Ohio home maintenance checklist

Around Columbus the first 32°F night lands about October 21 on average, so have hoses off, spigots drained, and the shut-off closed by October 7. "Average" is the trap — half of all years freeze EARLIER than that date, and a single hard night is enough to split a hose bib you won't notice until spring. The frost-free stretch here runs roughly 182 days, from April 22 to October 21.

The coldest month around Columbus averages a 23°F low, and it only takes one night below freezing. Three habits cover it: insulate every exposed run (garage, crawlspace, exterior walls), never let the house drop below 55F even when you're away, and open the cabinets under sinks on the coldest nights so warm air reaches the pipe inside the wall. The pipe that bursts is almost always the one you couldn't see.

Columbus averages roughly 21 inches of snow a year. Buy the roof rake in October rather than after the first big storm, keep gutters clear going into winter so meltwater has somewhere to go, and walk the property once in autumn for branches that would come down under a heavy wet load.

Twice a year is the working rule — late spring and late autumn — and Columbus's roughly 40 inches of annual precipitation is what makes it non-negotiable. Even in a drier climate it's the concentrated storm runoff that does foundation damage, not the yearly total. Add a pass after any big storm, and check that downspouts discharge at least four feet from the house — most water-in-the-basement calls trace back to that one detail.

Pick the safe room before sirens go off — lowest floor, interior, no windows. Stock a NOAA weather radio with battery backup and the SAME code for your county. Anchor or store anything in the yard that can fly: trampolines, sheds, patio furniture, the grill.

Ice dams are an insulation problem disguised as a roof problem. Heat escaping into a cold attic melts snow on the roof; the meltwater refreezes at the cold eaves and backs up under the shingles. The real fix is R-49+ attic insulation with clear soffit baffles. The urgent fix during a storm is a roof rake — buy it in October, not after the first 6-inch snow.

A weekend per season handles about 80% of what matters, and around Columbus the calendar sets itself: the autumn pass has to finish before the first freeze around October 21, and the spring pass starts once the last freeze passes around April 22. Layer in monthly safety checks (smoke and CO test, a glance at the breaker panel) and one yearly walk of the big shut-offs. The pattern that fails homeowners isn't doing too little — it's doing nothing for two years and then trying to catch up at once.

Most of it is DIY — gutters, filters, windows, sealants, irrigation, pest perimeter. Hire a pro for: anything on the roof past a quick eyeball with binoculars, gas-line work, the main electrical panel, and any plumbing repair that involves soldering or splicing into a main. There's no prize for bravery on those — the cost of a mistake is much higher than the cost of the call.