Maintaining your Dutch house in the autumn

We still hope for an Indian summer, but the temperatures are dropping now. For now autumn and winter are coming, so we better can get ready for that. We have a sea climate here, so autumn and winter can be very wet. Here some general things, which will work in your advantage, about maintaining your Dutch house in the autumn. We hope you will save time and energy later on.

Maintaining your Dutch house in the autumn

Outside maintenance

In my life, I have seen a lot of houses and every house has its own issues. Ideally, a house keeps the rain outside and the warmth inside in the autumn and winter. That sounds easy, but in reality it isn’t always that easy. Things you can do yourself to run well through the winter:

• Empty the gutters. In autumn, a lot of leaves can collect there, and it can cause leakage. So climb up the stairs and take care of your safety! No hospital needed, please.
• While emptying the gutters, you can also see if the roof tiles are still in place and undamaged. If not, push them back in the place or replace them.
• For flat roofs, an inspection can be needed also. Is the drain still working? Are there plants growing which need to be removed?

Other things to keep an eye on

While inspecting, you can also inspect the wood on the outside of the house. Is the sealant intact, are there mat spots on the painting, can you see cracks? This seems to be of no importance, but when water drops in, larger problems are coming, like wood rot. And I think nobody wants to pay for something which could be prevented easily.

For your comfort and energy bill, check the rubbers of the doors and windows. Are they in good condition and fit tight? And does the ventilation grilles work and are they clean?

You are not finished yet, also look on the outside walls. Are there any cracks? And if you have a tap outside, you probably need to empty the pipes before it starts to freeze outside.

To help you, we developed a maintenance calendar, which you can download for free here.

Maintaining the inside of your Dutch house in the autumn

Then the inside of your house. A healthy climate inside the house is important for your health. Nowadays, we work a lot at home, so you better can stay healthy. So keep in mind that you should ventilate your house 10 minutes each day, winter and summer, by opening every door and window. The reason is that the moist air is discharged outside, while dry-clean air will replace it. Your energy bill will also get less by it.

• Check if the filters of your ventilation unit need replacement and clean the unit.
• Test the fire installation.
• Fill the water reservoir of the CV kettle and let the air out of the radiators.
• Schedule maintenance for the CV kettle (normally once a year).
• Are there any energy-saving measures you can make? Like insulation foil on the back of radiators? Replacing bulbs into LED bulbs? Are the settings for the thermostat at the right temperature for the night, day, and evenings?

Hopefully, you run smoothly through winter and enjoy the warmth inside. By maintaining your Dutch house in the autumn, you certainly will survive!

Background information:

My favourite part of my studies was all about maintaining buildings. Every building is unique in its own way and that is very interesting. The complicated part makes that I am still learning every day, even after more than 8 years in this working field.

Start maintaining your house is sometimes a challenge. To help you to remember what to do when, you can download the maintenance calendar for free.