Spring Inspection Tips, What Every Homeowner Should Check

Spring in the Midwest brings melting snow, shifting soil, and a laundry list of small problems that can turn into expensive repairs if left alone. In this episode of Thoughts from the Crawl Space, we walk through a practical seasonal checklist covering roofs, gutters, grading, foundations, crawl spaces, decks, plumbing, and pest prevention so you can catch issues early and protect your biggest investment.

Key Takeaways

● Winter leaves clues. Start your inspection outside, looking for missing or curling shingles, granule loss in gutters, and interior staining that points to ice damming.

● Gutters and downspouts do heavy lifting. Keep them clean, sealed at the joints, sloped correctly, and extended four to six feet away from the foundation.

● Grading is the number one exterior defect on home inspections. Soil should slope away from the house roughly one inch per foot for the first six feet.

● Roughly 95 percent of basement water problems come from roof and yard runoff, so controlling water at the surface prevents most foundation headaches.

● Check foundation cracks annually. Hairline cracks are normal curing cracks, but horizontal or widening cracks deserve a professional evaluation.

● Reopen crawl space vents that were closed for winter, look for standing water, mold growth, torn vapor barriers, and wet insulation.

● Walk the exterior for failed caulk, peeling paint, wood rot, and air leaks around windows that drive up heating and cooling costs.

● Inspect decks for loose railings, rotting boards, and lifted fasteners. Most deck collapses trace back to poor ledger attachment.

● Test your sump pump by pouring a bucket or two of water into the pit, service the HVAC, change the furnace filter, and seal any gaps where pipes or vents enter the home.

Resources

● Gold Key Inspection Services: https://www.goldkeyinspection.com

● NIPSCO (Northern Indiana Public Service Company): https://www.nipsco.com

Connect

● Podcast, Thoughts from the Crawl Space: https://www.goldkeyinspection.com/podcast

● Gold Key Inspection Services: https://www.goldkeyinspection.com

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