As part of our Home Concierge service, we regularly have to close up a home when our clients vacate. To do this efficiently, we’ve come up with a checklist for leaving a house vacant that gives our clients piece of mind on their travels.
We recommend you don’t leave your home for an extended period without doing taking some measures to ensure your home is protected.
So, whether you’re leaving the house for 6 months or 2 weeks, here’s what to do when leaving your home vacant:
- Reviewing your Home insurance
Some policies have terms and conditions that detail the amount of time your property can be left unattended and what measures you should take to keep your cover valid. Anything can happen so ensure it remains valid while you are away!
- Lock doors and windows securely
Check to make sure doors and windows are locked, as unlocked doors and windows are still the main entry point for burglars (and foxes if you live in London).
- Empty the fridge & the bin
Dispose of any food that could go bad (especially anything that might start to stink) and throw the bin. If you don’t, who knows what you’ll find living in your fridge when you get back.
- Unplug small appliances and electronic devices
Small appliances like kettles & toasters are especially prone to causing fires so make sure you switch it off at the plug after your parting breakfast. It’s not a risk worth taking.
- Turn off water valves to the dishwasher, washing machine and all sinks.
You might not know this but leaks are one of the most common domestic disasters. Although it won’t stop water that’s already in the pipes from escaping, turning off your water supply can limit the risk of coming home to an indoor pool in your living room.
- Keep the heating on
When your house is empty, especially when closing down a home for winter, it’s recommended to leave the heating permanently on at 13C to keep the water in the pipes at a constant temperature. There’s a risk of water damage if the water regularly fluctuates in temperature.
- Make sure your smoke detectors are working properly.
Despite all we do to keep our home fire free, these things can happen so you need to have working warning systems in place to minimise the damage and risk to your property and neighbours.
- Close all internal doors especially fire doors
In an event of a fire, closed doors prevent the fire from having free rein of the property. It can serve as a form of fire break until the fire is put out.
- Remove the remote from the charging point or other devices that are plugged into charging cradle.
This avoids over charging which would eventually affect the battery life of the device.
There will be more things you’ll do that are personal to your home but this list will ensure you get the basics covered so you can leave your home with peace of mind!
Make sure to save this post for later!
Or you could just call us to find out how we can help you care for your home.