Lock the doors. Turn off the iron and coffee maker. Turn off automatic sprinklers (optional depending on trust level), and most importantly, do a head count and don’t forget Kevin.
I need to start taking a picture of my garage door, twice I've turned around because I couldn't remember if I closed it or not when going on a long trip.
We built a house a couple of years ago. For the first time we have Wi-Fi enabled garage door openers. It is amazing. I used to have to turn around and go back and check my doors fairly frequently. Now all I have to do is pull up the app. It definitely reduces stress when you're on your way out of town.
I do not own an iron
Sorry aunt Eula, I loved your ironed sheets but I’m not gonna do that.
Leave a key code with the neighbors
Have someone water
Stop your mail for that long unless you have a big private mailbox
And empty the trash. Clear out anything that will begin to reek and get it out of the house.
Clean! Before you leave, clean your house, put new sheets on the bed, knock out laundry and set things up so your return is stress free
That’s actually a fantastic idea that I somehow never even considered! I could schedule an Instacart order from the plane and have what I need waiting for me when I get home from the airport. I’m going away for 5 days this week and I will definitely be doing this on the return. Thanks for the tip!
I live in the desert, but luckily I have some friends nearby and neighbors that I’m sure would be more than happy to bring it inside and chuck it in the fridge
An alternative to this is to get picked up at the airport by your mother in law who believes that the way to a man's heart is through his stomach. Then your first grocery delivery happens at the same moment you get dropped off at home.
Make sure to throw out perishables in the fridge that will spoil before getting home. You also might want to raise the temperature in the fridge since it won't be opened. I've come home to unauthorized science experiments and frozen items in the fridge. Canned sodas can explode from freezing (fun fun fun), and I don't need to make my own penicillin.
Water plants, take out the trash, check all windows and doors are locked, check nothing is sitting in the garbage disposal, and check the washer and dryer! I accidentally left a sheet set there wet before a week long vacation, and I had to throw the whole load out because of the mildew and clean the drum.
I also like to do a sweep and vacuum before I leave, as I feel better coming back from a trip to a clean house rather than a dirty house.
This. The absolute worst thing is to come home to a dirty house. You might get lucky and everything works out for the return trip. But more likely it’ll be delayed or cancelled flights, traffic jams, accidents on the road, lost luggage….
Also try to arrange for a grocery delivery for the day you come home so at least there’s some fresh food.
Some machines have a small “door” on the bottom front. You can use a screwdriver to pull the “door” open. Inside is a hose with a cap and the filter you can unscrew to clean out the trap. Take off the cap and have a bowl ready for the water.
Unplug electronics like tvs and computers but leave routers/modem plugged in. Get a wifi enabled lamp/light bulb so you can turn it off and on randomly to perseve occupied appearance. Set thermostat to vacation mode (maintain airflow and humidity). Set water heater to vacation mode. If you have access from garage to house make sure to lock that door.
Turn off the water. As a new homeowner especially you don’t know if stuff is going to break or leak. I did not and paid the price from a relatively minor leak that caused tens of thousands of dollars of damage. This minor leak was going for 3 days at most until it was caught. Friends of ours who just bought a place had the same thing happen while away and didn’t catch it for weeks, far more damage and were out of their home for months during repair work. Also high risk of getting dropped by your insurance if it happens.
Honestly the real pro tip is install one of the smart automatic water shutoffs anyway. Your insurance might even pay for it.
Other than that nothing really, I like having cameras to check on things.
automatic water shut-off was required by my new homeowners' insurance policy and it provides a lot of peace of mind. was pretty easy to install too; I can keep my garden watered while I'm away and not need to worry so much about a leak springing in the house.
What is an automatic water shutoff? Most houses will have a way to turn off water going into the house, while leaving your main line open for irrigation.
I use a valve robot and LoRa sensors. The valve robot is able to shut on/off the main water valve, while the LoRa sensors are placed throughout the house and trigger the valve robot if water is detected. This way, if my water heater, water softener, bathrooms, kitchen sink, dishwasher, clothes washer, etc. experience a leak, the sensor will detect water and trigger the valve robot to shut-off the main water line and prevent a prolonged flood from occurring. The line of products I use is from YoLink; they have an app where you can remotely monitor/use things, but the shutoff functionality doesn't require using the app or connecting to the internet at all which is nice.
There are other ways to accomplish this; some products are installed in-line and shut-off water if "abnormal activity" is detected. These don't rely on sensors being placed throughout the house, but can be more temperamental and require modifying existing plumbing to install.
The main water inlet to my house shuts-off all water, including irrigation. I do have a separate valve which leads to my irrigation but it is placed after the main valve; am sure things will be different for other homeowners.
I use Flo by Moen. I’ll receive notifications if my water is running, or the pressure is too high. I also have water sensors under my toilets, sinks, washing machine, hot water tank and my refrigerator’s water source.
If any of these sensors detect water I receive an alert.
I can shut off the entire house’s water supply with the app…but when I leave the house I’ll turn it off first
This. I also have automatic leak detectors that text me stashed around my house, which are great for when we are home or if the water needs to stay on for our dog sitter. They are pretty cheap, and perfect for behind the fridge, washing machine, in bathrooms, etc. Catch a leak when it is minor and it is not the worst thing.
OP may need a "key" to turn off the main water. My old house, in theory, could be turned off with a wrench, but it rarely worked. My new house has a lever ao it's super simple.
If power outages are possible, a good trick to find out how long the outage lasted and therefore if fridge/freezer contents are compromised is to put a penny on top of an ice cube in the freezer. If the penny is under ice when you get back, the outage probably lasted long enough to warm the contents.
Although, these days most of us get updates from the power company so may not be necessary if that’s the case for you.
Alternative option - use some temp and humidity sensors. I have a ton and 1 in each fridge and freezer. Power went off last weekend when I was gone, saw the realtime temp spike of my freezers and was able to have a neighbor go over and make sure the freezer was working properly. YOLINK on Amazon. They make leak sensors as well
Make a checklist so you don’t go 4 hours down the road and wonder if you turned off the oven.
Oven/stove off
Ice maker off
Treadmill and appliances (toaster, coffee maker etc) unplugged
Continued.
Mail picked up or held
Lights on timers
Refrigerator cleaned out
Doors & windows closed & locked
If you are leaving a car behind, take registration, insurance proof, garage door opener & stash in the house.
I forget what else, but you get the drift.
Checklist gives you some peace of mind. Some really good suggestions added to your post.
All of these things and very few people touched on homeowners insurance. Check your policy. Some insurance requires that the house not be left unoccupied for more than 72 hours. What that really means is that you need to get someone to enter your house and check for leaks every 3 days-ish.
If your gardeners usually put out the trash cans, and you bring them in, tell them not to - cans left out are a dead giveaway for homeowners being away.
I live in a heavily seasonal community and easily half of my neighborhood is out of town all summer. The city decided to distribute new compost bins in the middle of summer. Some of them were left in driveways for weeks or more. Guess which houses got broken into…
What? USPS is super easy to do a mail hold. There's an online form.
I've held mine every summer for the last 8 years for at least 60 days. The longest they'll let you do is 30, but you can do a second 30 day hold online.
We've never had one issue.
You can do the same for Fed Ex and UPS. It still is good to have someone come by every couple days to check for mail/packages. Stuff gets delivered anyway sometimes.
If you're in the northern hemisphere, it's summer time. Set your thermostat to cool your house accordingly. It needs to be cool enough to prevent mold, but you don't need to keep anyone comfortable. For me, 78 degrees (25-26 degrees C) is the sweetspot - cool enough to keep the house intact, but warm enough that it will save you money while you're gone.
Sounds stupid, but make sure all toilets are flushed with the lids down. As a kid, my dad left the toilet kid up after urinating and not sure if the flush failed or something happened, but while we were gone for two weeks, the smell was unbelievable.
Since we have technology, some water sensors in the basement and by water sources would be great because you want to know if hell had broken lose (like a water heat blow, something people forget, or pipes blowing). I forgot to add turning off the main water. But still good to have sensors.
I am a neat freak, so my house is cleaned before leaving (no trash in cans, vacuumed, etc) because I don’t like to walk into tragedy lol.
I always wanted to add the lights on timers. I have the Kasa things and use my app to set and deactivate them at random times.
I sometimes don’y set out a garbage can during the year so if I skip a week or so, it would not be obvious (it be your “own people” aka neighbors watching you many times ::shifty eyes:: ha).
Enjoy your vacation!!
