Snowbird Window Checklist Before You Leave Laval for Winter

Before you leave a Laval home empty for the winter, lock every window, check the seals and weatherstripping, decide what to do with the screens, lower the indoor humidity and book a last exterior cleaning while it is still warm enough to work outside. A house with nobody inside for three or four months behaves differently from a lived-in one, and the windows are where small problems show up first.

This checklist is written for snowbirds in Laval, Sainte-Dorothée, Fabreville and the rest of Greater Montréal who close up the house in November and come back in March or April. Work through it a week or two before departure, not the night before the flight.

Lock and latch every window

An empty house needs every sash closed and locked, not just the ones on the ground floor. Walk through each room and check:

• Casements and awnings: crank them fully shut, then engage the locking handle. A casement that looks closed but is not locked can be pushed open by wind or pulled slightly ajar by frost.
• Sliders: lock the latch and drop a cut dowel or a commercial bar into the track. It is a cheap second barrier on the windows most likely to be tried.
• Basement windows: these are the ones people forget. Check that the latch works and that window well covers are in place so snow and leaves do not pile up against the glass.
• Patio doors: lock them, add a bar in the track, and close the blinds or curtains partway so the room does not look obviously vacant from the yard.

Inspect seals and weatherstripping

Cold air getting in around a window is annoying when you live in the house. When nobody is there, it can mean frost building up on the frame, a sill that stays wet, or a cold spot near a water pipe. Before you go, run your hand around each frame on a cool day and look for:

• weatherstripping that is flattened, torn or missing at the corners;
• exterior caulking that has cracked or pulled away from the siding or brick;
• a sealed double or triple glazed unit with fog or moisture between the panes, which means the seal has failed and the unit will need replacing (cleaning will not fix it).

Small gaps can be filled with weatherstrip tape or exterior caulk rated for cold weather. Bigger issues are worth showing to a window installer before you leave, because nobody will be there to notice them get worse.

Decide what happens to the screens

Screens serve no purpose in January, and on some windows they hold snow and ice against the frame. Many Laval homeowners pull them in the fall and store them flat in the garage or basement.

• If you remove them, label each one with the room it came from. It saves twenty minutes of guessing in April.
• Look for tears and bent frames while they are in your hands, so the repair can be done over the winter. Altara washes screens as an add-on but does not repair them; the crew points out tears during a visit so you can get them fixed.
• If you leave them on, make sure they are seated properly in their tracks so wind does not rattle them loose.

Lower the indoor humidity

Condensation on windows comes from warm, moist indoor air meeting cold glass. In an empty house there is less cooking and showering, but there is also no one to open a window or wipe a wet sill, and water that sits on a frame for weeks can stain wood and feed mould.

• Turn off any humidifier, including the one on the furnace.
• Keep the heat on. A setpoint that is too low makes the glass and frames colder and can let pipes near exterior walls freeze. Ask whoever services your heating system what minimum suits your house.
• Leave interior doors open and pull curtains back from the glass slightly so warm air reaches the window surface.
• If the basement runs damp, a dehumidifier set to drain into a floor drain can run unattended.

Our guide to winter window condensation goes deeper on reading what the moisture is telling you.

Book a last exterior cleaning before the freeze

Exterior window cleaning runs from roughly March to November in Greater Montréal. Once nights stay below freezing, water on the glass can turn to ice, so late October and early November are the last good weeks.

A fall exterior clean before you leave is worth it for a few reasons:

• Pollen, spider webs and summer grime come off now instead of baking onto the glass all winter.
• Clear glass lets more winter sun into an empty house, which helps keep rooms a little warmer.
• You come back in spring to windows that only need a light clean, not a season and a half of buildup.
• The crew can point out torn screens, cracked caulking or failed seals from the outside while you are still around to deal with them.

Altara's flat rate covers the exterior: glass, frames and sills, cleaned with pure deionized water on a water-fed pole from the ground, with screens rinsed in place. Interior glass, screen removal and washing, and track cleaning are optional add-ons. You pick your window-count tier on the pricing page and book online. Since the work is done from outside, you do not need to be home for an exterior-only visit, which makes it easy to fit into the last busy week before departure.

Leave the house ready for a check-in

Whoever looks in on the house over the winter (a neighbour, a family member or a paid service) should know what to look for at the windows:

• frost or ice on the inside of the glass or frames;
• water pooled on sills or stains on the wall below a window;
• a pane that is cracked or a latch that has been forced;
• snow drifted high against basement windows or patio doors.

Write these on a short card by the door along with the thermostat setting and the main water shut-off location. It is also a good idea to read the vacancy conditions in your home insurance policy, since many policies require the house to be checked at set intervals while you are away.

Plan the spring return

If you already know your return date, book the spring visit before you leave. The first warm weeks of April fill quickly, and having the exterior done the week you come back means you open the house to clear glass. Homeowners who go away every year often set up the bi-annual program, which sends automated reminders for a spring and a fall clean so the timing is handled for you.

Frequently asked questions

Should window screens come off before leaving for the winter?

It is a good idea on windows where screens tend to catch snow and ice, and it lets you inspect each one for tears. Label them by room and store them flat somewhere dry. If you leave them in place, check that they are seated firmly in their tracks.

Can exterior windows be cleaned while the owners are away?

Exterior cleaning is done from the ground with a water-fed pole, so nobody needs to be home. The catch for snowbirds is timing: the exterior season ends around November, so the visit has to happen before the freeze, not in January.

Why do windows get condensation in an empty house?

Moist indoor air still meets cold glass, and with a lower thermostat the glass and frames get colder. Without anyone wiping the sills or airing the rooms, small amounts of water can sit for weeks. Turning off humidifiers and keeping a steady heat setting helps the most.

Book before you go

Leaving Laval or anywhere in Greater Montréal for the winter? Book your last exterior window cleaning of the season on our contact page, or see the flat-rate tiers on the pricing page. Homes in the area are covered on our Laval service page.