Featured on Today’s Homeowner: Summer!

When I think of summer I think of sitting outside sipping tea, air conditioning, and going to the beach. And when it comes to our homes during this warm, sunny season, 2 of the 3 are pertinent!

That’s why this week’s episode of Today’s Homeowner is all about what things you should tackle around your house this season. Dad, Allen, and I helped homeowners Robert and Leigh Bailey with repairs and maintenance around their home, some bigger than others. We used our Summer Checklist to see what is a “must do” versus what you should do if time and budget allow. You can find all of our summer tips here.

The biggest project we took on was repairing their rotten, hole-y back deck.

See what I mean?

We never could figure out why the boards further away from the house were in such bad shape, but the ones closer to the house were mostly fine. The only logical conclusion was that they were not pressure treated and just rotted right out.

The Baileys did not build it so they aren’t the ones to blame!

Once we removed the rotten deck boards, we saw that the joists underneath were also rotten. So we removed those too before replacing them with new pressure-treated lumber rated for ground contact. That’s very important since this particular deck was built right on top of the ground.

We replaced only the deck boards that we removed. Then Allen used an All-in-One Wood Cleaner to brighten up the old boards to help them blend in well with the new boards.

It really did help! Although not perfect, it made a big difference!

I helped Leigh’s parents clean up their patio furniture while she was at school teaching PE. Their furniture was in great shape, just needed a quick scrub down to get rid of some green mildew. Reminds me, it’s probably time to do the same to my patio set!

Another thing to check for around your house this time of year is peeling paint. It’ll only get worse if you don’t take care of it right away. In the case of the Baileys, they had a spot between their deck and carport that needed attention.

It looked like it was not primed properly before painting. So we remedied that by scraping all of the loose paint, sanding the whole area and priming it with a quality exterior primer. Then we caulked the edges with white painter’s caulk and painted the area the same white as before. Looks good as new, or maybe even better!

We also reminded the Baileys to change the filter for their HVAC system and gave tips on cleaning windows. So be sure to tune into the episode this weekend to see how easy it is to maintain your home year-round! (Click here to find where it airs in your area.)

After we left, Leigh and Robert added a little fun to their revamped deck with some Italian lights. Now it’s beautiful out there day and night!

Thanks for Checking In! ~ Chelsea