Well, the recent weather hasn’t been up to much, has it? The one benefit that I have taken from it is that it’s made me think about getting the house ready for winter. The nights are drawing in a lot quicker now, and I’m determined to get things done as soon as possible. Preferably, before I start thinking about that other upcoming event. Yes, I mean the one that starts with ‘C’, but I refuse to say it until at least the end of October! Anyway, this is what’s on the agenda…
Prep the bedding
As soon as spring arrives, the double duvet goes straight into a bag and up into the loft. And, there it will remain – for as long as I can hold out! The weather makes the rules, though, and it tends to change quite quickly in this part of the country. As I can’t stand being cold at night, I’m going to have to get down the winter bedding, get it washed, and keep it under the bed for the time being.
Clean out the gutter
In some ways, it’s a splendid job that we’ve had a lot of rain recently. For one, the plants and grass in my garden are overjoyed, but also, it’s made me realise I need to clean out the guttering. It was pouring out of there only yesterday and I managed to take a look from the loft window. The pipes are stuffed full of leaves, twigs and God knows what else, and that’s going to cause problems later in the year if I don’t attend to it.
Order some firewood
I’ve heard there’s a heatwave coming soon, which makes the fact I’m going to use it to order my winter wood a little ridiculous. But, it’s the best time for it. I’m thinking about Certainly Wood logs this year, and I’ll store it under a tarpaulin in the garden. So, I need the ground to be bone dry if I want to keep it in perfect condition for a fire. Nothing beats a cosy fire in winter, and I love the smell you get from woodsmoke. Although stacking the wood itself can be a chore, it’s great exercise and has become a bit of a ritual.
Keep an eye – and ear – out for mice
We don’t have any trouble with mice normally, but they tend to go on the move as the weather gets colder. They look for somewhere to bed down for the winter, and they will often choose the first place they come to that gives them warmth and protection. It’s one of the reasons why we keep our firewood well away from the house. We’re also going to have a good look around for any little holes that might have appeared in the past year. Now, I’m not entirely sure what we’ll do if we discover we have mice – but I guess we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it!
Start the heating process
I don’t like cranking up the heat as soon as it gets cold – it can be bad for the heating system, and is terrible for the bank account! So, as the nights get colder, I’m going to increase the heat one little step at a time and get the house acclimatised to the different temperature. It’s also a good way of helping yourself acclimatise, and should mean that you won’t feel the cold quite so much when it arrives.
