‘Tis the Season: Preparing for Holiday Guests

It’s the most wonderful time of the year, but for Millbrook homeowners entertaining guests, the holidays can be tough on your home’s most important systems. Below, the team at AirNow Home Services puts together four easy ways to prepare your home for the holidays, so you can enjoy quality time without worrying about electrical, HVAC, or plumbing issues.

How To Prepare Your Home for the Holidays

Unfortunately, the holidays often put additional strain on plumbing and electrical infrastructure. Having more people around the house means more water use, more toilets flushing, and more gadgets plugged into outlets. Thankfully, you can prevent circuits from overloading and drains from clogging with a little preparation.

1. Avoid Overloaded Circuits

Mobile phones, computers, and new gadgets rely on electricity during the holidays. Increased use of these devices can overload circuits, raising the risk of blown fuses and fires.

How To Avoid Overloaded Circuits

• Avoid using portable devices like space heaters and hair dryers at the same time and on the same circuit.
• Balance out how many appliances are on any given circuit, especially in the kitchen. You can identify which devices and appliances are on the same circuit by going to your circuit panel and turning off circuits one by one; whatever powers down is on the circuit.
• Indicate outlets on circuits with lower electricity demand for guests to use. Place a small table near the outlet with a sign (“Power Station”) to encourage charging devices there.

If your home is still experiencing overloaded circuits, consider rewiring them to improve performance and reduce your risk of fire or other problems.

2. Clean Out Drains

Backed-up sink and shower drains can cause real problems, especially when there are more people in the home than usual. Make time before guests arrive to clean out drains and avoid back-ups, leaks, and foul odors from clogged drains.

• Cleaning out kitchen drains: Food debris and grease are the most common causes of clogged kitchen drains. In some cases, you can clear out drains with water and baking soda. First, pour 1 cup of baking soda down the drain. After 10 to 15 minutes, pour a pitcher of hot (not scalding) water down the drain to flush out any lingering debris.
• Cleaning out shower drains: Hair and soap residue are regular culprits here. In many cases, you’ll need to use a drain snake, a wire hanger, a plunger, or all three to clear a clogged shower drain. If your shower drain still backs up after trying these mechanical methods, your sewer line may be blocked by tree roots below your home or in the yard. Contact your local plumbing team to take a closer look!

3. Prevent Clogged Toilets

It’s a holiday guest’s worst nightmare: they use the bathroom, flush, wash their hands, and spot a nearly overflowing toilet as they go to leave the room. Preventing toilet clogs is a smart way to protect guests (and yourself!) from the embarrassment of clogging up the throne.

How To Prevent Toilet Clogs

The best way to prevent clogged toilets is to remove any non-flushable items from the bathroom. While toilet paper is the most common cause of clogs, these bathroom staples should never go down the drain to prevent clogs, plumbing damage, or sewer line and septic tank problems:

• Cotton balls
• Q-tips
• Non-flushable wipes
• Tissues
• Wrappers
• Floss

Clogged Toilets, Thanksgiving, and “Brown Friday”

The holidays are one of the busiest times of the year for most plumbing companies, with the day after Thanksgiving widely considered the busiest day of the year. With the combination of intense meal prep, plenty of house guests, and families spending more time than usual at home, “Brown Friday” sees a spike in emergency plumbing problems.

4. Freshen Up Your Home’s Scent

One of the best ways to ensure your guests feel welcome is to deodorize your home. While you may not notice it, every house has its own distinct smell, which may or may not agree with some guests.

How To Deodorize Your Home Quickly

• Open windows and doors to let in fresh air. You can also run your HVAC system’s fan to increase air flow in the house.
• Take out the trash, clean out drains, throw out old food from the fridge, and clean soft materials like upholstery, rugs, and carpeting.

There are also natural ways to deodorize your home, such as shaking baking soda onto carpet or rugs and letting it sit for 20-30 minutes before vacuuming it up.

Read More: How To Improve Indoor Air Quality

Preparing Your Home for Holiday Guests Is Simple

Get ready for the holidays by making guests feel welcome and being prepared with AirNow Home Services. Millbrook residents trust our local technicians for prompt, professional service. Have a wonderful holiday season and schedule an appointment to tackle common home issues!