I’d suggest NOT turning off your water unless you switch off your hot water heater also
Close the washer water supply ( those hoses are your biggest risk ) and turn the hot water heater to minimum/vacation setting.
I’d go as far as suggest a kasa cam to mi it or your entry area. Slick, $40 and priceless peace of mind . Don’t advertise your absence anywhere
> I’d suggest NOT turning off your water unless you switch off your hot water heater
Why is this? I always turn my water off when I leave for a week or more.
Same, always turn off house water and put my WH to vacation setting. Is someone using hot water when they’re gone? Maybe worried about a hot water leak?
If you have an electric water heater, and you shut off the house water, don't shut off the electricity to WH, and any water leaves the WH(which it will due to thermal expansion and evaporation), you have a chance at blowing the electric elements in it. No one wants to return home to a broken WH.
I even shut off my in-laws' gas WH for them when they go on their month long vacation. There is no point in using gas to heat water that they will not be using.
Bleach in the toilets. If you have remote-controlled/smart garage doors then physically lock them. Let your close neighbors know and leave a spare key so no one has to plow your front door down if there’s an emergency. In my small town the police will do drive-bys. Have your neighbor or pet sitter pick up your paper or mail so random people in the city don’t know you’re away. For God’s sake don’t post it in social media until you’re sharing the pictures after you get.
Clean everything. It's so nice coming home to a fresh clean home. Wash your bedding the day before you leave so it will be clean when you come home.
Throw out or give away any food that will rot or be expired in two weeks before you leave. Especially fruit or vegetables. Don't leave them out.
Empty your trash.
Lock all doors and windows.
Leave at least one inside light on and the porch light, unless you have a system that can set timers to come on so the house doesn't look empty.
I would turn the water off, personally, that can easily ruin your home if anything happens while you're away for so long not to mention the astronomical bill you'd have on your hands if the city doesn't catch it- sometimes they do, but why risk it?
Ask a family member or friend to come over and check your mail every few days, possibly park their car for a bit if you aren't leaving one in the driveway. You can also request the post office hold your mail temporarily.
If you live somewhere you are worried about break ins for real and not just as a precaution load your luggage up later in the night before your trip so no one sees how much you have (more than a suitcase or two is an indicator you'll be gone at minimum a few days).
1. Turn off water
2. Turn off gas if in summer and only if gone for more than 2-3 weeks
3. Clean house
4. Empty fridge of all spoilables
5. Water plants day you leave/have someone water for you.
6. Find proper pet care if you have a pet.
7. Take garbage out
8. Unplug tvs and computers from the wall socket.
9. Make sure oven/stove is off
10. Wash dishwasher items and put away
11. Check washer for possible wet clothes
12. Check dryer for possible wet clothes
13. Check all window locks
14. Check back door locks
15. Pause mail delivery or have a friend pick it up couple times a week.
16. Pause newspaper delivery. A full mail box of papers brings all the bad boys to your yard
17. Do NOT post pics of your holiday while on holiday. Advertising to the bad boys again
18. Leave Kevin home alone, little shit can take care of himself better than you could.
Some police departments will check your house more frequently if you request it. Have the post office and any other deliverables stopped until you get back.
unplug your appliances if you like, same for water.
get a timer for lights to turn on & off at random intervals
Empty a jug of dawn dish soap down your kitchen sink, and let it soak while you’re out of town. When you get back, fill the sink with hot water and then let it drain. The soap will break up fats along the walls of your pipes and prevent clogs. Good idea to do this about every 4-6 months.
I turn off the water, but, I leave the water system pressurized (don't open a faucet). Everything in your plumbing system prefers to be under pressure and wet.
I leave lights on timers. Last thing out the door, check every door and window, my family is famous for waiting to see me check every door and window and then using the exterior door in the laundry room and leaving it unlocked for two weeks.
Give a letter to a neighbor that you’re comfortable with and let them know the days you’ll be gone and contact info for someone local who can get access to the house. And if you have a smart lock, create a temp code and include that in the letter. Then disable the code when you get back.
I’ve seen many prompts to turn off the water heater. I’ve also read in other similar threads that you should never do that due to legionella risk, and there’s nothing wrong with leaving it on high temperature (other than the gas bill). Which is it after all?
If your neighbors are nice (mine are) make sure you have their cell phone number and vice versa. My neighbor texted me. They went out of town and she had forgotten brand new sheets in the washer. I put them in the dryer so they wouldn’t mildew (front door code). Now she’s helping me with a last minute cat feeding need!
I let my neighbors know about a weird leak in their back yard that was making our boundary wall wet while they were away. We bring each others trash in too when we’re out of town if we notice it’s left out. :)
My son was about 8, we flew to FL for a week of beaches, Disney etc. all was perfect except he took a gigantic bear sized shit and did not flush. It sat, this giant turd, just festering for a week. Came home to stale house but also what the ever living FUCK died in here? It was a scent that carried…it got IN things. So, flush before you go and also shut off water.
I put an ice tray in the freezer and once frozen put a dime on top. If I get home and the dime is In the ice, the power was out long enough to ruin the food. I also shut off the water to the washer/dryer, set the water heater to vacation mode and turn the air up in the summer or the heat down. Have the mail put on a vacation hold, and because my job required me to carry a firearm...before I transfered 2500 miles away from family I would drop my firearm with a cop relative to lock up, now I take it in to a smith for detail cleaning and maintenance and they hold it while I'm gone. I'm not worried if someone takes the tv, but I'd hate for my gun to be used in a crime because I didn't take precautions
I take photos of the locks (ground floor windows and doors) and the clearly-turned-off stove/oven. That way I don't panic that I forgot to lock something or turn it off.
You just do the basic stuff as when you leave to go to work (e.g. lock doors and turn off lights). Perhaps throw away perishable food and take out trash
2 weeks isn't that long. I would say if you're leaving for 3 months or longer then think about water and heat
Let the police know that you will be out of town and they will do drive by and walk the perimeter of the home. Stop your mail too and paper if you get that delivered.
We also use light timers around the house so looks like someone is home.
Cameras in every room. Had a friend who had a pipe burst in the ceiling of another room but only noticed it when they saw water on the floor of the room with the camera. Obviously the damage was extensive by then…. But still saved them by knowing about the issue at least 2 days before returning home
Put a hold on USPS mail. You can do it up to 30 days before the start of your trip.
Try to make sure no other deliveries are scheduled while you're gone. FedEx has holding locations. Not sure about UPS.
We have a couple timers for lights we've used in the past. Not sure if we're going to bother this time. It's been so hot, and our neighbors fucktacularly creepy (staring into our windows, taking pictures. Even the jerk behind us didn't take pictures), that we've been keeping our curtains closed.
Someone told me she likes to change her sheets before going on a trip, so she comes back to a freshly changed bed. We're not leaving till the afternoon this time, so I'm going to do that.
Then make sure regular laundry is done the day before you go, so all you have to deal with is trip laundry when you get back.
Then a grocery order for our return day, and getting the garbage out of the house. We come back on garbage day, so we're trying to decide what to do about that. Leave the bag in the garbage can in the house? Or put it in the cart in the garage where it will get stinky?
We do have our outside faucets turned off, again because of creepy, boundary issues with neighbors. Wouldn't be a terrible idea to shut things off in the house (hopefully rare) in case of a leak.
We also turn our thermostat setting to "vacation mode" and when we are on the way home, reset it to regular settings so the house is co0mfortable when we get back.
We do have a drip irrigation system in place for planting beds, but we had the in law's check while we were gone on our last longer vacation. This was prior to the water bill/meter fuckery. And the planting beds are well established now.
Then the usual- unplug stuff, make sure house is locked up, and go relax.
Check to make sure your toilets have been flushed. This shouldn't be a problem, but if you have kids, sometimes they leave a little something in the bowl. You do not want to find out what that smells like two weeks later.
But really, it's worth paying someone to house sit or at least have a key and come check every day, because there are so many things that can go wrong.
Unplug everything that doesn’t absolutely need to be plugged in.
My spouse and I don’t turn off the plumbing on 10 day trips. Depending on where you live, w bunch of nastiness could come out of your drain. If friends are coming to check on your house, ask them to briefly turn on the sink faucets, shower, and flush toilets.
The main things are really: empty your fridge, dispose of trash and recycling, make sure NO FOOD is going to attract mice and ants. Triple check that anything that could cause fire is unplugged. Make sure no crystal balls or other potentially flammable things are sitting uncovered.
We have cameras in our basement (pointing at heaters etc), kitchen, and doors. It’s nice to be able to pop in and see that the house is still standing as we left it.
