What to do to your new home before you move in
Congratulations on the purchase of your new home! You’re probably dying to move in, but before you do so there are a few things that you can do to your new home before you move in. These things will be a whole lot easier to do before you, your family and all your possessions inhabit the new space. Let’s take a look at a few of these things that are best to do before you call the movers.
6 things to do to your new home before you move in
1. Toss and exterminate
It often happens that when people move out they leave things behind that they no longer want and therefore don’t want to go through the effort of adding to their removal load. Once the previous owners have moved out, and before you move in, visit your new home and take some time to go through everything that has been left behind. You’ll probably want to toss most of it, but you may find one or two things that you’d like to keep, for example, pot plants.
Once you have your new home down to the basics of the building, now is the time to do an extermination exercise. Lurking in the shadows of all the nooks, crannies, cracks and crevices of your new home are pests of all sorts. It is obviously best to apply pesticides when no one has moved into your new home yet. You can either call in the expert bug killers or do it yourself. There are various foggers (otherwise known as “bug bombs”) and other products available that can help ensure you rid your new home of any unwelcome guests.
2. Scrub and clean
The best opportunity you are going to get to give your home an extremely thorough scrub and clean is before you move in. So get those gloves on, pretend it’s spring and scrub like your life depends on it! Without furniture, appliances and decor in the way, you can easily get to those hard-to-reach places that require cleaning. Carpet shampooing is certainly easier without having to manually maneuver furniture and curtains.
Don’t forget to use sugar soap on all the walls. Sugar soap is a gentle yet powerful alkaline cleaner for general purpose cleaning, including all painted surfaces. You’d be surprised how dirty wall surfaces get over time. Do this whether or not you plan on painting your walls.
3. Fix and replace
Before you move in is a great time to fix and replace things. If you intend on painting the walls in your new home walls, do what you can to fix any cracks before layering on any coats. Give yourself some time to go over the cracks with crack filler, allow it to dry and sand down the area before painting.
If you plan on replacing the flooring in certain parts of your new home then do it now. The same goes for broken windows, ceilings and light switches.
4. Paint and varnish
Paint fumes can be overwhelming, so why not consider painting your new home before you move in? That way, by the time you move in, your walls will look shiny new, the paint will be dry and the strong smell will be gone. It’s also a lot easier to paint without any obstructions.
In addition to the walls of your new home, you should also take the opportunity to paint window sills and ceilings. If your new home has wooden doors or window frames then it’s also best to give them a fresh coat or two of varnish before you move in. Ideally, everything should be dry before you move.
5. Switch on and check
You don’t want to move into your new home only to realise that none of the lights or plug points work. Before you move in, switch on all the lights, as you may need to replace any blown light bulbs. It’s also important to check all the plug points to make sure they are working and safe to use. Please don’t burn your new home down!
6. Change the keys
Now that your new home is looking completely new, the previous owners may want to move back! Not really, but it’s always safest to change all the keys in your new home and make duplicates as necessary for all the members in your home.
