What home jobs should you do in January?

Why a January home maintenance checklist helps

January falls between the year-end holidays and Chinese New Year, which makes it a natural time for a new year home checklist. The weather sets the order of the jobs.

The Meteorological Service Singapore says the Northeast Monsoon season runs from December to early March, in a wet phase and a dry phase. February, in the dry phase, is the driest month.

Rain, drains and leaks

After a downpour, look at ceilings, walls and window frames for damp patches or stains. If you find a new or growing ceiling stain, read ceiling leak: what to do. For more wet-weather jobs, see monsoon season home care.

HDB's floor trap guide says water overflowing from a floor trap comes from solid matter or grease blocking it. To prevent chokes, keep the grating closed and do not pour cooking oil or throw food waste and solid items down the floor trap or sink. For serious cases, engage a licensed plumber.

Mosquito checks

The National Environment Agency (NEA) says on its Stop Dengue Now page that Aedes mosquitoes prefer to breed in clean, stagnant water that is easily found in homes. Water as small in volume as a 20-cent coin is enough. NEA asks households to do the Mozzie Wipeout at least once a week.

NEA's Checklist for a Mozzie-Free Home lists these jobs to do at all times:

• Turn pails and watering cans over and store them under shelter.
• Loosen the soil in potted plants so water does not collect on hardened soil.
• Do not block scupper drains along common corridors, for example with potted plants.
• Cover rarely used gully traps, replace them with non-perforated ones and install an anti-mosquito valve.
• Cover bamboo pole holders after use.

The same NEA checklist says no tray or receptacle should be placed under or on an aircon unit. If you need a tray for another issue, install HDB's patented aircon tray and still check it for chokes at the drainage point. NEA also sets out regular tasks:

Aircon and cleaning before Chinese New Year

NEA's energy saving tips say to check the aircon filter once a month and clean or replace it when necessary, and to service aircon units regularly and get them inspected annually.

Many households book aircon servicing and deep cleaning before Chinese New Year, so booking earlier gives you more choice of dates. For more detail, read aircon servicing before Chinese New Year and the Chinese New Year cleaning timeline.

Prices depend on the job, so compare companies for aircon servicing and deep cleaning.

Appliance checks after festive cooking

Check plugs, adaptors and extension sockets once the festive cooking is over.

The Energy Market Authority (EMA) says on its electrical safety page that overloading power points may lead to over-heating and start a fire, so do not piggy-back multiple plugs into one socket with double adaptors. Do not use cracked or broken power points or extension sockets; have damaged ones replaced by a Licensed Electrical Worker (LEW). Replace cords with broken or frayed insulation.

EMA also says to test the RCCB once a month. The RCCB cuts off electricity when it detects a current leakage that may lead to an electric shock. It is usually in the DB box and can be identified as a switch with a "Test" button.

For a fuller list of checks, see the home electrical safety checklist.

Plan the rest of the year

Set reminders now for the jobs that repeat:

• Mosquito checks every week, plus the every-other-day and monthly tasks.
• An aircon filter check every month and a regular service.
• An RCCB test every month.
• Any ceiling stain or slow drain you found, to check again after the next heavy rain.

The home maintenance calendar generator can help you lay these jobs out across the year. Later in the year, read the November home checklist for the next set of seasonal jobs.

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