1. The heat is on. Likely you haven’t used your furnace over the summer, so it’s a good time to check your heating (if you can) to make sure it’s working and clean. Furnace filters should be changed every three months. Also ensure the pilot light and burners are functioning, which you maybe want to leave up to the experts. A furnace check with no problems found will run you anywhere from $50 to $150.

2. Get your ducts in a row. Clean and vacuum dust from all vents, baseboard heaters and cold returns. It’s a good idea to also have ducts cleaned by the pros every three years, a service which some companies will throw in when they check your furnace, for $50 to $100.

3. Be alarmed. Since you are spending more time inside with heat running and will spark up fire sources like candles and fireplaces, test your smoke detector. The fire department runs a program where they will test detectors and replace batteries, which should be checked every six months. At least one carbon monoxide detector, powered by batteries (so they can be placed anywhere) that measure long-term low-level exposure as well as short-term high levels of CO, certified by the Canadian Standards Association (CSA) is also advised. They should be replaced every five years, and smoke detectors, every ten.

4. Get your mind in the gutter. For those in townhomes, it’s advisable if your maintenance company is not responsible (ask your board) to clean eavestroughs and rain gutters before the white stuff starts. Remove debris that can slow or block water from draining effectively from the roof. Trapped water can freeze then thaw, not only harming the gutters themselves, but potentially the roof as well.

5. Look up, way up. Check your roof. Search out damaged or missing shingles, gaps in the flashing, vents and flues, as well as damaged mortar around the chimney. Again, this might be something the condo board and building’s management company has on their winter prep list every year. It never hurts to ask.

6. Open and shut case. Many condo owners may not realize doors and windows are their responsibility and these are an area where huge energy loss occurs—inefficient windows can account for a quarter of your heating loss, throwing your dollars...well, out the window. If you can’t replace windows this year, one cheap fix is applying a plastic film on the inside and sealing with a hairdryer, available at the hardware store for a few dollars. If you can’t shell out for a new front door, check for gaps where cold and snow can penetrate and add new weather stripping.

7. Turn off the tap. If you have access to outside water taps, shut them off. Your grandma always worried about her pipes freezing when she visited over Christmas, and she was right to. If you are planning on being away for a holiday over the winter, it’s a good idea to leave the heat on a little so pipes don’t freeze and break. You can also warm those cold pipes up a little with insulating tape in crawlspaces, attics and basements. And when the Mercury drops below zero, opening cupboard doors helps warm pipes up a bit as well.

8. Cover up … your patio furniture, that is. But check your bylaws to see if there are seasonal rules that may apply. You may want to skim the documents at the same time to see if there are regulations around decorations. Can you have a Christmas wreath? How about holiday lights? Some condos will allow them, but only until a certain date. I believe in my complex it’s early February. Icicle lights in March could set you back $50.

9. Chim-chimney. If only to see if they show up in an Oliver Twist hat and knickers, it’s a good idea to have your chimney swept every year. Most condos now have gas fireplaces instead of their drafty, messy predecessors, but those lucky enough to be able to smell the comforting aroma of logs burning need to think safety first. And maybe ask them to show you how to open the flue, so you don’t have to learn the hard way how smoky it can get.

10. Go digital. If you don’t already have one, install a programmable digital thermostat so you can set the temperature to be lower when you are at work during the day or sleeping overnight, and during times when the house uninhabited.  CL