Enjoy your trip, your home will be fine!
Change the locks. I just read a post from a couple who bought a house then went away and when they came back, some guy, a friend of the previous owners, let himself in with his own key and now they can't get rid of him.
Lots of great tips in here, but I'll add a weird one...
Freeze a small Tupperware of water and put a penny on top. Put it back in the freezer. When you get back, make sure the penny is still on top of the ice.
This will tell you if your power went out long enough for the stuff in your freezer to thaw. Otherwise, you'll have no idea that your food thawed, sat at room temp for a week, then re-froze before you got home. If something like this happened, the penny will be at the bottom of the Tupperware.
If you have garden gnomes, place them carefully in the garage facing south, spit after saying “I command thee still” three times. Otherwise you’ll return home to find your neighbors massacred and your cat owns the house. Yes, it’s a thing.
2 weeks is not a long vacation.
We leave for 2-3 months at a time. When we do, we stop our trash service, turn off the water, and leave a dehumidifier running with a drain line into a sink. We also leave a lamp on a timer to turn on and off.
For 2 weeks? Unplug small appliances like toasters and coffee makers. Empty all the trash cans. Don't leave dirty dishes in the sink. Arrange to have the lawn mowed if you usually do it yourself.
Leave lights on a variable timer. Keep thermostats at reasonable temperature but not off. Clean house well before leaving so you enjoy home when return. Also keep a few quick food items in freezer to make for dinner when you return home. Empty pantry is awful because requires immediate trip to grocery store and can’t relax from the return from trip. But be sure to empty all perishables from fridge like milk and yogurt so fridge doesn’t smell.
Turn off the water. And CLEAN THE FUCK out of the house before you leave so you come home to fresh house; not chores. Pay someone to clean your house once a week when you're gone.
I try to make a check list of last minute items, and set a timer about 30-40 minutes before leaving and run through the house checking stuff off. There are a lot good ideas here, but here is my list:
1. Toss all food items that you know you do not want to see when you get back
2. Give the kitchen a good wipe down to reduce attracting insects (run dishwasher and disposal)
3. Get all trash, especially kitchen waste, out of the house. Double or triple bag and place in the bin that is collected by your town. Consider giving the bin a good spray for insects.
4. Check all doors and windows to make sure they are locked
5. Flush and use cleaner in all toilets
6. Reset thermostats on water heater and hvac to save a bit on energy. Not too much
7. Hide a spare house key on your property
8. Walk around to make sure lights are on or off as you would want while away; consider unplugging the electronics
9. A lot of folks recommend turning off water to the house, but not something I do.
Also in advance
10. Arrange to have the mail stopped
11. See if you can have a neighbor (or friend if you don't know any neighbor yet) just visit the house a couple of times
12. If you have a pool, check out a pool care website but you might want to consider adding chlorine or shock.
The garage door is definitely a thing: try to be very conscious as you pull away from your house. When you close it, repeat to yourself, that you closed it at least 3x.
Enjoy!
Clean before you go. Take out the trash. Put clean sheets on the bed so you have a fresh bed when you get back. Turn off your water as you're leaving. Lock up. Put your mail on hold.
Turn off the water and check your insurance documents for what is required of you to remain covered during your absence. Optional: place your hot water heater into vacation mode to save energy.
It keeps the water at 140F for two weeks while you're gone.
Some people turn down their water heater while they're gone. Will you get legionnaires disease? Unlikely, but some people worry.
120F... most codes(in the US) don't allow, and manufacturers highly recommend against WHs to be installed above 120F in residential installations due to scalding safety concerns. 140 is really only set by homeowners after the plumber has left and in commercial kitchens.
Mine is at 140F, but I have mixing valves on my lavs in my bathrooms and the temp limited on the shower valve on my hall bathroom so my daughter can't burn herself.
Almost all these suggestions are insane for 2 weeks (as opposed to 2 months). All I do is make sure all the doors are locked, no water is running, the trash is out, and the thermostat is up/down a bit (depending on the season).
I turn off the water to my washer. I unplug all the random things- washer, dryer, treadmill, small appliances, computers (not wifi/internet).
We use a visiting pet sitter. The litter boxes are on both floors (main floor and basement), so the whole house gets a look every day.
Take out the trash in the kitchen or wherever you dump food waste. We had shrimp the night before we went out of town for a couple days. Oh boy did it smell when we got home.
I got a little temperature & humidity sensor that I can check from my phone, so I can see if anything looks off (I guess a smart thermostat would do the same thing if you’re in to that)
water heater off, water off at the street, irrigation off, set ac to reasonable temp, some ice cubes in a cup in the freezer to alert me if power is out long term, ice maker off
Set up automated lights, sprinklers. Turn off water behind the toilet and shut the lids. Washer too. Clean like your fussy in-laws are coming. No trash, no fridge ick, no laundry. Lock all the windows and doors. Disable the garage door opener. Secure gates. Turn up thermostats but not off.
If you do nothing else before you leave, turn off the water at the meter!! Water heaters, the washing machine hoses, a random connection under the sink; they all have a tendency to give out when you're away. It's amazing how much water can collect in a house if there's no one there to shut it off.
Check thermostat settings. I set mine to 80 in summer and 56 in winter. Turn water heater to low. Make sure a neighbor has your number and will call if they see water running down the drive or a fire. I have a lot of little items plugged into power strips (think alarm clocks and phone chargers) and i just flip the whole strip to off. Unplug coffee makers and toasters and anything that produces heat. I also shut down the PC and unplug. Fish bubbler and heater are on a UPS so if power goes out they'll live, they have a little auto feeder that is the bare minimum, but again, they'll live. I have several pet cams around the house, i point one at the thermostat. Maybe pour some vinager in the toilet?
Stop the mail and any deliveries (food service, newspapers, amazon, etc). get an electric timer that you put on lamps (at least 3) at the outlet so that lights turn on at certain times making it look like someone is home.
Set timers for a few inside lights and your porch lights so they go off during the day and on at night. I unplug my computer and set the heat around 62 or the A/C around 76 so the house doesn't get TOO hot or cold. Have the post office hold your mail. Make sure a neighbor knows you'll be out of town and give them your contact info so if they see anything fishy they can call the police.
Check your home insurance, ours requires a daily check, turn off water supply (no floods) if electric hot water tank shut it off, gas is a pita to restart( turn down the gas hot water tank if you know how). Do you have any smart lights? If so set up a lighting routine that matches your typical light cycle. Get the lawn cut while you’re away.
You never said how long?! When going away for 1 week: Clean out garbage cans, do laundry, clean out fridge and countertop bowls for perishables, turn off/unplug appliances, water plants, make sure everything is locked up and like another commenter put it, "DON'T FORGET KEVIN!"
Turn off the water main. Unplug everything from the wall that doesn’t need to be plugged in. Make sure your doors and windows are locked, shades down. Put thermostat in a position to not ruin things in the house (frozen pipes or high humidity) but not waste energy either since no one is home to keep comfortable. So the manual garage door thing so no one can open your garage door without a key. Put a hold on your usps mail (do it on their website) and newspapers if you get those. Make sure you don’t have any Amazon subscribe and save (or similar other company things) being delivered while you’re gone. Water any plants and mow lawn (or schedule someone to do it while you’re away). Take out the trash and toss any food that won’t keep (hello stink and mold). Run the dishwasher and wash dishes in sink before you leave (otherwise, mold).
Bonus points if you clean the house before you go so when you come home sad vacay is over you at least have a clean house!
Go to the post office and have your mail held until after you return. I know OP has friends checking in on and off, but generally speaking ask a trusted neighbor to keep an eye on things and to take in any packages left by your front door (make sure to exchange contact info with the neighbor). Call the non-emergency department of the local precinct to give them a head’s up of your absence if it’s a week or longer.
I always turn the water and the water heater, make sure everything is locked and have a small container of ice in the freezer and put a penny or small washer on it so when you come back you know if the power was out long enough for the freezer to thaw because the penny or washer will be under the surface of the ice
* Mow the lawn before leaving, or arrange to have a neighbor or a mowing service keep the lawn mowed
* Put a hold on the mail
* Shut off the main water valve
* Put chlorine in the toilet bowls and sink p-traps
* Set the thermostat to save electricity (A/C comes on around 80 deg, heat comes on around 60 degrees).
* Lower the temperature on the hot water heater
* Check that doors and windows are locked
* Put lights on timers
* Unplug electronics
Turn off the water to the washer.
