Winter prep also includes battening down the hatches for the stuff you use in the summer. In this case, the swamp cooler or central air units. What should you do for those systems? Glad you asked. Here's how to protect your home and family.

So even your furnace needs to be prepped for winter? Sure does, but only if you want it to work well. Here's what you need to know to protect your family and keep your bills down.

The lowly hose bib - that valve on the outside of the house? Chances are you'd like to avoid having that thing freeze up in the winter and flood your home in the spring. Here's how to protect your home and family.

Nothing is more soothing in January than having a nice cold draft oozing from around your doors and windows, right? Or perhaps not. Here's what you need to do in September to avoid the ugh in January.

If winter happens where you live, then fall is the time to prepare. Are your gutters ready to carry the water safely away? Will you have ice dams? Here's what you need to know to protect your family.

Your windows are the eyes of the home. Without them, darkness, gloom and despair, right? But the windows are also security and protection against the ravages of mama nature. Here's what you need to know about your windows in a nutshell.

Want to treat your water? Many of us do, but it's good to know before you go. There are bacteria you can treat for, coliform, metals, solids, and a laundry list. Here's what you need to know

So you'd like a water softener system. It's got lots of benefits, right? But did you know it just trades calcium and magnesium (water hardness, but it's good for you if you drink it) to sodium? Yeah. Sodium is salt, and it's not that great for you. Here's what you need to know about softeners before you make that purchase.

So you'd like your water to be filtered. That's great, but from what? Metals? Dissolved solids? Germs? There a number of different kinds of filters. Here's what you need to know to protect your family.

So you look at the water heater, and it pretty much just looks like a chunk of steel. What are you supposed to do with it? Does it last forever? How do you know when it's going bad? Here are the answers you need.