During mild spring days, take stock of storm and water damage to your home--most houses sustain at least a few problems during the winter months. Make the repairs now, before starting on remodels or other major warm-weather projects.

Repair water-stained ceilings. Following a roof leak, there is usually a yellow or brown stain on the ceiling below. Don't try to paint right over the stains--they're likely to show through. Simply seal a stain with a stain sealer, then repaint the ceiling. You can try to touch up the area, but, for uniformity, you're likely to find that the entire ceiling needs to be painted.

Fix missing or damaged roofing. Look for trouble spots on top of the roof--but only in good weather and only if you can do so safely. Or, during the day, go into the attic with a bright, portable light to check for wetness or water marks.

Look for pinpoints of daylight showing through. (On a wood shingle roof, you'll probably see many such places, but these tend not to leak because they're protected by the shingles' overlap.)

In the attic, step only on secure framing members--never on the insulation or topside of the ceiling below--this won't support you! More on roof repair.

Fix leaking roof flashing. Many serious roof leaks are not caused by missing or damaged shingles; they're due to broken or improper roof flashing.

Repair siding leaks. If you've discovered any areas where your home's siding doesn't hold Mother Nature out, repair your siding now.

Clear gutters and downspouts. Water damage often comes from clogged gutters and downspouts; dry weather offers a good opportunity for cleaning them out. For replacing gutters, check out Buying & Installing Rain Gutters.

Eliminate water in the basement or crawl space. Keep these spaces dry to protect against dry rot, prevent moist air from being drawn up into the living space, and prevent the growth of mold. A sump pump might prevent this in the future. Check out Sump Pumps: Buying & Maintenance.

Repair storm doors. Winds can take a toll on storm doors. Often, the door closer becomes bent, breaks, or pulls away from the doorjamb. Get information on fixing a storm door.

Block air leaks around windows and doors. Mitigate drafts and save energy by installing or repairing weatherstripping.

Repair rotted woodwork. Where wood sills or sashes have taken serious abuse from weather--resulting in rot--use epoxy wood filler to repair the area. Use a chisel to dislodge most of the loose, rotted wood. Drill a few 1/4-inch holes into the damaged wood.

Soak the entire rotted area with liquid epoxy "consolidant" to transform the area into a sturdy base for filler. Let the wood absorb it for about 5 minutes, then reapply, wait, reapply, and continue until the wood ceases to accept consolidant.

Knead a batch of epoxy filler, according to label directions, and mold the repair. As the material cures, dip a putty knife in solvent, and use it to sculpt and shape the repair. Sand, file or rasp as needed, and paint the area within 3 days.

Service your furnace and/or air conditioner. With forced-air systems, air returning to the air handler's blower first passes through an air filter designed to catch dust and debris and help clean the air before it's recycled to your home. Change filters quarterly or sooner if they look dirty.

--DV