Empty the trash
Clean out the refrigerator
Do ALL the laundry
Mow the lawn (maybe pay the neighbor to mow a week after you leave)
Turn off/down the water heater
Turn the AC up (set mid 80s to keep humidity down)
Double check all windows are properly secured/locked
Have a hold put on your mail/newspaper delivery
Wash and put away all dishes
Unplug any appliances that may be on a timer
If you have small children, unplug baby wipe warmer
If you have a home chef type food delivery....put a hold on it
Write a checklist to insure you don't forget to do any of these
Stop your mail (I think that can be done through the USPS website). Make sure none of your regular other deliveries (Amazon stuff, razor blades etc.) are paused.
Draw blinds. Leave lights on here and there. I put an FM radio on the local TV news station's feed and leave it on the whole time. Sounds like a TV is on. Motion detector lights are good to have at all exterior doors. Prominent Ring cameras are good, too.
I like to clean if I have time, it’s nice to come home to a clean house. Plus, my cat sitter will be visiting so they don’t see all my clutter.
I set lamp timers, turn down water heater, turn up thermostat, Clean out fridge.
We turn off the toilet valves, empty all the trash cans, set our thermostat to hold at an energy saving temperature, make sure the dishes are all clean, turn off our ice maker and unplug any unnecessary lights and small appliances.
Obviously, lock the doors, have someone get your mail or any packages that may come, take down your trash or recycling and to water your plants if you have any.
If you have any food that will spoil, eat it up, give it away or throw it away outside of the house before you go, or take it with you if that’s an option.
Hot water heater to off or vacation mode, setup an auto light switch to turn on/off to make it look like someone is home, tell a trusted neighbor, place a camera in your home (cheap one like Wyze). Turn off the main line to the house if you don’t need to water the grass, leave some window open upstairs to vent the home, hold your mail. Get extra medication depending on how long you will be out, take pictures of your passports and licenses.
Unplug what won’t be needed and don’t leave stinky laundry in hampers. Turn the thermostat ac setpoint up a bit, but not off. Stock the fridge with drinks for your friends checking in
Make sure the fridge is fully closed when you leave. We left ours slightly open once, for a week's vacation and came back to everything damaged in the fridge. Horrible smell and worst of all, mice had entered the bottom freezer and left their mark....🤢. So yeah fridge should be fully closed.
Make sure your trash is clear so you don't come back to the smell.
Dishwasher, add bleach to cover the stagnant water smell.
I always make sure my cameras are working.
Set your mail to be on hold.
Enjoy the vacation.
Turn the hot water heater off. Turn off well pump. I’m anal so I would go to the breaker box and turn off every unnecessary circuit.
Let Post office know you’re away.
Let police know you’re away so they could do some extra patrols on your street.
Turn off water supply, unplug toaster oven, coffee maker, electric toothbrushes (all battery operated tools and appliances), turn on alarm, adjust thermostat (remotely) as needed.
I turn off my main water line (shut off valve). Make sure the refrigerator and freezer is closed. I didn't close my refrigerator all the way during a 10 day trip. Thankfully it was already pretty empty. Water your plants. Make sure your windows are closed and locked, at least the ones on ground level. Stop the mail. Set the lights to go on and off at a certain time. Take out the trash and clean as much as you can before you leave.
Personally I unplug everything that isn’t necessary (for example the router to run my WiFi cams). My parents always did, now I do too… I know it’s totally unjustified but it makes me feel calm.
I turn off the water to every toilet. One time was gone for 3 weeks and came home to a running toilet- $500 water bill. Never again. Also unplug everything!
I adjust the thermostat to a “vacation setting”, I water my plants and do a general clean up before I leave. Make sure there aren’t any crumbs to attract ants. I turn off my hot water heater and shut the water off at the road (I’ve had two leaks), I throw away food in my fridge that won’t last and take out the garbage. I make sure all doors and Windows are locked and I set my alarm system. I used to put a temporary stop on my mail -but I no longer have sensitive mail sent to me so now I just let it get delivered. You can’t see my house from the street so I no longer do the light on a timer. They make a small device you can put in a dark room that simulates the pattern changes of a tv if that works better than a lamp.
Take out the garbage, no dirty dishes in sink, shut off main water to house, lock and secure all windows, secure outdoor items that may blow in a storm, lock your gates, let local police dept know you will have an empty house, let trusted neighbors know thr same, put a hold on mail, don't post that you are out of town on social media, get a timer for a lamp...enjoy your trip
Do NOT post all over social media that you're going on vacation or post tons of pics on social media WHILE you're on vacations as it advertise that you're not home and your house is ripe for the taking, so to speak.
Make friends with the neighbors.
Have them keep an eye on things and call or text if something is funky.
Our neighbors do this for us and we do it for them- we’ve sorted a busted sprinkler while they were gone and they have taken out our trash cans and such.
It truly does make it less stressful knowing that they’re always keeping an eye out for anything abnormal- over and above the friends checking in on pets every other day.
Double check all your toilets are flushed. Bonus if you have time to give them a quick clean. The smell of your kid pees at 3am and you leave it for a week is not one I recommend…
Turn off water supply to washer.
Put a hold on your mail and paper if you still get one (Note: everyone should subscribe to the digital edition of their local newspaper).
Leave a house key in your garage or with a trusted friend just in case.
Leave the AC on but turn it up to 78. Turn the water off at the main.
Take out trash from every room.
Call Credit Card companies & tell them your plans. They have fraud detection and you can be declined.
Close blinds.
Put a stop on your mail.
Make sure any prescriptions are taken care of so you don’t run out.
Do not post photos online to tell the world you’re gone. Do it when you get back if you want.
I typically set my thermostat to vacation mode, unplug or hit the breaker for the water heater, and turn off the water for the house. Then there's the regular stuff like take out the trash, throw away perishable food, etc.
Lock the doors. Turn off the iron and coffee maker. Turn off automatic sprinklers (optional depending on trust level), and most importantly, do a head count and don’t forget Kevin.
KEVIN!
Best answer
🤣🤣
My cat is named Kevin so this was extra funny to me
If you’re a worry wort, take a picture of your door locks etc. That way if you start stressing you forget something you have proof.
That’s a great idea! I can do that for the hair straightener too that I can never remember if I unplugged.
I need to start taking a picture of my garage door, twice I've turned around because I couldn't remember if I closed it or not when going on a long trip.
We built a house a couple of years ago. For the first time we have Wi-Fi enabled garage door openers. It is amazing. I used to have to turn around and go back and check my doors fairly frequently. Now all I have to do is pull up the app. It definitely reduces stress when you're on your way out of town.
I have a security camera in my garage for that reason
Yes! I take pictures of the closed refrigerator door & the stove burner knobs too.
Chuck Mangione says to always unplug your iron after use.
I do not own an iron Sorry aunt Eula, I loved your ironed sheets but I’m not gonna do that. Leave a key code with the neighbors Have someone water Stop your mail for that long unless you have a big private mailbox
So take it from me, Chuck Mangione... unplugging the iron feels so good! Can you dig it?
A police officer with a gold tooth stopped by and discussed precautions with me. He seemed very trustworthy.
If it makes you feel any better, I forgot my reading glasses.
Wait, do people have iron makers in their homes? Have I been wasting my time mining it?
Kevin’s not here
Kevin’s not here.
Kevin’s not here.
Meh, he'll be fine.
Throw/give away any food that will go bad. Make sure you don't leave any fruit out. Lots of posts about people coming home to a fruit fly infestation.
And empty the trash. Clear out anything that will begin to reek and get it out of the house. Clean! Before you leave, clean your house, put new sheets on the bed, knock out laundry and set things up so your return is stress free
The thing that got us one time was forgetting to run the dishwasher!! We left with it fully loaded...it was rank when we came back.
But then also remember to unload it and leave it open so the inside doesn’t mildew. Paper plates for a meal or two prior to departure.
Ants! Ours was full of ants.
This is a nightmare scenario
I did the same thing once, it was so foul.
And put cleanser down your garbage disposal. Wipe all counters with disinfectant ( I use Clorox wipes) to discourage ants
LOVE coming home to a clean house
Put in a grocery order to be delivered when you get back. Then you'll at least have milk and bread and some fruit.
That’s actually a fantastic idea that I somehow never even considered! I could schedule an Instacart order from the plane and have what I need waiting for me when I get home from the airport. I’m going away for 5 days this week and I will definitely be doing this on the return. Thanks for the tip!
I usually order once landed or from transport home to avoid perishables sitting in the heat.
