Why the Time is Now for Gutter Cleaning: 8 Benefits

It’s Gutter Season! For Fraser Valley homeowners who find themselves obligated to maintain their properties and keep them looking nice, make no mistake they will need to arrange for gutter cleaning service on a semi-regular basis.

Cleaning gutters can be a tedious and sometimes dangerous chore, particularly for elderly homeowners who are not used to getting up on ladders. But letting your gutters get clogged is too much of a risk to your home. The easiest way to keep gutters clean is to keep them from jamming in the first place.

So if you, like so many homeowners, have been procrastinating on getting a gutter cleaning service for your home, now that spring is here, it’s time to get a move on this project. To keep your home safe, spring and fall are the two times a year you can’t pass on gutter cleaning service.

1. Gutter Cleaning service done timely Prevents Water Damage from Occurring to Your Home

One of the top reasons to clean your gutters is to prevent water damage, a leading cause of structural damage. Gutters are intended to channel water off the roof and away from your home and its foundation.

However, a clogged gutter floods your foundation, thereby reducing the integrity of your building. Besides spoiling your foundation, a blocked gutter can also cause roof leaks that can damage your ceiling, your walls, your floor, your fascia board, and other parts of your building.

If left unmanaged, such loss can reduce the stability of your building, thereby reducing its value. Cleaning your gutters is among the primary ways of maintaining your structure’s glory.

2. It Eliminates The Nesting Place Of Pests

The second reason why you should consider cleaning your gutters is to eliminate the leaves, twigs, and any other debris that serves as nesting and breeding places for pests like rats, mice, insects, birds, and mosquitoes that may carry the deadly West Nile Virus.

Furthermore, the debris in your gutter may decompose to form an organic matter that supports the growth of tree seedlings, fungi, and other plants. It is common knowledge that pests like mosquitoes, rats, and other bugs that breed in a clogged gutter may spread deadly diseases.

On the other hand, tree seedlings can damage your roof while giving your home an unsightly appearance. Regular gutter cleaning eliminates pest’s nesting areas, and it gets rid of the organic matter where plants thrive on.

3. Gutter Cleaning service also Prevents Destruction Of Landscaping

Landscaping is a critical process that improves the aesthetics of your home. Besides adding beauty to your home, landscaping also enhances the value of your home, regulates temperature extremes, and improves your home's comfort and livability.

However, did you know that a clogged gutter can damage your landscaping? Unmanaged water from clogged gutters can cause soil erosion, sweep away your cherished flowers, or even destroy the plants that you chose for your landscaping.

Clean gutters and downspouts/leaders channel rainwater away from your landscape, thereby eliminating soil erosion and any other damage that may be associated with unmanaged water flow to your landscape project. In certain situations, the water can be purposefully channeled into certain flower beds and gardens to help eliminate the need for watering.

4. Shields Your Home Against Basement Flooding

Basement flooding is one of the problems caused by blocked gutters. This is because clogged gutters overflow and spill rainwater around your basement. In turn, the spilled water may quickly find its way into your basement where it causes flooding.

Basement flooding is a severe problem for homeowners as it fuels the growth of mold and mildew. Mold spores may trigger allergic reactions and other respiratory disorders. Furthermore, basement flooding damages your basement's interior décor and spoils furniture, electronics, and other valuables housed in your basement.

Gutter cleaning minimizes basement flooding by funneling rainwater from your roof to the drainage where it is funneled away from the house.

5. Extends Your Roof’s Lifespan

Another reason why gutter cleaning is an outstanding service is that it extends the lifespan of your roof. During winter, clogged gutters trap ice, thereby adding unnecessary weight and stress on your roof. This additional weight may cause your roofing materials to collapse unexpectedly.

Moreover, clogged gutters will not drain water as intended, and when the water freezes, it moves your shingles apart, opening a way for roof leaks. A well-maintained gutter facilitates water and ice flow from your roof. This way, ice, and water will flow smoothly from your roof eliminating the excess weight and pooling.

6. Shields Your Home Against Roof Leakage

The principal purpose of gutters is to facilitate water flow from the roof to a managed drain. However, clogged gutters will not drain all water from your roof. As a result, the excess water can find a way into your home through the roof.

