In this episode I am going to teach you how to prepare for winter maintenance now, before the cold, dreary weather sets in to save you time this winter.
In this episode I am going to teach you how to prepare for winter maintenance now, before the cold, dreary weather sets in to save you time this winter.
Episode 22 - PP
What You Should Be Preparing for Winter Right Now
Winter is right around the corner! The drop in temperatures, the lack of sun, and the dreary days are creeping in on all of us. Don’t wait until the last minute to start preparing your property for winter.
In today’s episode I am going to give you the top things you should be doing now to prepare for winter on your farm or homestead. Here we go.
Hi and welcome back to the prepping Positively Podcast! I’m Annie and today we are talking about all of the things you should do to get prepared for winter on your farm or homestead.
I don’t know about you, but the idea of having to go outside in the cold just makes me want to move to South America. I absolutely despise cold weather. I guess that’s why I moved to Florida right?
I know I still have to feed and water all the animals here. I know I have to make trips to the greenhouse to check the plants. I accept that. And honestly, even the coldest part of winter here where I live that isn’t so bad at all.
But when I have to repair a fence, cut up trees that fell, or do maintenance of any sort, I absolutely hate it. I would rather do what I have to do on the farm when the weather is warm and then hibernate in the house reading, baking, or do a craft.
Because I despise the cold so much, I created a maintenance list for winter that is specifically designed to make my winter maintenance very minimal. Now I thought when I made this that it would simply be a way for me to stay out of the cold unless absolutely necessary. However, it did more than that!
What it did was gave me a routine to complete in the fall before the cold comes in. It turned into a to-do list of winter preparations. It has kept me from having to do some repairs in the coldest months, and allowed me to enjoy the winter more without emergency maintenance because I forgot to check things in the fall months.
Now at this point I could explain what’s on my list, however, I feel like you would get more from me explaining how I made my list. So that’s what I will do now.
To start my list I walked. Yep, that’s right, I walked my property. From front to back and side to side. All 15 acres.
On my walk, with my phone in hand and on a note taking app, I started making notes of what needed attention.
For example, I noticed some of the strand wire on the fences for the horses and cows seemed a bit loose. So I wrote in my note app to tighten strand wire on fence by the lake.
I noticed the hay in my chicken coop was getting pretty dusty and dry. So I wrote a note to change out the coop hay and refresh the nesting boxes.
I continued my walk, noting trees that may need trimmed, feeders or waterers that may need a good cleaning, compost that needed turned or emptied and so on.
Now I paid specific attention to major things like the roof of each building, including our two main houses and the tiny house. I looked at plugs and electrical connections, gate hinges and locks, windows and doors, and any problem spots with animals where they may have dug holes that needed filled in.
I noted the interior of the animals pens and noted down if they needed new bedding, a good cleaning or any other maintenance too.
Then I went inside the main houses and the tiny house. I checked the weather stripping, door seals, filters, and any interior maintenance that may need to be done before the cold weather hits.
I checked to make sure we had enough firewood for the cold season.
I then thoroughly looked at the gardens here. I noted any and everything I may need to do before winter hits. This included laying plastic over some beds to let them stay weed free and clean overwinter.
By the time I was done I had quite a list of to-dos! I would love to make your list for you, however, I’m not there so you are going to have to do the walk yourself and try to let the things you feel need done prior to winter.
You probably won’t see everything, I know I didn’t. And that means when the snow is falling later in the winter, you may have to bundle up and get out there and fix something. That’s okay. But when you’re done, and you go back into the warm house, add what you did to next years list so you are better prepared.
I make these lists each season for the season coming and have been for years. In the long run, it saves me some trouble during the roughest of times, and it really gives us a routine to follow each year.
I take all of my lists and place them in a Homestead Binder I made, under the seasonal tab they belong to. This way I can flip to whatever list I need and there is everything I need to check on, fix, or take some action with.
I hope the idea of preparing a winter checklist helps you out and saves you some time in the process!
That’s all I have for you today, but come back next week when I share with you some great ways to save on your heating bill for winter!
See ya next week!