A year of home maintenance on one page
Household maintenance fails in a predictable way. Nothing is missed because it was difficult; it is missed because nothing prompted it in the month it needed doing. Gutters matter in March and October and are completely invisible in July.
The method: put the job in the month, not on a list
A to-do list of household jobs is close to useless, because every item on it looks equally urgent and so none of them is. A calendar behaves differently: the job appears in the month where doing it is cheap, and disappears afterwards. That framing is most of the trick.
Three rules make it work.
- Anchor each job to the weather that makes it matter. Gutters before the autumn rain, and again once the leaves are down. Outside taps drained and lagged before the first frost. The heating serviced in early autumn, ahead of the rush — not in the first cold week, when every engineer is already booked.
- Keep the safety checks on the calendar quarters. Smoke and carbon-monoxide alarms tested, and heating or ventilation filters changed, in January, April, July and October, regardless of when you started the calendar. They are not seasonal, so they should not drift with the seasons.
- Book, rather than do. Several entries are appointments, not tasks. The calendar's job is to tell you when to pick up the phone.
The shape of a year
A generic version reads roughly like this in the northern hemisphere. January: check for frozen or dripping pipes after a cold snap. February: look for damp, condensation and mould on cold walls and window reveals, and check the loft insulation and that the vents are clear. March: clear gutters and downpipes of winter debris, and check the window and door seals. April: look over the roof and flashing from the ground with binoculars, and descale the kettle, shower head and taps.
May: check exterior paint, render and sealant around the windows, wash the windows and look for blown double-glazed units. June: clean extractor fans, vents and the dryer lint trap. July: check the loft and ceilings for stains after summer storms. August: vacuum the fridge and freezer coils and clean behind the white goods.
September: book the annual heating service, before the autumn rush. October: clear the gutters again once the leaves are down, bleed the radiators and run the heating before you need it. November: drain down and lag outside taps and exposed pipes, and clear drains and gullies of leaves. December: make sure you know where the stopcock, consumer unit and meter are, and check the torches.
Adjust it for the home you actually have
Four things change the list enough to matter.
- House or flat. Roofs, gutters and exterior render belong to whoever owns them. In a flat most of that is somebody else's responsibility, and leaving it on your calendar just trains you to ignore the calendar.
- Heating type. A gas boiler brings an annual safety check with a qualified, registered gas engineer. A heat pump wants its outdoor unit cleared of leaves and its filters checked. An oil system adds tank, bund and pipework checks, and a level check before the cold.
- Garden or none. Mower service and a look at the fences, gates and shed in spring; hedges trimmed in summer, after checking for nesting birds; cutting back, lifting leaves and turning the compost in autumn.
- Age of the building. An older home adds pointing, render and chimney checks, plus one standing warning: older buildings can contain asbestos or lead paint, so do not sand, drill or disturb suspect materials before they have been checked.
Start from the month you are in
A calendar that begins in January is abandoned by March. Start it from the month you are actually in, so the first entry is something you could do this week. The quarterly checks stay on the calendar quarters regardless of where the list starts.
If you are south of the equator, shift the seasonal jobs by six months. The quarterly alarm and filter checks do not move.
What a list like this is not
It is a prompt list, not a compliance schedule. Ticking a line does not mean a legal inspection, certificate or landlord duty has been satisfied, and it certifies nothing as safe. Check what your home, tenancy or lease actually requires. Anything involving gas, electrics, roofs, chimneys or structure belongs to a qualified person — a calendar can tell you when to book it, never how to do it.
Build yours
The free Home Maintenance Calendar prints twelve months from your home type, heating and whether you have a garden, starting at whichever month you choose. It runs in your browser.