Prep Your Structure for the Colder Weather

Prevent Structural Damage

Winter can bring gorgeous scenery, such as a fresh snowfall covering the grass and trees. Besides its beauty, it can also bring potential issues with outdoor structures, which can be prevented if you’ve taken the right steps. Inspecting your shingles is a great start to your fall maintenance to ensure you don’t have loose or missing shingles that could cause a leak. If you choose to add gutters to your structure, check to ensure they are clear of any debris or fallen leaves. Leaving debris in your gutters can cause a blockage and force water to run down you’re the face of your structure, possibly causing water damage or paint discoloration.

Trimming any tree branches that hang over your structure will prevent them from falling onto your roof and potentially causing issues with your roof integrity, or if the branch is small enough, it could cause a blocked gutter. Look around your structure, especially on the back side if it is in front of a tree line, to check for any holes. Just like us, animals may also want to get out of the cold for a little while, but setting up camp in your structure isn’t ideal. Seal these holes so no rodents can make your structure their new home, and so they don’t nibble away to make this hole even bigger.

Make Sure Your Base and Seals are Ready

Your structure’s base is incredibly important, as this is what prevents your structure from settling unevenly and helps with drainage away from your structure. If you have any mulch or soil around your structure, make sure this is sloping away from your structure, so any rainwater or runoff isn’t coming towards your structure. When your structure was placed on your property, some kind of “site-prep” had to occur. On our site prep team, you could have either a stone pad, a monolithic foundation, or a block foundation. If your structure is on a concrete slab base, check for any cracks in the concrete; if there are any, seal them to prevent more cracking during the cold season. Or you have crushed stones under your structure, which you can check for any low areas and build up the stones in those lighter spots. Inspecting window or door seals and checking flashing on your structure is a great way to prevent this cold air or melting snow or ice from entering your structure. You can use caulk to fill in areas where doors or windows aren’t sealing properly.

Lubricate all sliding doors or garage doors so they do not become too stiff in the colder months, and so you don’t have to hear the awful screeching sound we all know too well when door hinges or sliders become worn down and dry. Dealing more with technical items – make sure to drain and winterize any plumbing lines, if you have a hose on your shed or garage. Or you can turn your water off to this hose, so you don’t have to worry about any lines freezing while you aren’t watering plants or washing cars for the season. You don’t have to worry about this if you have a watering system inside your Stoltzfus Structures Greenhouse. Adding a rain barrel to your greenhouse and adding a watering pump means you can water and enjoy your plants during the winter months, since the greenhouse will maintain a climate-controlled space for your plants to flourish.

Dealing with Snow and Ice

If you have heavy snowfall or a steady snowfall for a few days in a row, snow will most likely accumulate on your structure’s roof. Try to remove this snow as best you can, as this snow can become very wet and heavy, potentially causing damage to the roof’s integrity. If you chose the “30-year architectural shingles” when building your structure, these are meant to withstand most weather elements, but regular maintenance during these harsh winter months will keep your shingles in great condition. Even if your structure has a metal roof, checking to make sure everything is in good shape is beneficial so you can identify any potential issues that could be worrisome during the winter months. Stoltzfus Structures gives customers several roof options, including shingles, metal roofs, and more, so you can chat with your sales member to see which roof style would be best for you.

Similarly, removing any snow or ice around doors or windows will prevent them from freezing shut and leaving you locked out of your structure until the snow or ice melts! Most live-in structures, like Home Offices, are customized to be climate-controlled. But if this is your structure is not climate-controlled, be sure to disconnect power tools or electronics where the battery life could possibly be affected by the cold.

Make the Most Out of the Cold

If you have a live-in structure, like a home office or gym, sunroom, man cave, she shed, or even a garage, without a climate-controlled environment, consider installing a small electric heater so you can stay warm during the winter months. If you use a heater, make sure you check your structure’s vents so you have proper airflow. You can make any of these spaces cozy in preparation for the cold season by adding blankets, a heater, a mini electronic fireplace, candles, and more. It will make your space more inviting during these chilly months and help you stay warm if your structure isn’t customized to be climate-controlled.

Check Out Which Structures Would be Perfect for You

Stoltzfus Structures has tons of structures to choose from. If you’re looking for a small area to hold your storage items and tools, consider one of our popular items – sheds. If you need a storage space for your cars, check out our Garages. We also offer Outdoor Living Structures, like pavilions, pergolas, gazebos, and more. Need a structure for your pool deck? Look into our Pool Houses. As mentioned before, we have a few Greenhouses to choose from where you can enjoy fresh herbs, flowers, fruits, and vegetables all year round. Finally, we offer tons of Outdoor Retreats such as home offices, home gyms, man caves, she sheds, saunas, and even more! We have everything you could need for your property, in tons of styles and sizes. Check out our Featured Projects to see if you find any examples of structures we have done before. If you do, let us know which project you are interested in when you connect with a sales member.

Contact us today or call – 610-583-7700 – to start building your dream structure. Once you have your new structure, remember to follow the steps above when the first chill arrives, to ensure your structure stays in great condition for years to come.

About The Author

Jada Morris

Recently graduated from college, I take advantage of having more free time and spend those moments catching up on my love of reading, brainstorming ideas for design projects, and spending time with my family, friends, and furry companions. I have two Golden Retrievers that are complete opposites, one who has enough energy to run three marathons a day if he could, and the other who would be happy to stay in bed all day! I might relate a bit more to the later but am always up for an adventure.