Winter-ready
Your cabin, month by month
Every month has two jobs: ours and yours. Do yours, and ours is easy. Print it, or text us a photo of the gauge.
| What you do | What we do | |
|---|---|---|
| August | What you doRead the gauge, trim the brush back and tell us how you get in. | What we doWe put you on the fall list and send the earliest dates for your road. |
| September | What you doBe there or leave us a way in. Change the filter and the CO alarm battery. | What we doThe truck fills the tank to the safe level and the tech checks the furnace in the same stop. |
| October | What you doSet the thermostat. Stake the tank lid so you can find it under snow. | What we doWe top up any tank that has dropped since the visit and fix what the leak check found. |
| November | What you doKeep the path, the lid and the vent clear of drifts. | What we doWe note your route and road conditions on your card so the driver finds the tank first time. |
| December to February | What you doRead the gauge and call at about a third. Brush the regulator and vent clear after a big snow. | What we doWe fill on a first-come route and tell you the window when you call. |
| March | What you doCall earlier than you think you need to. Keep meltwater off the tank base. | What we doWe check a tank that has settled or shifted and plan fills around the road limits. |
| April and May | What you doTell us whether the cabin stays open or closes for the summer. | What we doWe open or close the tank for a seasonal place and write the dates on your card. |
| June and July | What you doTell us what you noticed last winter: the cold room, the noisy start, the gauge that fell fast. | What we doWe have time for installs, tank work and repairs that can't wait for November. |
Before you lock up
Leaving the cabin for the weekend
A short list for the last ten minutes before you drive home.
Last ten minutes
Read the gauge and text us a photo
Set the thermostat so the house stays above freezing, and ask us what suits your pipes
Check the carbon monoxide alarm shows a green light
Clear the path and the regulator of snow by hand
Turn off appliances you won't need
Keep anything that burns well away from the furnace and the vent
Tell a neighbor, or tell us, when you're due back
If the heat is out
No heat: five checks before you call
Carbon monoxide comes first. After that, these find the fault more often than you'd think.
Carbon monoxide or a gas smell
If the alarm is sounding, or you smell gas, leave now and call 911 from outside. Don't go back in to check the furnace.
The thermostat
Is it on heat, set above the room, with fresh batteries?
The tank gauge
Is there fuel? If it reads under 10 percent, call us first.
The power
A furnace needs electricity. Check the breaker and the switch near the unit.
The regulator and the vent
Snow or ice on either can stop the flow. Brush it off by hand, with nothing sharp.
Ready to put a visit on the calendar?
Book the fill and service for September, or tell us where you are in the year.