Week 21 & 22: May 21 & 28, 2023
Welcome to the second half of National Electrical Safety Month and Clean Air Month! As we wrap up these homeowner 101 tasks, your home should be more electrically updated and with cleaner air. Some of these tasks might turn out to be more time-consuming than this schedule allows. Spread out the tasks, like swapping out grounded outlets, to focus on rooms and areas of the house with the most use. We will continue to focus on electrical and air quality health for your home this month!
Spread out these tasks over the next two weeks. Copy and paste each bulleted item into your calendar. Set the recurring task based on the time frame in parentheses (monthly, weekly, etc). The weeklong schedule is a template to get you started. Set each of the home maintenance tasks on a day that works best for you, or ignore the ones that don't apply to your home.
Sunday:
Clear expired food and to-go containers out of the fridge & check your fridge’s temperature, airflow, and inside water filter. (weekly)
Use your knowledge from searching for your home’s electrical panel from Weeks 19 & 20 to reset your fuse box. Make sure each circuit breaker is labeled correctly by turning each one off and making sure it goes to the correct appliances/outlets. This might be easiest with a friend but should only need to be done one time. And for goodness sake, label them in permanent marker. When you are done, take a picture and save the information digitally with your other digital important documents. (once)
Check the weatherstripping around doors and windows, replace as necessary (twice yearly)
Monday:
Take a break! *
You can choose a day that is right for you, but a rest day from home maintenance is important to keep from burning out. I choose Mondays because let’s face it, work takes a big chunk out of all of us on Monday.
Tuesday:
If you haven’t already and winter weather in your area has passed, clean and store all portable heater units. Also clean and shut down central heating systems in your home according to manufacture’s instructions (yearly)
With warm weather starting, change the direction of ceiling fans to counterclockwise (yearly)
Clean your home’s air ducts: this is a good thing to hire a professional for a quick fix since most home vacuums do not have the reach that a pro’s does. (yearly)
Wednesday:
Clean your kitchen sink, including garbage disposal (monthly)
Clean rarely-used outlets, and add outlet covers to avoid (once)
Take your items list from week 19/20 and purchase the necessary supplies. This is a good time to invest in good wire cutters/strippers, pliers, and even a wire running kit (one time task)
Thursday:
Use a damp cloth to dust all your air duct registers and the tops of fans where unseen dirt can accumulate.
Start replacing dated outlets and light switches (once)
Next week is Week 3 & 4 of Brush & Bulky item collection in Dallas.
Brush and bulky items may be set out beginning on the Thursday prior to your collection week through Sunday prior to your collection week. Please see the My Schedule app here to find your week and find what items are accepted.
Friday:
Clean the coils on the HVAC inside with a vacuum, and the exterior unit with a garden hose (twice yearly)
Empty all trash bins and take the trash bins outside*
*Assign this to the day trash is collected at your home.
Saturday:
Remove and clean your dishwasher’s filter, and run a cycle of vinegar to clean the interior (monthly)
This time of year the plants can grow fast! So trim back any bushes or trees from the house weekly for the rest of the growing season (weekly)
And that’s it for week 21/22! Happy Spring and Happy Home Health!