Did you know there’s an important checklist of things you should do before you go on vacation? Before heading out the door, you should do more than pack your bags so you don’t come home to a potential “surprise.” Keep burglars at bay, save energy, and come home from vacation refreshed and relax with the following tips:

Clean Your House: There’s nothing worse than coming home to a dirty house after vacation. Before you leave, at least clean your kitchen, do the dishes, empty perishables from the fridge, empty the trash, and catch up on laundry. You will probably be returning with luggage, pillows, souvenirs, trash, and dirty laundry. Getting a head start on this will only make returning that much sweeter!

Hold The Mail: If you’re going away longer than a week, put a stop to the mail or ask a neighbor to collect your mail and packages for you. This will help with making sure your mailbox is not overloaded, but also give you the opportunity to rely on your wonderful neighbor.

Make It Look Like You’re Home: Put your lights on a timer so it looks like someone is home. Programmable timers let you randomize the daily on/off times, so potential burglars think someone is there. Also, adjust your shades. You don’t want your empty home on display, but you also don’t want to shut your shades if you normally never do that. Instead, close your shades partially to block the view while giving an “at-home” appearance.

Adjust The AC & Heat: Don’t completely turn off the AC or heating systems. If you’re going away when it’s warm, set your AC to about 10 degrees below the outside temperature so big appliances don’t have to work extra hard. If you’re going away in the winter, set your heat to around 55 degrees to prevent frozen pipes.

Prep Your Home: If you don’t want to waste unnecessary energy while you’re away for a while, unplug appliances, TVs, desktops, modems/routers, and any other energy-suckers.

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