Shut off water, stop news papers, put mail on hold or have it picked up daily....go and enjoy the trip it is wonderful.
I am going to post a few pictures just to get you salavating...
Don / Sharon Smith
7th year fulltiming
1 high school sweetheart bride of 50 yrs. Sharon
1 long haired mini dauchound...Jake
1997 Beaver Patriot DP
2004 Jeep Rubicon
http://s168.photobucket.com/albums/u189/smithster_photos/
ok, that's really funny about the letter above about putting the valuables in a safe place and forgetting.
Turn the heat/cooling off.
turn the water off to the house (or if you can't do that, turn off the water to the washer (those hoses are notorious for failing), toilets, and hot water heater, turn the hot water heater off).
If you are going to be gone a while, you can have the gas turned off to the house also, but you'll have to call someone to turn it back on/relight pilot lights. still might be worth it.
Stop your mail.
stop the paper
Keep the lawn being serviced.
have someone come in and check once in a while.
Depending on your provider, you might save a few $$ having your TV, phone and home internet placed on vacation mode.
I also agree with the timers and lamps to give the "lived in" appearance. Use realistic settings, like lamp in the living room during evening hours, turn it off then turn on the lamp in the bedroom at a time you'd usually go to bed, then off after a bit to give the appearance than you've gone to bed.
Turn the water off for sure. On our last vacation, our dining partners suffered a $ 300,000 thousand dollar damage to there home due to a broken water pipe. Check how long mail can be stopped, 90 days is LONG. Credit card bills? utility bill, eve though nothing is running, there still might be a charge. Any job you do now, consider who will do that when you are gone.
A relative or friend stopping by every few days or weekly is preferred.
About all we ever did when traveling long term was to turn off the water to the washing machine and put the water heater on "Vacation" setting. We arranged for lawn care had mail forwarded to daughters house with a temporary change of address through the post office.
2011 F-150 HD Ecoboost 3.5 V6. 2550 payload, 17,100 GCVWR - 2004 F-150 HD (Traded after 80,000 towing miles) 2007 Rockwood 8314SS 34' travel trailer
US Govt survey shows three out of four people make up 75% of the total population
While I haven't gone longer than 2 weeks yet, I have done some research and have found these checklist items:
1. Turn off water heater at the breaker.
2. Turn off water outside and let pressure off of house pipes. Afterwards, make sure faucets are turned off.
3. Turn off HVAC and all other breakers except for outlets where timers controlling lights, TV, or radio are used.
4. Put vegetable oil in all sinks, tubs, and toilets. Prevents evaporation of water which will allow sewer gasses into the house.
5. Lock garage and ensure breaker is off. Garage door openers are often generic.
6. Empty refrigerator and freezer and unplug. Could take a chance on food spoiling with outage...judgement call.
7. Unplug appliances.
8. Arrange for lawn care.
9. Humidifier running on a timer from time-to-time will prevent mold issues although most don't feel necessary.
10. Put fresh batteries in smoke detectors if needed.
11. Have someone check house, water plants, and pick up mail every day or two. Give them a key.
Brent and Gina wrote: While I haven't gone longer than 2 weeks yet, I have done some research and have found these checklist items:
1. Turn off water heater at the breaker.
2. Turn off water outside and let pressure off of house pipes. Afterwards, make sure faucets are turned off.
3. Turn off HVAC and all other breakers except for outlets where timers controlling lights, TV, or radio are used.
4. Put vegetable oil in all sinks, tubs, and toilets. Prevents evaporation of water which will allow sewer gasses into the house.
5. Lock garage and ensure breaker is off. Garage door openers are often generic.
6. Empty refrigerator and freezer and unplug. Could take a chance on food spoiling with outage...judgement call.
7. Unplug appliances.
8. Arrange for lawn care.
9. Humidifier running on a timer from time-to-time will prevent mold issues although most don't feel necessary.
10. Put fresh batteries in smoke detectors if needed.
11. Have someone check house, water plants, and pick up mail every day or two. Give them a key.
All of the above, plus here on the coast with the humidity, in the summer have the a/c set to the highest setting with all blinds/drapes shut. If not practical to empty fridge or freezer, put ice cubes in ziplock bags to make sure nothing was off long enough to thaw.
Chris & Dianne plus two boys, both of them are Eagle Scouts.
Jayco Designer 3110
F250 PSD 4x4 Crew Cab
Offline
