What To Do At Home Before You Leave For A Vacation
What To Do At Home Before You Leave For A Vacation
Summer is here again! Like many travel lovers, you probably already have your ticket booked and ready to set off for your dream vacation experience. But while you’re busy packing, double–checking your travel documents, and planning your trip, it’s important to also prepare your home for absence if you’re leaving no one behind to house sit. You want to ensure your home is secure and that you’ll return to meet it just as you left it. So, before you leave for your vacation, here are some things you should do at home.
- Get someone to take care of your pets
If you have pets and need to leave them behind, it’s best to make special arrangements for them before you set off. Of course, your pets are part of your family, and you’ll want them to also have a good time while you’re away. One of the best ways to do that is to arrange for them to be taken into a boarding house made especially for pets to be taken good care of.
For instance, you can find a dog boarding facility near you if you have a dog. But if that’s not an option, you can always ask a friend, neighbor, family member, or pet sitter to put in some shifts for you.
- Tidy up a little
This sounds like a no-brainer, but you’ll be surprised how many people set off without tidying up a little. Of course, several things may cause you to leave home in a rush and forget to clean. But the last thing you want is to return home tired and still need to clean your house when all you want to do is rest. But cleaning your home isn’t only for convenience’s sake. It prevents things from going bad in your absence and unwelcome fruit flies from invading your home. So, if you’re leaving for an extended period, be sure that you get rid of anything that might go bad during that period. Also, give yourself enough time to clean up your space a day or two before you set off.
- Program your thermostat
You should keep your home’s temperature stable while you’re away, and turning off your thermostat wouldn’t help. Also, keeping your heating or cooling system running in your absence means more bills waiting for you when you return. A better option is to set your thermostat to maintain a stable temperature. A rule of thumb here is to set it at 5 degrees from your usually preferred temperature in the summer.
- Program your lights
Leaving your lights off during the night can signal to people that you’re not at home, and keeping them on may increase your bills. Switch to programmable lights and set them to go off during the day and turn on at night. You can choose to leave your curtains as you normally keep them when you’re at home, but keep all your valuables away from your windows. If you have trustworthy neighbors, you can ask them to check your home while you’re away.