It is not hard to tell that a leaky roof can damage your ceilings as it fuels the decay process of your house’s roof rails. With water leaking through your ceiling, the people living in the house risks suffering different types of injuries that could result from the decaying materials. Therefore, cleaning your gutters not only shields your building against roof leakage but also keeps you safe from other associated problems.

7. Enhances the Beauty and Value of Your Home

Gutters are among the parts that improve the aesthetics of your home since they are a noticeable part of a building. Neglected gutters may fall off, and their overflow will stain the fascia boards.

Such issues will reduce the integrity of your structure and may be interpreted as irresponsibility on your side. Also, houses with clogged gutters have a lower value and may take longer to attract a buyer.

For this reason, you should consider cleaning your gutters if you are planning to sell your building. Gutter cleaning will also save you from earning a reputation for irresponsibility and neglect.

8. Increases The Lifespan Of Your Gutters

Building experts say that clean gutters last longer than clogged gutters. This is because un-cleaned gutters accumulate debris and other particulates that add unnecessary weight onto the gutters.

As a result, the gutters may detach from fascia boards and fall off. Likewise, the organic matter in a clogged gutter may cause rusting and corrosion. Therefore, you need to clean your gutters regularly if you want them to last long.

Gutters protect your home's integrity. Even though they are essential, most homeowners do not maintain their gutters as required. As a result, they leave the gutters to accumulate debris like leaves, twigs, and other particulates. Clogged gutters damage your roof, foundation, fascia boards, and they may cause basement flooding.

Do you remember to clean your gutters periodically? If not, you need to start cleaning them to increase their lifespan, improve the aesthetics of your home, extend your house’s lifespan, prevent basement flooding, and protect your landscaping project from water damage. Other benefits of gutter cleaning include the fact that it enhances the value of your home and helps the house to attract buyers and fetch a reasonable price. You may choose to clean the gutters yourself or hire a gutter cleaning professional to help you.

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by Brendon Szabada

Features of the 3rd Gen Nest Learning Thermostat: New Age Temperature Controller

Features of the 3rd Gen Nest Learning Thermostat - New age temperature controller

The 3rd generation Nest Learning thermostat was released in October 2015. This smart temperature controller learns the heating pattern of your home and eventually adjusts to your schedule within a few days. It quickly programs itself to follow your daily routine and is compatible with other Nest products.

The Nest Thermostat comes fully equipped with a bigger display, new features and allows you to see useful information including the current temperature, time, and weather. Below are some of its incredible features.

• The new thermostat has a 40 percent bigger screen. Furthermore, it has smaller pixels that make the display sharper, clearer, and sleek.
• The thermostat’s sensor window is smaller, thus, taking up less display space.
• Nest has added seven temperature sensors bringing the total number to ten for increased accuracy.
• The Nest thermostat is thinner than the previous versions resulting in a sleek display profile.
• The new thermostat boasts of Farsight allows the thermostat to light up whenever it senses your presence. It allows you to see information displayed from across the room. What’s more, you can choose what information is displayed on the screen.

 Benefits of the New Nest Learning Thermostat

1. Security Settings

For data security and protection of your privacy, the 3rd generation Nest Learning Thermostat is equipped with Secure Boot technology. This technology blocks malicious and incompatible software from gaining access to the thermostat’s system.

2. Nest Learning Thermostat Adjusts to Your Schedule

The 3rd generation thermostat from Nest quickly and automatically adapts to your life as well as the season’s changes. You only need to use it for one week before it programs itself to your daily routine.

3. Easy Installation

The installation of the latest Nest Learning Thermostat requires just thirty minutes before it starts operating. You just need to pop off the old thermostat and install the new and improved one.

4. Phone Access

You can access your thermostat direct from your phone when you are not at home. Thus, if you have a sudden change in schedule, you can adjust the thermostat using your phone. Furthermore, the thermostat uses sensors to check your phone’s location.

5. Eco-Friendly

The Nest learning thermostat is designed to help you save energy and reduce your utility bills. It shows the history of your energy usage and sets itself to eco temperature mode when you are away.

The latest version of Nest Learning Thermostat is a convenient smart heating controller that automatically adjusts to your schedule making it easy and practical to use. It also allows remote access by phone, is eco-friendly, and saves energy.