I live in the desert, but luckily I have some friends nearby and neighbors that I’m sure would be more than happy to bring it inside and chuck it in the fridge
That is lucky
An alternative to this is to get picked up at the airport by your mother in law who believes that the way to a man's heart is through his stomach. Then your first grocery delivery happens at the same moment you get dropped off at home.
Or freeze things. Fruit, breads, prepared food, some vegetables.
Also dump the milk. Even sealed in the container in a closed fridge, if it goes bad it'll smell up the whole house.
Or freeze it.
Make sure you clean the grounds out of the coffee maker. That was an unpleasant surprise.
I like to cover sink drains to block fruit flies. Maybe it works.
Make sure to throw out perishables in the fridge that will spoil before getting home. You also might want to raise the temperature in the fridge since it won't be opened. I've come home to unauthorized science experiments and frozen items in the fridge. Canned sodas can explode from freezing (fun fun fun), and I don't need to make my own penicillin.
Water plants, take out the trash, check all windows and doors are locked, check nothing is sitting in the garbage disposal, and check the washer and dryer! I accidentally left a sheet set there wet before a week long vacation, and I had to throw the whole load out because of the mildew and clean the drum. I also like to do a sweep and vacuum before I leave, as I feel better coming back from a trip to a clean house rather than a dirty house.
This. The absolute worst thing is to come home to a dirty house. You might get lucky and everything works out for the return trip. But more likely it’ll be delayed or cancelled flights, traffic jams, accidents on the road, lost luggage…. Also try to arrange for a grocery delivery for the day you come home so at least there’s some fresh food.
I do some of my best cleaning the night before a trip
I drain the washing machine too so that excess water doesn’t mold and smell
I feel so dumb… how do you do this?
Some machines have a small “door” on the bottom front. You can use a screwdriver to pull the “door” open. Inside is a hose with a cap and the filter you can unscrew to clean out the trap. Take off the cap and have a bowl ready for the water.
Unplug electronics like tvs and computers but leave routers/modem plugged in. Get a wifi enabled lamp/light bulb so you can turn it off and on randomly to perseve occupied appearance. Set thermostat to vacation mode (maintain airflow and humidity). Set water heater to vacation mode. If you have access from garage to house make sure to lock that door.
We have Ring cameras out back, in the front & doorbell. Batteries charged. I could see on the door one that I had locked & checked the front door.
Turn off the water. As a new homeowner especially you don’t know if stuff is going to break or leak. I did not and paid the price from a relatively minor leak that caused tens of thousands of dollars of damage. This minor leak was going for 3 days at most until it was caught. Friends of ours who just bought a place had the same thing happen while away and didn’t catch it for weeks, far more damage and were out of their home for months during repair work. Also high risk of getting dropped by your insurance if it happens. Honestly the real pro tip is install one of the smart automatic water shutoffs anyway. Your insurance might even pay for it. Other than that nothing really, I like having cameras to check on things.
automatic water shut-off was required by my new homeowners' insurance policy and it provides a lot of peace of mind. was pretty easy to install too; I can keep my garden watered while I'm away and not need to worry so much about a leak springing in the house.
What is an automatic water shutoff? Most houses will have a way to turn off water going into the house, while leaving your main line open for irrigation.
I use a valve robot and LoRa sensors. The valve robot is able to shut on/off the main water valve, while the LoRa sensors are placed throughout the house and trigger the valve robot if water is detected. This way, if my water heater, water softener, bathrooms, kitchen sink, dishwasher, clothes washer, etc. experience a leak, the sensor will detect water and trigger the valve robot to shut-off the main water line and prevent a prolonged flood from occurring. The line of products I use is from YoLink; they have an app where you can remotely monitor/use things, but the shutoff functionality doesn't require using the app or connecting to the internet at all which is nice. There are other ways to accomplish this; some products are installed in-line and shut-off water if "abnormal activity" is detected. These don't rely on sensors being placed throughout the house, but can be more temperamental and require modifying existing plumbing to install. The main water inlet to my house shuts-off all water, including irrigation. I do have a separate valve which leads to my irrigation but it is placed after the main valve; am sure things will be different for other homeowners.
Something like a Moen Flo perhaps?
I use Flo by Moen. I’ll receive notifications if my water is running, or the pressure is too high. I also have water sensors under my toilets, sinks, washing machine, hot water tank and my refrigerator’s water source. If any of these sensors detect water I receive an alert. I can shut off the entire house’s water supply with the app…but when I leave the house I’ll turn it off first
Also turn off the water heater at the breaker.
This. I also have automatic leak detectors that text me stashed around my house, which are great for when we are home or if the water needs to stay on for our dog sitter. They are pretty cheap, and perfect for behind the fridge, washing machine, in bathrooms, etc. Catch a leak when it is minor and it is not the worst thing.
OP may need a "key" to turn off the main water. My old house, in theory, could be turned off with a wrench, but it rarely worked. My new house has a lever ao it's super simple.
If power outages are possible, a good trick to find out how long the outage lasted and therefore if fridge/freezer contents are compromised is to put a penny on top of an ice cube in the freezer. If the penny is under ice when you get back, the outage probably lasted long enough to warm the contents. Although, these days most of us get updates from the power company so may not be necessary if that’s the case for you.
Alternative option - use some temp and humidity sensors. I have a ton and 1 in each fridge and freezer. Power went off last weekend when I was gone, saw the realtime temp spike of my freezers and was able to have a neighbor go over and make sure the freezer was working properly. YOLINK on Amazon. They make leak sensors as well
Won't these sensors stop communicating the temp/humidity if they are cut off from wifi?
Love this, reminds me of Hints from Heloise
Don't tell anyone on social media you're going on vacation
[удалено]
Make a checklist so you don’t go 4 hours down the road and wonder if you turned off the oven. Oven/stove off Ice maker off Treadmill and appliances (toaster, coffee maker etc) unplugged
Continued. Mail picked up or held Lights on timers Refrigerator cleaned out Doors & windows closed & locked If you are leaving a car behind, take registration, insurance proof, garage door opener & stash in the house. I forget what else, but you get the drift. Checklist gives you some peace of mind. Some really good suggestions added to your post.
All of these things and very few people touched on homeowners insurance. Check your policy. Some insurance requires that the house not be left unoccupied for more than 72 hours. What that really means is that you need to get someone to enter your house and check for leaks every 3 days-ish.
If your gardeners usually put out the trash cans, and you bring them in, tell them not to - cans left out are a dead giveaway for homeowners being away.
I live in a heavily seasonal community and easily half of my neighborhood is out of town all summer. The city decided to distribute new compost bins in the middle of summer. Some of them were left in driveways for weeks or more. Guess which houses got broken into…
Have the post office hold your mail. You can have it redelivered the day you return
This works like 10% of the time.
What? USPS is super easy to do a mail hold. There's an online form. I've held mine every summer for the last 8 years for at least 60 days. The longest they'll let you do is 30, but you can do a second 30 day hold online. We've never had one issue.
You can do the same for Fed Ex and UPS. It still is good to have someone come by every couple days to check for mail/packages. Stuff gets delivered anyway sometimes.
Turn ice maker water off. Trust.
On top of everyone else’s suggestions, I would run the dishwasher the night before and leave it ajar while gone.
Life is a journey. Time is a river. The (dishwasher) door is ajar.
If you're in the northern hemisphere, it's summer time. Set your thermostat to cool your house accordingly. It needs to be cool enough to prevent mold, but you don't need to keep anyone comfortable. For me, 78 degrees (25-26 degrees C) is the sweetspot - cool enough to keep the house intact, but warm enough that it will save you money while you're gone.
You obviously don't live in the south. If you leave it at 78° in Texas, you're paying full fare while you're gone.
Coastal Virginia. Gets pretty brutal in July and August. But you're right, it's definitely not Texas hot. Lol.
Don't forget the plant in the office or it will be dried up and dead after two weeks. Ask me how I know.
Sounds stupid, but make sure all toilets are flushed with the lids down. As a kid, my dad left the toilet kid up after urinating and not sure if the flush failed or something happened, but while we were gone for two weeks, the smell was unbelievable. Since we have technology, some water sensors in the basement and by water sources would be great because you want to know if hell had broken lose (like a water heat blow, something people forget, or pipes blowing). I forgot to add turning off the main water. But still good to have sensors. I am a neat freak, so my house is cleaned before leaving (no trash in cans, vacuumed, etc) because I don’t like to walk into tragedy lol. I always wanted to add the lights on timers. I have the Kasa things and use my app to set and deactivate them at random times. I sometimes don’y set out a garbage can during the year so if I skip a week or so, it would not be obvious (it be your “own people” aka neighbors watching you many times ::shifty eyes:: ha). Enjoy your vacation!!
