you havesmoke detectorsinstalled in every chamber , and outside sleeping areas ? How about in the basement ? Install additional smoke detectors if demand , and then check that they ’re always fully powered by checking batteries monthly . ( Of course , you ’ll also wantfire extinguishersat the ready on every floor of the firm . )
9. Ready the Fireplace
probability are somewhat serious that your open fireplace was n’t used much during the summer , so give it a thoroughmaintenance checkupbefore you get off the time of year ’s first fire . First , visually value the lamp chimney from the outside . chip , crack , or erosion are signs that you ’ll postulate to call a repairman . Inside , check the labial pipe for lampblack buildup , and check the damper closes and opens with repose . If ash tree and creosote are present , houseclean the fireplacewill ensure that your ardor burns safely .
10. Pick Out a Pumpkin
With Halloween on the horizon , pumpkins are everywhere , maybe even in your backyard garden . Whether youpaint them , carve them , or leave them au naturel , they ’re a certain sign of fall when placed on your doorstep . force tool fans can make a jack - o’-lantern in no time with aDremel cordless rotary tooland theDremel 191 sculpture bitand the194 carving bit . ( SeeDremel ’s websitefor cut up instructions . )
This Is the class for a Kitchen Renovation
Whether you ’re deal or staying , everyone can get something out of a kitchen update . Learn why we consider this renovation the Most Valuable Project of 2025 and how to stay on budget .
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