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by Brendon Szabada

The Convenience of Home Automation Products

The Convenience of Home Automation Products for Your Smart Home

Home automation often sounds like a complicated and expensive affair, but surprisingly many systems are simple to install and quite affordable. Imagine having automatic lighting control, thermostat control or video surveillance accessibility from your personal cell phone. Home automation systems for your smart home lets you do this and much more.

In a nutshell, home automation offers you access and control of your home’s appliances, video monitoring and security from a centralized or remote location. These systems primarily make your life easier and convenient. With home automation systems, you can simply turn on or off all your lights without getting out of bed, use your portal device to activate your home security system or control home appliances using voice recognition. If your whole family is on vacation, you can remotely access the CCTV footage of your home in real time.

Smart Thermostats

Unlike the typical thermostat with a control panel or a dial, a smart thermostat is convenient, user-friendly, and allows you easy access to your home’s heating. It is directly connected to your boiler and the main control. For remote access, you need to download the application on your smartphone or tablet. Some smart thermostats can learn your daily schedule. They detect your smartphone as soon as you enter your home and adjust the thermostat temperature accordingly.

Smart Doorbell Cameras

Smart doorbell cameras offer high-quality video, easy to use, and have a quick response time between events and notification. They detect any motion at the door or when the doorbell is pressed. A suitable smart doorbell camera has good sound and video quality, motion detection and night-vision capability, and offers live video feed of what is happening at your door.

The smart doorbell camera is connected to the home’s Wi-Fi network and your personal smartphone or tablet. They are used primarily for security purposes, avoiding salespeople and solicitors, screening visitors, or watching out for delivered packages.

Automatic Door Locks

Smart door locks do a lot more than locking and unlocking your door without the use of a key. They allow you to receive real-time alerts, track the people leaving and entering your home as well as unlocking and locking your door remotely. Some locks can email limited-access codes to visitors, trusted service workers, children, or guests.

Smart Lights

Smart home lights offer you remote control to switch them on and off at any time of the day. You can dim your lights or change their color. Some lights can automatic turn on and off when a smart door lock is opened, flash when your security cameras detect movement outside or turn off as soon as your car drives away.

Home automation products offer convenience and saves time and effort otherwise used to perform household tasks. Furthermore, these systems allow you to efficiently control your home’s energy consumption leading to lower bills and fully customize your home to fit the unique needs of your lifestyle and family.

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by Brendon Szabada

How You Can Prevent Home Burglary - Alarm Systems

According to the Ministry of Public Safety, there was a general increase in the number of home burglary cases in British Columbia. Burglary cases increased by 3.1% in 2016 from 49.8 cases per 1,000 population to 50.9 cases per 1,000 population. Burglary victims lost an estimated 100 million Canadian Dollars, which is a significant amount by any standard. The above facts make installing alarm systems a must. Theft can completely shatter your sense of security at home. Here as some burglary prevention tips that can come in handy.

Always Keep Your Windows and Doors Shut

This may seem like an obvious security measure but nonetheless, many homeowners disregard it at times. Leaving your doors and windows open at night or when you away make you an easy target since it’s easier for burglars to gain entry into your house. Up to 25% of home break-ins happen through first-floor windows. Therefore, ensure that you secure them. Besides this, consider installing alarm kits on your windows and doors to deter would-be burglars.

Installation of Double Key Deadbolts

A significant number of burglars access their victims’ houses via the front door. Therefore, invest in securing the front door with access control and alarm systems since it will help deter criminals. Double key deadbolts can help secure your home because once burglars manage to enter your house, it is impossible for them to leave unless they are brave enough to break the door down.

Strategic Landscaping

Keeping your windows and doors locked, and installing extra security features alone may not be enough. You can make your home more burglar-proof by using strategic landscaping. For instance, growing thorny bushes under your windows make it harder for thieves to access your house via its windows. Keeping hedges and bushes around your house trimmed denies burglars a hiding place. In addition, having loose stones and gravel around your house is helpful since it may alert you about the presence of an intruder.

Secure Your Compound

The possibility of thieves attacking a well-secured home is almost zero. You can secure your home by installing features such as fences and surveillance cameras. In addition, ensure that your home is properly lit, more so when you are away. You should similarly consider installing motion-sensing lights by your driveway, doors, and windows. This will help deter criminals.