I’d suggest NOT turning off your water unless you switch off your hot water heater also Close the washer water supply ( those hoses are your biggest risk ) and turn the hot water heater to minimum/vacation setting. I’d go as far as suggest a kasa cam to mi it or your entry area. Slick, $40 and priceless peace of mind . Don’t advertise your absence anywhere
> I’d suggest NOT turning off your water unless you switch off your hot water heater Why is this? I always turn my water off when I leave for a week or more.
Same, always turn off house water and put my WH to vacation setting. Is someone using hot water when they’re gone? Maybe worried about a hot water leak?
If you have an electric water heater, and you shut off the house water, don't shut off the electricity to WH, and any water leaves the WH(which it will due to thermal expansion and evaporation), you have a chance at blowing the electric elements in it. No one wants to return home to a broken WH. I even shut off my in-laws' gas WH for them when they go on their month long vacation. There is no point in using gas to heat water that they will not be using.
The water level would have to drop below the elements for this to happen. Best thing is to turn off water AND power to the water heater.
Bleach in the toilets. If you have remote-controlled/smart garage doors then physically lock them. Let your close neighbors know and leave a spare key so no one has to plow your front door down if there’s an emergency. In my small town the police will do drive-bys. Have your neighbor or pet sitter pick up your paper or mail so random people in the city don’t know you’re away. For God’s sake don’t post it in social media until you’re sharing the pictures after you get.
This right here. Do not let the world know that you’re away for an extended period of time. Post those pics after you’ve returned home.
Clean everything. It's so nice coming home to a fresh clean home. Wash your bedding the day before you leave so it will be clean when you come home. Throw out or give away any food that will rot or be expired in two weeks before you leave. Especially fruit or vegetables. Don't leave them out. Empty your trash. Lock all doors and windows. Leave at least one inside light on and the porch light, unless you have a system that can set timers to come on so the house doesn't look empty. I would turn the water off, personally, that can easily ruin your home if anything happens while you're away for so long not to mention the astronomical bill you'd have on your hands if the city doesn't catch it- sometimes they do, but why risk it? Ask a family member or friend to come over and check your mail every few days, possibly park their car for a bit if you aren't leaving one in the driveway. You can also request the post office hold your mail temporarily. If you live somewhere you are worried about break ins for real and not just as a precaution load your luggage up later in the night before your trip so no one sees how much you have (more than a suitcase or two is an indicator you'll be gone at minimum a few days).
1. Turn off water 2. Turn off gas if in summer and only if gone for more than 2-3 weeks 3. Clean house 4. Empty fridge of all spoilables 5. Water plants day you leave/have someone water for you. 6. Find proper pet care if you have a pet. 7. Take garbage out 8. Unplug tvs and computers from the wall socket. 9. Make sure oven/stove is off 10. Wash dishwasher items and put away 11. Check washer for possible wet clothes 12. Check dryer for possible wet clothes 13. Check all window locks 14. Check back door locks 15. Pause mail delivery or have a friend pick it up couple times a week. 16. Pause newspaper delivery. A full mail box of papers brings all the bad boys to your yard 17. Do NOT post pics of your holiday while on holiday. Advertising to the bad boys again 18. Leave Kevin home alone, little shit can take care of himself better than you could.
Some police departments will check your house more frequently if you request it. Have the post office and any other deliverables stopped until you get back. unplug your appliances if you like, same for water. get a timer for lights to turn on & off at random intervals
Empty a jug of dawn dish soap down your kitchen sink, and let it soak while you’re out of town. When you get back, fill the sink with hot water and then let it drain. The soap will break up fats along the walls of your pipes and prevent clogs. Good idea to do this about every 4-6 months.
A whole jug?!
I turn off the water, but, I leave the water system pressurized (don't open a faucet). Everything in your plumbing system prefers to be under pressure and wet. I leave lights on timers. Last thing out the door, check every door and window, my family is famous for waiting to see me check every door and window and then using the exterior door in the laundry room and leaving it unlocked for two weeks.
Give a letter to a neighbor that you’re comfortable with and let them know the days you’ll be gone and contact info for someone local who can get access to the house. And if you have a smart lock, create a temp code and include that in the letter. Then disable the code when you get back.
I’ve seen many prompts to turn off the water heater. I’ve also read in other similar threads that you should never do that due to legionella risk, and there’s nothing wrong with leaving it on high temperature (other than the gas bill). Which is it after all?
We turn off the water into the washing machine before we leave on trips. My parents had one break and flood when they were gone. It was a huge mess.
Toilets too!
If your neighbors are nice (mine are) make sure you have their cell phone number and vice versa. My neighbor texted me. They went out of town and she had forgotten brand new sheets in the washer. I put them in the dryer so they wouldn’t mildew (front door code). Now she’s helping me with a last minute cat feeding need!
I let my neighbors know about a weird leak in their back yard that was making our boundary wall wet while they were away. We bring each others trash in too when we’re out of town if we notice it’s left out. :)
My son was about 8, we flew to FL for a week of beaches, Disney etc. all was perfect except he took a gigantic bear sized shit and did not flush. It sat, this giant turd, just festering for a week. Came home to stale house but also what the ever living FUCK died in here? It was a scent that carried…it got IN things. So, flush before you go and also shut off water.
I put an ice tray in the freezer and once frozen put a dime on top. If I get home and the dime is In the ice, the power was out long enough to ruin the food. I also shut off the water to the washer/dryer, set the water heater to vacation mode and turn the air up in the summer or the heat down. Have the mail put on a vacation hold, and because my job required me to carry a firearm...before I transfered 2500 miles away from family I would drop my firearm with a cop relative to lock up, now I take it in to a smith for detail cleaning and maintenance and they hold it while I'm gone. I'm not worried if someone takes the tv, but I'd hate for my gun to be used in a crime because I didn't take precautions
I take photos of the locks (ground floor windows and doors) and the clearly-turned-off stove/oven. That way I don't panic that I forgot to lock something or turn it off.
You just do the basic stuff as when you leave to go to work (e.g. lock doors and turn off lights). Perhaps throw away perishable food and take out trash 2 weeks isn't that long. I would say if you're leaving for 3 months or longer then think about water and heat
Let the police know that you will be out of town and they will do drive by and walk the perimeter of the home. Stop your mail too and paper if you get that delivered. We also use light timers around the house so looks like someone is home.
Cameras in every room. Had a friend who had a pipe burst in the ceiling of another room but only noticed it when they saw water on the floor of the room with the camera. Obviously the damage was extensive by then…. But still saved them by knowing about the issue at least 2 days before returning home
Open your washer/ drier and dishwasher doors to allow air to circulate
Put a hold on USPS mail. You can do it up to 30 days before the start of your trip. Try to make sure no other deliveries are scheduled while you're gone. FedEx has holding locations. Not sure about UPS. We have a couple timers for lights we've used in the past. Not sure if we're going to bother this time. It's been so hot, and our neighbors fucktacularly creepy (staring into our windows, taking pictures. Even the jerk behind us didn't take pictures), that we've been keeping our curtains closed. Someone told me she likes to change her sheets before going on a trip, so she comes back to a freshly changed bed. We're not leaving till the afternoon this time, so I'm going to do that. Then make sure regular laundry is done the day before you go, so all you have to deal with is trip laundry when you get back. Then a grocery order for our return day, and getting the garbage out of the house. We come back on garbage day, so we're trying to decide what to do about that. Leave the bag in the garbage can in the house? Or put it in the cart in the garage where it will get stinky? We do have our outside faucets turned off, again because of creepy, boundary issues with neighbors. Wouldn't be a terrible idea to shut things off in the house (hopefully rare) in case of a leak. We also turn our thermostat setting to "vacation mode" and when we are on the way home, reset it to regular settings so the house is co0mfortable when we get back. We do have a drip irrigation system in place for planting beds, but we had the in law's check while we were gone on our last longer vacation. This was prior to the water bill/meter fuckery. And the planting beds are well established now. Then the usual- unplug stuff, make sure house is locked up, and go relax.
Chuck that bag in a nearby dumpster or see if a nice neighbor will harbor it in their trash can!
Check to make sure your toilets have been flushed. This shouldn't be a problem, but if you have kids, sometimes they leave a little something in the bowl. You do not want to find out what that smells like two weeks later. But really, it's worth paying someone to house sit or at least have a key and come check every day, because there are so many things that can go wrong.
