Your new sunroom will be your pride and joy for many years to come, but you’ll need to learn how to correctly maintain it to keep it looking its best. Ideally, you’ll spread the maintenance out over the course of the year to reduce your workload and to keep an eye on any potential problems.
Year round tasks
Some of your external sunroom maintenance tasks are once that you should be performing all year long. These don’t have to be done every month, but they will be worth doing as each season draws to a close so you know what condition your sunroom is in:
- Clear gutters – the biggest cause of sunroom damage stems from blocked and clogged gutters. With Calgary’s high wind speeds, this is a year round problem that left untreated can lead to water damage both on and inside your roof that will be expensive to fit. You can save yourself this tedious task by installing gutter protectors that let the water through and block debris from settling.
- Grease hinges – you will likely open and close the doors and windows in your sunroom more frequently than in any other room in your home. It will be essential to keep them oiled so that they don’t develop unsightly rust spots or start to seize up.
- Clean window caulking – the caulking around your windows are part of what helps to keep your sunroom naturally insulated, but it is a degradable material. This means that over time it will break down and this process will speed up if you allow dirt and debris to accumulate. Keeping them clean will prolong the life of your caulking and keep your sunroom looking new from the outside.
- Wipe down windows – this advice may sound like common sense, but it’s easy for smudges, smears and stains to build up over time. These small window issues can be become baked on if left untreated, and you’ll need to remember to clean both inside and outside to keep your windows sparkling.
Seasonal tasks
Other sunroom maintenance tasks need to be done in accordance with the season:
- Spring – this is the time to clear the gardens around the outside of your sunroom so that any new growth doesn’t interfere with your sunroom. You should also use this time to prune any overhanging trees that may spoil your view.
- Summer – summer should be spent on small pieces of maintenance liking cleaning windows and clearing the gutters so that you can spend as much time as possible in your sunroom.
- Autumn – after a long summer season of bugs, you’ll want to use the cooler months to remove the screens from your windows, cleaning them of all debris as you go.
- Winter – you should spend the colder months performing internal maintenance checks such as replacing the internal caulking and installing new glazing tape to keep the insulation levels high.
By spreading these sunroom maintenance tasks across the year, you’ll make more time to enjoy the fruits of your labours and watch the seasons pass from the comfort of your sunroom.
