Home Maintenance in Bowmanville, ON

Clearing the Backlog in Older Downtown Homes

Deferred maintenance compounds. A window that lets in a draft also lets in moisture, and over a few winters the sill and the paint around it start breaking down. A gap in the exterior caulking lets water behind the trim. None of it is urgent on its own, which is exactly why it gets put off. On a first visit to an older house near the core, we start with a walkthrough and sort what we find into urgent, soon and can wait, so you decide what gets done now.

In those homes the list usually includes weatherstripping on doors and windows, caulking touch-ups, loose railings and hardware, and a check of the eaves troughs. A half-day visit of three to four hours covering a batch of small jobs usually runs $200 to $350, and a full day for a longer list is $400 to $600. Older homes can benefit from a check-in every quarter rather than twice a year.

New builds need less of that, but they aren't maintenance-free. Furnace filters, smoke and CO detector tests, and door hardware that loosens as the house settles all belong on a seasonal list, along with gutters on the young roof. Since we're based in Bowmanville, seasonal home maintenance visits each spring and fall are simple to schedule.

Pedro handles seasonal upkeep and preventative maintenance. For how he approaches home maintenance in general, see our home maintenance page.