Leaving the house for an extended period..

[sande005]

First time snowbirds. Will be gone Jan - mid-April.

FYI - being in Minn., it gets really, really cold. (up to -30F) So, what am I forgetting about battening down the house for a long time away?
Kinda hard to ask, since as a "good Minnesotan" I should know about how everyone winterizes their cabin "Up North"....but have never owned one so never done it.

Heat - thinking of dialing down to 50. Too low?
Gas hot water heater - off
Main water supply - off
Major electronics (TV, Computers, etc) unplugged.
Will leave WiFi running, for a bit of remote access to smart things - heat, garage door (notification if it opens), etc.
Live in a very safe neighborhood, so basic securing - lock doors, timers on a couple of lights, let police and neighbors know.
Snowplowing contracted.
Mail/periodicals stopped or forwarded.
Fridge - empty, but left running, with a frozen water cup + coin to detect if food in the freezer ever thawed. Ice maker off (no water, anyway)

Should I put something in the drains (mineral oil or ??) to prevent the traps from drying out and letting sewer gas in?

Anything else to avoid potential damage?

[stroguy]

I would recommend not posting on social media or forums you will be out of the house during certain dates. The rest can be answered without posting your specific dates.

[traveldawg]

Highly suggest you have someone check the house weekly or at least every other week. Stuff happens - heating (or A/C in our Case) quits, critters might get in, etc. Good that you tell neighbors you will be gone and the dates.

We also leave the WiFi on to monitor temps (in house and garage), lighting, cameras.

We pay someone to check on our house and we live in a gated community with a 24x7 guard at the gate. Although we leave the water off outside, they turn it on and flush toilets, run sinks, etc. to keep things lubed.

You can pour some mineral oil in the drains and toilets. You can cover the toilets with plastic food wrap to keep the evaporation down (not sure if this applies in cold weather).

It looks like you covered this - remove ice from ice maker so if power fails they don't melt and leak out the dispenser on the floor (another lesson learned the hard way).

[Johnww]

My wife and I are volunteering with the NPS in 2023 and will be away from home for about six months. We don't have the winter weather considerations you have but in addition to some of the items you have posted i plan on cancelling the cable TV, internet access, telephone and garbage service. Newspaper subscription went away several years ago. I plan on turning off the water service and having a yard service keep the lawn up. Any other ideas will be most appreciated.

[jkwilson]

We have a Ring alarm system. It alerts for entry, smoke, CO, water, power failure, loss of internet, someone ringing the doorbell and low temperature with cellular and battery backup. We also have a driveway sensor that notifies my phone if someone drives up our quarter mile driveway and several outdoor night vision cameras that notify us of motion and upload video. We have wifi lightbulbs several places that cycle similarly to our normal routine, and I change the times a little about once a week via the app on my phone.

Water off, thermostat all of the way down. The neighbor grabs our mail. Adult children check the house periodically and refill the automated feeder for the barn cat which we monitor with a camera in case a coon finds it. Use informed delivery to look at our mail in case anything needs action.

[FjClay]

If you have a lot of valuables or irreplaceable things consider a safe if you haven’t already

[Bungy]

First time snowbirds. Will be gone Jan - mid-April.

FYI - being in Minn., it gets really, really cold. (up to -30F) So, what am I forgetting about battening down the house for a long time away?
Kinda hard to ask, since as a "good Minnesotan" I should know about how everyone winterizes their cabin "Up North"....but have never owned one so never done it.

Heat - thinking of dialing down to 50. Too low?
Gas hot water heater - off
Main water supply - off
Major electronics (TV, Computers, etc) unplugged.
Will leave WiFi running, for a bit of remote access to smart things - heat, garage door (notification if it opens), etc.
Live in a very safe neighborhood, so basic securing - lock doors, timers on a couple of lights, let police and neighbors know.
Snowplowing contracted.
Mail/periodicals stopped or forwarded.
Fridge - empty, but left running, with a frozen water cup + coin to detect if food in the freezer ever thawed. Ice maker off (no water, anyway)

Should I put something in the drains (mineral oil or ??) to prevent the traps from drying out and letting sewer gas in?

Anything else to avoid potential damage?

Check with your insurance provider, some require regular (every 3-4 days) personal inspections to ensure coverage.

[WhittleBurner]

Aside from cutting off the water , it's not a bad idea to winterize the toilets to prevent freezing in case of power failure for an extended time.

[huntindog]

If you have a lot of valuables or irreplaceable things consider a safe if you haven’t already

And if you are like me and own a lot of power tools that can easily defeat a safe...Get one large enough to hold all of them as well

[trailrydr]

Things that can help....

Notify a nearby trusted neighbor and/or family member that your going to be away. Have any deliveries picked up and stored while away. Shut off water softner, hot water tank and drain, and main line. Turn thermostat to 50 in winter and 80 in summer. Have a UPS installed to power cams, computer, etc so that on power interuptions or intruders get notifications. Always have lights on and off using programmed timers each night whether there or not. Stop mail. Leave trash cans in same place each time whether using or not, or, dumped or full. Have someone cut grass while away if necessary. Signin thru internet occasionally and view cams for security and issues. And dont broadcast "publicly" when your leaving on a trip.

Note: Never going to keep all potential thieves (or meth heads) out, but may persuade them to go to the next house, or, be able to know when they are there and to call the police.