A Year of Pittsburgh Home Maintenance

Spring: undo what winter did

• Clean gutters and downspouts after the last freeze. A winter of grit, seed pods, and shingle wear ends up in there, and spring rains arrive heavy.
• Walk the roofline from the ground. Binoculars beat ladders. You're looking for lifted or missing shingles and bent flashing — freeze-thaw cycles work fasteners loose every winter.
• Check the grading wherever snow was piled. Plow piles and shovel banks compact and gouge the soil. It should still slope away from the foundation on every side.
• Turn exterior spigots back on and watch for splits. First use of the year is when a winter-cracked hose bib announces itself. Have someone run the spigot while you watch the basement side of that wall.
• Clear and rinse the AC condenser before the first heat wave. Pull off the leaves and cottonwood fluff and rinse the fins gently with a hose — power off at the disconnect first. HVAC schedules jam solid the first hot week; get ahead of it.
• Check the basement after the first heavy rains. Damp corners in April are the cheapest warning you'll ever get — our basement water guide covers the fixes.

Summer: the dry-season window

• Caulk and paint touch-ups. Caulk wants dry wood and warm days to cure, so summer is the window. Hit the gaps at trim, siding joints, and window edges before fall rain finds them.
• Wash the siding. Hose and a soft brush. Half the value is getting close enough to spot problems you'd never see from the sidewalk.
• Trim vegetation about a foot off the house. Plants against siding trap moisture and hand pests a bridge.
• Check window screens and weep holes. Patch or replace torn screens, and poke clear the little drain slots at the bottom of storm windows and sliders so rain doesn't sit on the sill.
• Test the garage door safety reverse. Lay a board flat where the door lands — the door should touch it and reverse. If it doesn't, keep kids and pets well clear and have a door tech adjust it.
• Walk the deck. Tighten loose fasteners, mark popped nails, and lean on the railings like a guest will.

Fall: the big one

• Get the furnace serviced before the first cold night. Book it in early fall — once the weather turns, techs book out for weeks. This is the most important line on this page.
• Swap the furnace filter and stock spares. Buy a winter's worth now so there's never an excuse.
• Test the heat early. Run it on the first cool evening, while it's still mild out. Don't discover a dead furnace in November along with everyone else.
• Gutters again, after leaf drop. Clogged gutters are where ice dams start.
• Disconnect hoses, and close interior spigot valves if you have them. Many older Pittsburgh houses have a small shut-off inside for each outdoor spigot — close it, then open the outside spigot to drain.
• Chimney check if you burn anything. Wood especially — have a chimney sweep look before the first fire of the year.
• Reverse the ceiling fans so they run clockwise on low and push warm air back down.
• Check the weatherstripping. If a closed door lets a dollar bill slide out easily, the gap is leaking heat all season.

Winter: watch, don't climb

• Keep downspout outlets and reachable gutter edges clear of ice — from the ground, with a roof rake or a broom. No ladders on ice for any reason.
• Watch for ropes of icicles at the eaves. Big icicles mean heat escaping the attic is melting snow that refreezes at the cold edge. That's an insulation conversation, not an ice-chipping one.
• Keep the thermostat at 55°F or higher — even overnight, even when you're away. The savings below that are never worth a frozen pipe.
• Know where your water main shut-off is before the night you need it. Usually the basement wall nearest the street, by the meter.
• Peek into the attic after wind-driven snow. Fine powder can blow in through vents, then melt into the insulation.

All year: the ten-minute monthly walk

• Look at the furnace filter. Gray and matted, swap it.
• Press the test button on every smoke and CO alarm.
• Glance around the water heater for rust streaks or moisture.
• Sniff near gas appliances. If you ever smell gas, don't hunt for it — leave the house and call your gas utility from outside.
• Press the test button on GFCI outlets in the kitchen, baths, garage, and outside; reset them after.
• Fix slow drains while they're merely slow — a slow drain is a clog on layaway.

Knowing when to stop

Everything above is homeowner-grade: eyes, hoses, filters, test buttons. The moment a job involves gas lines, the electrical panel, structural framing, or a roof you'd have to stand on, it stops being a checklist item and becomes a trade. Our guide to where DIY should honestly end draws that line room by room.