By Laura Hipshire
THE ERICKSON TRIBUNE

“Be prepared.” The age-old Boy Scout motto is particularly fitting when it comes to readying for Michigan winters.

Every year, Mark Ialapi, owner of Apollo Heating & Cooling in St. Clair Shores, says he receives calls from customers who discover their furnace isn’t working after the bone-chilling winter weather already has set in.

“The first time they turn it on, they call—and they wait, of course, until it’s 20 degrees out,” Ialapi says.

Prepping house for winter is a chore
Ialapi advises running the furnace briefly in the fall, before it’s so cold that you’ll  be without heat until it’s repaired, and having an annual safety checkup performed on it. He also recommends checking the humidifier at the same time and replacing the furnace filters and humidifier pads.

Having your furnace checked is just one item among a whole host of things homeowners have to do to prepare for the inevitable deep-freeze around the corner.

Other priorities include installing storm windows and doors, weather stripping doors and windows, checking and cleaning gutters, insulating water pipes—you know the drill.

Searching for alternatives
People and neighborhoods throughout Michigan are searching for ways to eliminate winter worries.

Locally, Fox Run has led the way in finding innovative alternatives.

First, it provides all apartment home maintenance repairs at no extra cost. From snow removal to salting, checking furnaces to windows, the skilled maintenance staff covers everything.

“Instead of making frantic calls to contractors, people who live here are taking aerobics, enjoying a dip in the pool, and grabbing a few things at the store,” says Retirement Counselor Carolyn Ives.