A nice family vacation is a time for relaxing and having fun. It’s not the time to worry about the safety of your home. To help keep your home safe from fires, unwelcome intruders and high utility bills, follow these simple home safety vacation tips.
- Let your neighbors know you’ll be leaving. Letting them know you’ll be gone will allow them to keep an eye on strangers near your home or unusual lights on inside.
- If you don’t have a house sitter, turn the water heater off, or at least on the “vacation” or low setting. You should also turn down the thermostat on your heating system. The amount of setback will depend on whether you have any pets, plants or belongings that are sensitive to extreme temperatures. This is perhaps the home safety vacation tip that will save you the most on your utility bills.
- Turn off any gas valves before you leave if you’re not heating your home. Gas- or oil-operated appliances pose a danger if not checked on. By turning off gas valves, you can help prevent accidental fires and gas buildup, which could make you and your family sick once you return home.
- Keep up lawn and yard maintenance. If your home looks like someone is taking care of it, intruders will be less likely to attempt a break-in. There are a number of lawn companies and home improvement outfits that will take payment ahead of time to show up on a scheduled date to mow the lawn or shovel away snow.
- Make sure everything is in working order before you leave. Have your furnace and other large appliances checked out by a professional before going on vacation.
For more information on your home safety vacation needs and other tips, please contact us at Energy 1 Heating & Air Conditioning, a family-owned and operated company that has been serving the Lorain area for more than 34 years.
Our goal is to help educate our customers in Lorain, Ohio about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about home safety and other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Resource guide.
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Energy 1 Heating & Air Conditioning
1 (440) 246-5440
Serving the Lorain, OH Area