What Home Maintenance Projects Do You Have Scheduled for the Beginning of the New Year?

This is the week when children get back to school, teachers return to their classrooms, and many parents try to get their homes back to normal after a holiday of company. From putting away the Christmas decorations to making sure that you get all of the bedding and linens washed, it can seem like the list of things to get done is never ending. If, however, you want to make sure that you have the most energy efficient home, it is important to also start the new year off right by paying attendant to needed HVAC inspections and other home maintenance tasks.

Fortunately, there are many available professionals who can help you with HVAC inspections, as well as plumbing and electrical needs. In fact, residential plumbing, electrical, and HVAC professionals are worth the investment. And while there are some property owners who seem to think that they can tackle any project themselves, the truth is that without the help of professionals these weekend warriors may be doing more harm than good.

Electrical, Plumbing, and HVAC Services Are Important to Maintaining the Value of a Home
With the newest plumbing materials, the safest electrical features, and the most detailed HVAC inspections, a property owner is making an investment in not only current functions, but also future values of a home or business. The decision to own a home is a decision to pay attention to the need for regular maintenance. In fact, without the use of regular plumbing, electrical, and HVAC inspection the current value of a home can significantly decrease. Finding a way to invest in the best craftsmanship and the most efficient appliances and equipment is a wise move for any property owner. These upgrades and changes not only add to the immediate efficiency in a home, but also add to the future value. And while many of these changes require substantial investments it is important to note that they also start providing immediate savings.

Consider some of these facts and figures about the many times when it is important for a home or business owner to work with a professional to get the results that are needed to both maintain and add to the value of any home:

• The plumbing system in a home is composed of two separate subsystems. One subsystem brings in freshwater in, and the other takes out wastewater. Both of these systems are important.
• Even one leaky faucet that drips at the rate of one drip a second can waste more than 3,000 gallons every year. This is an amount of water that is needed to take more than 180 showers!
• Although improvements to every part of a home can be valuable, according to a National Association of Home Builders survey, bathroom remodeling is the job most requested in the U.S., accounting for as many as 78% of renovations.
• Left unserviced, a furnace can stop working suddenly, leaving your family in the cold. In fact, some HVAC experts say as many as 75% of no-heat calls in the winter are related to a lack of maintenance.
• Without adequate attic insulation, up to 20% of every dollar spent on home heating literally goes through the roof. In contrast, installing insulation is generally the best single step to take to reduce significant amounts of energy waste.
• Property owners may need to replace a home’s heating system if it is more than 12 to 15 years old, requires frequent repairs, does not supply sufficient warmth, cycles on and off irregularly, consumes increasing amounts of energy, and emits unusual noises.

Home ownership is not for the feint of heart. Many of the tasks that need to be completed, however, are more successful if you are working with an experienced and licensed contractor. Given that a home is likely the largest investment that you will ever make, it only makes sense that you would wan to do everything within your power to make sure that you not only maintain the current value of your home, but that you add to it as well.

The first week of the new year is the perfect time to list the home improvement projects you would like to achieve.