Vacation House Preparation

In this post, Handyguys Brian and Paul provide cheap methods for protecting your property from criminals and destruction while you are away on vacation.

Neighbors

Handyguy Paul suggests first and foremost that you become friends with your neighbors over the course of the year. When you go on vacation, this relationship will allow you to give the neighbors a key to the house just to keep an eye on things. Neighbors can check plants, get newspapers or mail, and even send you a car key in the mail in case of emergency while you are on vacation. They can also keep a general eye out for suspicious activity or unwanted intruders.

Timers

Timers are also key when going on vacation. You can get timers at many different local stores. Set lamps and light fixtures to the timers in order to make the house seem more lived in. This is also a great strategy in deterring unwanted intruders.

Thermostat

When you are leaving on vacation, also make sure to turn your thermostat back. In the summer time, the thermostat can even be left off completely unless there are items in the house that are sensitive to heat. Having a good rapport with neighbors can also mean that they can turn on the AC a few days before your return, so that you come back to a cooled off house.

Water

Make sure to turn off the water to the house before your vacation in order to stop any potential leaks. Coming back to a house full of a foot of water would be a disaster. In addition, most water heaters have a vacation mode that saves you a few dollars while you are on vacation

Mail

You are also able to stop mail from coming to you house while you are on vacation. Go to your local post office and fill out the appropriate form, so that you don’t come back to a mailbox stuffed with mail. Even if you fill out the appropriate form, still have your friendly neighbors check to make sure that no mail is coming because sometimes these forms can slip through the cracks.