The rural home maintenance calendar

An estate home is a small collection of systems — well, septic, generator, long driveway, big mechanicals — and each has a season. This is the whole year on one page, and there's a printable version at the bottom if you'd rather stick it inside a utility cupboard door.

Spring (April–May)

Test well water after snowmelt — this is the year's highest-risk window for surface infiltration. Walk the septic bed looking for wet or unusually green patches. Book driveway sealing or gravel regrading. Service the AC before the first heat wave, and exercise the generator under load.

Summer (June–August)

Mid-year well test. Deck and fence repairs while wood is dry. Watch water pressure during heavy irrigation — pressure-tank symptoms surface in high-demand season. Wasp and hornet nests establish now; deal with them small.

Fall (September–November)

The big season: furnace service, chimney sweep and WETT check if you burn wood, generator service before storm season, final well test, septic pump-out if you're in the window (every 3–5 years), irrigation blow-out, and line up snow removal before the first flake — the good plow routes fill by Halloween.

Winter (December–March)

Watch the pressure tank and any heat-traced lines during deep cold. Check the propane level before storm systems. Keep the generator's battery maintainer on. Radon levels peak in winter with the house sealed — if you have never tested, a long-term radon test started now gives the most honest number you will get all year.

Common questions