Hide Your Valuables

If you live in a neighborhood that experiences heavy human traffic, ensure that your valuables are concealed from passers-by. Consider buying privacy curtains that block the direct view into your house.

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by Brendon Szabada

How Mobile Surveillance can Increase Both Residential and Business Security

It is important to protect residential and commercial premises. Residential and business security is a matter of concern due to the sharp increase in crime. Criminals are also using the latest technologies to perpetrate their acts. This has rendered some security systems redundant. Most homeowners and business owners install CCTV cameras at their premises.

Traditionally, these cameras were monitored on-site through PCs and monitors. However, you can now monitor these surveillance cameras remotely via your phone. This has proven to be effective since it negates the need for you to be within the premises to monitor activities going on there. Mobile surveillance can increase business security at residential and commercial premises in the following ways:

Remote Monitoring

This is the greatest benefit that mobile surveillance offers you. You can monitor activities within your property even when you are travelling. Mobile surveillance is particularly suitable if you need to keep your employees in check, or monitor the daily activities of your kids while you are at work. Remote video surveillance systems intimidate employees who have the habit of engaging in petty theft and other illegal activities. Therefore, installing them at your premises discourages them from engaging in such unproductive activities, thus increasing security.

Verification and Quick Alarm Response

False alarms are among the greatest shortcomings of business and residential alarm systems. In as much as false alarms comprise a large number of security alerts, they waste a lot of time and resources. You can avoid such situations by integrating these security systems with mobile surveillance technology. This way, it will be easier for you and the alarm monitoring company to verify whether the threat reported warrants a response. Besides this, mobile surveillance makes it possible to disarm the system remotely, more so if the alarm is false.

Identification of Potential Threats

Mobile surveillance combines real-time video monitoring and the reliability and speed of mobile networks to offer you intelligent alerts. This means you can easily identify potential threats and take quick action accordingly before the threat escalates into a security lapse. Besides this, the surveillance can be integrated into cloud storage systems. This way, it is easy for you to maintain an easily retrievable database of surveillance videos. What’s more, mobile surveillance gives you limitless situational awareness of all activities going on within the monitored space. Multiple sites can also be monitored at the same time, something that negates the need to employ additional staff.

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by Brendon Szabada

Google Home Linked to Your Security System

Google Home Linked to Your Security System

Have you heard about Google Home, and how it has revolutionized home entertainment for users? Basically, this is a set of speakers that have integrated security system features. It gives you a chance to listen to music, watch videos, and get news alerts without having to look for extra devices. It has become popular in every part of the world because of its functionality and simplicity. This is evident through companies such as Alarm.com, a firm that helps people to protect their businesses and homes by using the same technology like Google Home. So, what is this all about? Read on to understand more.

The intelligent personal assistant

There is an intelligent personal assistant known as Google Assistant. It enables users to speak voice commands through home speakers. These voice commands are meant to help users to interact with various services. These services are both in-house and integrated, therefore, you have access to an endless list of music, videos, and news. In addition, the sources are varied so you can always choose the kinds of media that you want to listen to. Through Google Assistant, a user is able to customize their services through simple voice commands.

Home automation features

The biggest relationship between Google Home and Alarm.com is the use of home automation features. These features allow for an easier control of smart home appliances. For example, if you are using smart doorbells, you can integrate them with the rest of the system so that you can speak commands that control them. In addition to this, you can place different types of appliances in different rooms, but you can also still control them through a synchronized central system. They will be interlinked, but each one of them will still be functioning independently depending on the function that is assigned to it.

Blending into the environment through Google Store

One of the reasons you are going to like these speakers is the fact that they can be upgraded through a connection to google store. There are various applications that you may not need, but they still can add to your amazing experiences. For instance, you can add different color functions depending on what is best for the time. These upgrades will easily blend into the environment in the house since you have a chance to pick what suits you. No wonder everyone has a sound and video output that they like.

We at HomeForce will integrate Google Home with your security system and with proper linking, you will not even know that you are using different products from even more different companies. You also may want to know that since the original release, there have been various changes to this product, and they all make it better.

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by Brendon Szabada