Spring cleaning is a time-honored tradition in many families. This year, instead of tackling just a few untidy areas, consider sprucing up your entire house.
You'll not only enjoy a fresher and more attractive interior, but you can also boost the value of your home. Here are some items you can add to your checklist:
1. Clear out clutter—and dust
Clutter can quickly build up, especially when space is limited. Left unchecked, clutter can lead to allergy-aggravating dust problems. For help clearing your home and your air, you might turn to a trusted friend who can walk through your house and give you an honest, yet tactful, assessment. Then, purge. Save a few treasures, but box the rest up and donate it all to charity, or to the nearest dumpster.
2. Spruce up the front yard
On a nice spring day, step outside and survey your front lawn. A complete overhaul probably isn't necessary, but a few simple changes might make a world of difference to your curb appeal. Paint your front door a vibrant color. Trim your hedges and add some pops of bright flowering plants in containers. Add a new mailbox, power-wash your driveway, and don't forget to install large, reflective house numbers for convenience and safety. You'll be amazed how a few simple upgrades transform the look of your home from drab to fab.
3. Inspect your plumbing
Leaky faucet? Fix it. Slow drip? Tighten and dry it up. Plumbing issues can be an "out of sight, out of mind" problem that surfaces at the worst times. Head off any lurking issues with an inspection of your plumbing. Update those faucets and washers, clean those pipes, and monitor for holes, drips or rust. Have a trusted plumber visit and do a full assessment. A small investment now can save a flood—literally—of problems later.
4. Schedule an HVAC tune-up
In the spring, as you prepare to move from heat to air conditioning, have your HVAC system inspected by a trained professional. Your local Lennox dealer can inspect the supply and return ducts, replace filters, and make sure your system is operating at peak efficiency.
5. Clean and refresh floors
Sweeping and vacuuming may be enough to shape up floors. If you have hardwood under the carpet, you may want to pull up a section of the carpet to check the wood and subfloor conditions. Re-staining the floors takes patience, but the result can be stunning. Another option is to cover the old flooring with new, easy-to-install wood laminate. No special talents are needed—just a click, snap and tap of the hammer. Or, install new tile to freshen up a room. In an afternoon, you can transform a blah room into a WOW room.
6. Repaint walls
An easy way to brighten a home is to pull out the paint cans. A fresh coat of paint—in cool, neutral shades of white, yellow or sand—adds a fresh look and instant value. Plan a room or two per weekend, and in a month or so, you'll have a welcoming new interior.
