How to: Get your home ready for summer

Spring is here, the weather is turning and pretty soon it’ll be summer. 

But is your home ready for what an Aussie summer will serve up?

You might want to consider these tips to get your home prepared before December rolls around.

Tune up the air con

An Australian home without air conditioning might be a cause for the apocalypse.

But there’s no point in having air con if it’s not running efficiently.

Get your air conditioner checked annually to ensure it’s in good working order.

Do this in October or early November to ensure you aren’t caught out on the first seriously hot day of the year.

Give your BBQ some TLC

There are few things worse than lifting your BBQ lid and discovering a mess of grease and caked-on fat from when you told yourself, “I’ll clean that later”, the last time you had friends around.

Grab a scraper and some degreaser, and even consider removing the hotplates and washing them with some warm water and detergent.

It’s a job no one likes, but remember that your food’s going on that thing all summer.

Get things right in bed

We’ve all played the “leg out, torso in” game beneath a doona in a bid to get cool when trying to sleep through the summer months.

Have a better night’s sleep by switching to lighter linen as the weather starts to heat up.

It will breathe better and save you from kicking your sheets onto the floor every night.

Clean those fans

Whether it’s a ceiling fan or a pedestal fan that’s pushing the air around your house, dust can be your worst enemy.

It can kill the efficiency of the fan, and being showered with dust every time you switch your fans on can’t be good for you.

Make sure your ceiling fans are switched to turn anti-clockwise, so they’re pushing air down.

Cleaning a pedestal fan is straightforward, and prettying up a ceiling fan can be a cinch, too – simply slip a pillowcase over the blades and pull it off. Voila! No dust on either side.

Don’t forget to make sure your ceiling fans are switched to turn anti-clockwise, so they’re pushing air down and creating better circulation.

Switch up the decor

Just like black clothing, dark décor is a heat trap, and can make it significantly harder to keep you and your home cool.

Consider substituting your décor for lighter colours during the summer months.

Likewise, lighter curtains will help keep a room cooler than heavier ones.

Defrost the fridge

There’s only so many Frosty Fruits you can fit in a freezer at any one time, and you don’t want to surrender even an inch of space to any unwanted icy build-up.

The start of summer is as good a time as any to de-ice your freezer.

Start by throwing out those steaks and soups that have been in there for seven months and then defrost it completely.

As a bonus, your freezer will operate far more efficiently, saving you money during the months you’ll need your freezer most.