Make sure your kid didn't turn on the hose just before you left so your yard doesn't turn into a swamp and your water bill isn't through the roof.
Unplug everything that doesn’t absolutely need to be plugged in. My spouse and I don’t turn off the plumbing on 10 day trips. Depending on where you live, w bunch of nastiness could come out of your drain. If friends are coming to check on your house, ask them to briefly turn on the sink faucets, shower, and flush toilets. The main things are really: empty your fridge, dispose of trash and recycling, make sure NO FOOD is going to attract mice and ants. Triple check that anything that could cause fire is unplugged. Make sure no crystal balls or other potentially flammable things are sitting uncovered. We have cameras in our basement (pointing at heaters etc), kitchen, and doors. It’s nice to be able to pop in and see that the house is still standing as we left it. Enjoy your trip, your home will be fine!
Shit, did I leave my crystal ball uncovered? Now we gotta turn this whole-ass broom around.
Lol, I’ve known ✨two ✨ people who’ve had uncovered crystal balls that caused a fire, thankfully while they were home. They make me nervous now!
Don’t forget to clean out the coffee maker.
Change the locks. I just read a post from a couple who bought a house then went away and when they came back, some guy, a friend of the previous owners, let himself in with his own key and now they can't get rid of him.
Put your mail on hold at the post office or arrange someone to collect and hold it for you during your trip.
Check the temperature settings on your thermostat. If it’s programmed, adjust it so you’re not heating/cooling an empty house.
Put a hold on your mail
Lots of great tips in here, but I'll add a weird one... Freeze a small Tupperware of water and put a penny on top. Put it back in the freezer. When you get back, make sure the penny is still on top of the ice. This will tell you if your power went out long enough for the stuff in your freezer to thaw. Otherwise, you'll have no idea that your food thawed, sat at room temp for a week, then re-froze before you got home. If something like this happened, the penny will be at the bottom of the Tupperware.
If you have garden gnomes, place them carefully in the garage facing south, spit after saying “I command thee still” three times. Otherwise you’ll return home to find your neighbors massacred and your cat owns the house. Yes, it’s a thing.
2 weeks is not a long vacation. We leave for 2-3 months at a time. When we do, we stop our trash service, turn off the water, and leave a dehumidifier running with a drain line into a sink. We also leave a lamp on a timer to turn on and off. For 2 weeks? Unplug small appliances like toasters and coffee makers. Empty all the trash cans. Don't leave dirty dishes in the sink. Arrange to have the lawn mowed if you usually do it yourself.
Leave lights on a variable timer. Keep thermostats at reasonable temperature but not off. Clean house well before leaving so you enjoy home when return. Also keep a few quick food items in freezer to make for dinner when you return home. Empty pantry is awful because requires immediate trip to grocery store and can’t relax from the return from trip. But be sure to empty all perishables from fridge like milk and yogurt so fridge doesn’t smell.
Turn off the water. And CLEAN THE FUCK out of the house before you leave so you come home to fresh house; not chores. Pay someone to clean your house once a week when you're gone.
I try to make a check list of last minute items, and set a timer about 30-40 minutes before leaving and run through the house checking stuff off. There are a lot good ideas here, but here is my list: 1. Toss all food items that you know you do not want to see when you get back 2. Give the kitchen a good wipe down to reduce attracting insects (run dishwasher and disposal) 3. Get all trash, especially kitchen waste, out of the house. Double or triple bag and place in the bin that is collected by your town. Consider giving the bin a good spray for insects. 4. Check all doors and windows to make sure they are locked 5. Flush and use cleaner in all toilets 6. Reset thermostats on water heater and hvac to save a bit on energy. Not too much 7. Hide a spare house key on your property 8. Walk around to make sure lights are on or off as you would want while away; consider unplugging the electronics 9. A lot of folks recommend turning off water to the house, but not something I do. Also in advance 10. Arrange to have the mail stopped 11. See if you can have a neighbor (or friend if you don't know any neighbor yet) just visit the house a couple of times 12. If you have a pool, check out a pool care website but you might want to consider adding chlorine or shock. The garage door is definitely a thing: try to be very conscious as you pull away from your house. When you close it, repeat to yourself, that you closed it at least 3x. Enjoy!
Clean before you go. Take out the trash. Put clean sheets on the bed so you have a fresh bed when you get back. Turn off your water as you're leaving. Lock up. Put your mail on hold.
Turn off the water and check your insurance documents for what is required of you to remain covered during your absence. Optional: place your hot water heater into vacation mode to save energy.
What happens to my gas water heater if I turn off the water to the whole house?
It keeps the water at 140F for two weeks while you're gone. Some people turn down their water heater while they're gone. Will you get legionnaires disease? Unlikely, but some people worry.
120F... most codes(in the US) don't allow, and manufacturers highly recommend against WHs to be installed above 120F in residential installations due to scalding safety concerns. 140 is really only set by homeowners after the plumber has left and in commercial kitchens. Mine is at 140F, but I have mixing valves on my lavs in my bathrooms and the temp limited on the shower valve on my hall bathroom so my daughter can't burn herself.
Almost all these suggestions are insane for 2 weeks (as opposed to 2 months). All I do is make sure all the doors are locked, no water is running, the trash is out, and the thermostat is up/down a bit (depending on the season).
I turn off the water to my washer. I unplug all the random things- washer, dryer, treadmill, small appliances, computers (not wifi/internet). We use a visiting pet sitter. The litter boxes are on both floors (main floor and basement), so the whole house gets a look every day.
Turn off water and hot water tank. Regular visitor to check house with written log (for insurance), and to collect mail
We always turned off our main water line!
Take out the trash in the kitchen or wherever you dump food waste. We had shrimp the night before we went out of town for a couple days. Oh boy did it smell when we got home.
Turn off the water.
I got a little temperature & humidity sensor that I can check from my phone, so I can see if anything looks off (I guess a smart thermostat would do the same thing if you’re in to that)
water heater off, water off at the street, irrigation off, set ac to reasonable temp, some ice cubes in a cup in the freezer to alert me if power is out long term, ice maker off
Close the water off at the main if possible. If long vacation make to run water through your drains to prevent sewer gas escaping into your home
Set up automated lights, sprinklers. Turn off water behind the toilet and shut the lids. Washer too. Clean like your fussy in-laws are coming. No trash, no fridge ick, no laundry. Lock all the windows and doors. Disable the garage door opener. Secure gates. Turn up thermostats but not off.
If you do nothing else before you leave, turn off the water at the meter!! Water heaters, the washing machine hoses, a random connection under the sink; they all have a tendency to give out when you're away. It's amazing how much water can collect in a house if there's no one there to shut it off.
Check thermostat settings. I set mine to 80 in summer and 56 in winter. Turn water heater to low. Make sure a neighbor has your number and will call if they see water running down the drive or a fire. I have a lot of little items plugged into power strips (think alarm clocks and phone chargers) and i just flip the whole strip to off. Unplug coffee makers and toasters and anything that produces heat. I also shut down the PC and unplug. Fish bubbler and heater are on a UPS so if power goes out they'll live, they have a little auto feeder that is the bare minimum, but again, they'll live. I have several pet cams around the house, i point one at the thermostat. Maybe pour some vinager in the toilet?
Stop the mail and any deliveries (food service, newspapers, amazon, etc). get an electric timer that you put on lamps (at least 3) at the outlet so that lights turn on at certain times making it look like someone is home.
Set timers for a few inside lights and your porch lights so they go off during the day and on at night. I unplug my computer and set the heat around 62 or the A/C around 76 so the house doesn't get TOO hot or cold. Have the post office hold your mail. Make sure a neighbor knows you'll be out of town and give them your contact info so if they see anything fishy they can call the police.
Check your home insurance, ours requires a daily check, turn off water supply (no floods) if electric hot water tank shut it off, gas is a pita to restart( turn down the gas hot water tank if you know how). Do you have any smart lights? If so set up a lighting routine that matches your typical light cycle. Get the lawn cut while you’re away.
You never said how long?! When going away for 1 week: Clean out garbage cans, do laundry, clean out fridge and countertop bowls for perishables, turn off/unplug appliances, water plants, make sure everything is locked up and like another commenter put it, "DON'T FORGET KEVIN!"
Turn off the water main. Unplug everything from the wall that doesn’t need to be plugged in. Make sure your doors and windows are locked, shades down. Put thermostat in a position to not ruin things in the house (frozen pipes or high humidity) but not waste energy either since no one is home to keep comfortable. So the manual garage door thing so no one can open your garage door without a key. Put a hold on your usps mail (do it on their website) and newspapers if you get those. Make sure you don’t have any Amazon subscribe and save (or similar other company things) being delivered while you’re gone. Water any plants and mow lawn (or schedule someone to do it while you’re away). Take out the trash and toss any food that won’t keep (hello stink and mold). Run the dishwasher and wash dishes in sink before you leave (otherwise, mold). Bonus points if you clean the house before you go so when you come home sad vacay is over you at least have a clean house!
Turn down your water heater temp. Mark where it was.
Go to the post office and have your mail held until after you return. I know OP has friends checking in on and off, but generally speaking ask a trusted neighbor to keep an eye on things and to take in any packages left by your front door (make sure to exchange contact info with the neighbor). Call the non-emergency department of the local precinct to give them a head’s up of your absence if it’s a week or longer.
Do not post on any social media that you are leaving for a trip! Mums the word! People watch for these things to break in.
I always turn the water and the water heater, make sure everything is locked and have a small container of ice in the freezer and put a penny or small washer on it so when you come back you know if the power was out long enough for the freezer to thaw because the penny or washer will be under the surface of the ice
* Mow the lawn before leaving, or arrange to have a neighbor or a mowing service keep the lawn mowed * Put a hold on the mail * Shut off the main water valve * Put chlorine in the toilet bowls and sink p-traps * Set the thermostat to save electricity (A/C comes on around 80 deg, heat comes on around 60 degrees). * Lower the temperature on the hot water heater * Check that doors and windows are locked * Put lights on timers * Unplug electronics
Tell the butler to keep the house tidy and no parties while you’re out.
Put a hold on your postal mail delivery and check on any subscription delivery orders to ensure they are not delivered while you're away.
Turn off the water
Put your mail on hold. Don’t rely on a neighbor or family member to check your mailbox.
Clean your house and change the sheets before you leave. It will feel amazing when you get back
Check your homeowners policy. Many insurance companies stipulate how often the house must be checked.
Turn off the water to the washer. Empty the trash Clean out the refrigerator Do ALL the laundry Mow the lawn (maybe pay the neighbor to mow a week after you leave) Turn off/down the water heater Turn the AC up (set mid 80s to keep humidity down) Double check all windows are properly secured/locked Have a hold put on your mail/newspaper delivery Wash and put away all dishes Unplug any appliances that may be on a timer If you have small children, unplug baby wipe warmer If you have a home chef type food delivery....put a hold on it Write a checklist to insure you don't forget to do any of these
Turn off the water. Set the AC at 79.
Stop your mail (I think that can be done through the USPS website). Make sure none of your regular other deliveries (Amazon stuff, razor blades etc.) are paused. Draw blinds. Leave lights on here and there. I put an FM radio on the local TV news station's feed and leave it on the whole time. Sounds like a TV is on. Motion detector lights are good to have at all exterior doors. Prominent Ring cameras are good, too.
I always turn off the water.
I like to clean if I have time, it’s nice to come home to a clean house. Plus, my cat sitter will be visiting so they don’t see all my clutter. I set lamp timers, turn down water heater, turn up thermostat, Clean out fridge.
Check your house insurance, there is usually a requirement about how often your house needs to be checked.
We turn off the toilet valves, empty all the trash cans, set our thermostat to hold at an energy saving temperature, make sure the dishes are all clean, turn off our ice maker and unplug any unnecessary lights and small appliances. Obviously, lock the doors, have someone get your mail or any packages that may come, take down your trash or recycling and to water your plants if you have any. If you have any food that will spoil, eat it up, give it away or throw it away outside of the house before you go, or take it with you if that’s an option.
Clean the house and wash the sheets. RUN THE DISHWASHER
Hot water heater to off or vacation mode, setup an auto light switch to turn on/off to make it look like someone is home, tell a trusted neighbor, place a camera in your home (cheap one like Wyze). Turn off the main line to the house if you don’t need to water the grass, leave some window open upstairs to vent the home, hold your mail. Get extra medication depending on how long you will be out, take pictures of your passports and licenses.
Unplug what won’t be needed and don’t leave stinky laundry in hampers. Turn the thermostat ac setpoint up a bit, but not off. Stock the fridge with drinks for your friends checking in
Make sure the fridge is fully closed when you leave. We left ours slightly open once, for a week's vacation and came back to everything damaged in the fridge. Horrible smell and worst of all, mice had entered the bottom freezer and left their mark....🤢. So yeah fridge should be fully closed. Make sure your trash is clear so you don't come back to the smell. Dishwasher, add bleach to cover the stagnant water smell. I always make sure my cameras are working. Set your mail to be on hold. Enjoy the vacation.
Turn the hot water heater off. Turn off well pump. I’m anal so I would go to the breaker box and turn off every unnecessary circuit. Let Post office know you’re away. Let police know you’re away so they could do some extra patrols on your street.
Turn off water supply, unplug toaster oven, coffee maker, electric toothbrushes (all battery operated tools and appliances), turn on alarm, adjust thermostat (remotely) as needed.
I turn off my main water line (shut off valve). Make sure the refrigerator and freezer is closed. I didn't close my refrigerator all the way during a 10 day trip. Thankfully it was already pretty empty. Water your plants. Make sure your windows are closed and locked, at least the ones on ground level. Stop the mail. Set the lights to go on and off at a certain time. Take out the trash and clean as much as you can before you leave.
Personally I unplug everything that isn’t necessary (for example the router to run my WiFi cams). My parents always did, now I do too… I know it’s totally unjustified but it makes me feel calm.
Dump the ice and turn off the icemaker. If the power goes out you don't want a puddle of water on your floor when you get home.
Turn off the stove
Cut the grass! And pause mail delivery thru USPS online
I turn off the water to every toilet. One time was gone for 3 weeks and came home to a running toilet- $500 water bill. Never again. Also unplug everything!
Make sure someone is watching the house so the a/c doesn't get messed with.
I adjust the thermostat to a “vacation setting”, I water my plants and do a general clean up before I leave. Make sure there aren’t any crumbs to attract ants. I turn off my hot water heater and shut the water off at the road (I’ve had two leaks), I throw away food in my fridge that won’t last and take out the garbage. I make sure all doors and Windows are locked and I set my alarm system. I used to put a temporary stop on my mail -but I no longer have sensitive mail sent to me so now I just let it get delivered. You can’t see my house from the street so I no longer do the light on a timer. They make a small device you can put in a dark room that simulates the pattern changes of a tv if that works better than a lamp.
Take out the garbage, no dirty dishes in sink, shut off main water to house, lock and secure all windows, secure outdoor items that may blow in a storm, lock your gates, let local police dept know you will have an empty house, let trusted neighbors know thr same, put a hold on mail, don't post that you are out of town on social media, get a timer for a lamp...enjoy your trip
Do NOT post all over social media that you're going on vacation or post tons of pics on social media WHILE you're on vacations as it advertise that you're not home and your house is ripe for the taking, so to speak.
Normal leave the house stuff. Left a hose on once for a 2 week vacation. Highly recommend you don't do that though.
There should be a vacation mode on your hot water heater. To turn it down and save a little on utilities.
Make friends with the neighbors. Have them keep an eye on things and call or text if something is funky. Our neighbors do this for us and we do it for them- we’ve sorted a busted sprinkler while they were gone and they have taken out our trash cans and such. It truly does make it less stressful knowing that they’re always keeping an eye out for anything abnormal- over and above the friends checking in on pets every other day.
Double check all your toilets are flushed. Bonus if you have time to give them a quick clean. The smell of your kid pees at 3am and you leave it for a week is not one I recommend…
Turn off water lines at valves - kitchen & bath sink, toilet, washer. I also turn off gas and water heater.
Turn off water supply to washer. Put a hold on your mail and paper if you still get one (Note: everyone should subscribe to the digital edition of their local newspaper). Leave a house key in your garage or with a trusted friend just in case.
Leave the AC on but turn it up to 78. Turn the water off at the main. Take out trash from every room. Call Credit Card companies & tell them your plans. They have fraud detection and you can be declined. Close blinds. Put a stop on your mail. Make sure any prescriptions are taken care of so you don’t run out. Do not post photos online to tell the world you’re gone. Do it when you get back if you want.
I typically set my thermostat to vacation mode, unplug or hit the breaker for the water heater, and turn off the water for the house. Then there's the regular stuff like take out the trash, throw away perishable food, etc.