Every fall in the Northwest Suburbs, the same expensive story repeats itself: a homeowner leaves a garden hose connected, the first hard freeze hits — usually by late October here in McHenry County — and a pipe bursts inside a wall. It’s one of the most common and most preventable insurance claims in Illinois, and it takes about fifteen minutes to prevent.
This is the checklist I give my own clients every October. None of it is glamorous. All of it is cheaper in October than it is in January.
Keep the water safe (do these first — freezes don’t wait)
1. Shut off and drain your exterior spigots
Disconnect every garden hose, find the interior shut-off valve for each outside faucet, close it, then open the outside spigot to drain what’s left. A hose left connected traps water in the pipe, and that water has nowhere to expand when it freezes. If your home has frost-proof sillcocks, still disconnect the hoses — “frost-proof” only works when nothing is attached.
2. Get your sprinkler system blown out
Underground irrigation lines crack the same way pipes do. If you have a sprinkler system and it hasn’t been winterized yet, get on a landscaper’s schedule now — by the first week of November, every company in Huntley and Crystal Lake is booked out.
3. Check exposed pipes and your sump pump
Pipes in unheated garages, crawl spaces, and exterior walls are the first to go. Foam insulation sleeves cost a few dollars. While you’re in the basement, pour a bucket of water into the sump pit and confirm the pump kicks on — you’ll want it working when the spring thaw comes, and pumps that sit dead for a year tend to stay dead.
Keep the heat in
4. Change your furnace filter
A clogged filter makes your furnace work harder, run longer, and cost more — and it’s the number one cause of “my heat isn’t keeping up” calls in December. Most homes need a fresh filter every 1–3 months during heating season. It takes two minutes and no tools.
5. Book your furnace tune-up now, not in December
HVAC companies in the Northwest Suburbs are slammed the first cold week. A fall tune-up catches the failing ignitor or cracked heat exchanger while it’s a repair bill instead of a no-heat emergency with kids in the house.
6. Reverse your ceiling fans
Clockwise on low in winter pushes the warm air pooled at the ceiling back down where you live. There’s a small switch on the fan body. Free comfort.
7. Seal the drafts you can feel
Walk your exterior doors and windows with a lit candle or just the back of your hand on a windy day. Weatherstripping and a tube of caulk cost under $20 and fix most of what you find. Check the attic hatch too — it’s the draft nobody thinks of.
Outside, before the leaves and snow win
8. Clean the gutters after the leaves drop
Clogged gutters in an Illinois winter become ice dams, and ice dams become water inside your walls and ceilings. If you do one climb this fall, this is the one — or hire it out; gutter cleaning in our area is one of the cheaper services you’ll ever buy compared to the damage it prevents.
9. Look at your roof like a buyer would
Missing or curled shingles, cracked vent boots, loose flashing around the chimney — small now, leaks by February. You can spot most of it from the ground with binoculars.
10. Chimney and fireplace check
If you burn wood, a chimney sweep before the season is both a fire-safety and an insurance question. Gas fireplace? At minimum, confirm it lights cleanly and the glass seals well.
Safety, while you’re at it
11. Test smoke and carbon monoxide detectors
When the clocks change on November 1, change the batteries and press the test buttons. Furnaces running again means CO risk is back, and Illinois law requires a CO detector within 15 feet of every bedroom. Detectors themselves expire too — most are good for 10 years; the date is printed on the back.
12. Clean the dryer vent line
Not the lint trap — the vent line to the outside. Lint buildup is a real fire risk and makes your dryer run twice as long. A vent brush kit costs less than the energy you’re wasting.
Thinking about selling this winter or spring?
Every item on this list is also something a buyer’s inspector will look at in February. Homes that come out of winter clean — no burst pipes, no ice dam stains, a furnace with a service record — sell with fewer surprises and fewer credits negotiated away. If a move is on your mind for 2027, start with knowing your number: here’s what your home is worth in today’s market, in a free report I prepare personally from real local sales.
Frequently asked questions
When is the first hard freeze in Huntley, IL?
Our area typically sees its first frost in mid-October and the first hard freeze (28°F or below) by late October to early November. The exact date moves year to year, which is why the water shut-off items on this list should be done by the third week of October, not “before winter.”
What actually happens if I don’t shut off my exterior spigots?
Water trapped between the interior valve and the outside faucet freezes, expands, and splits the pipe — usually inside the wall, where you won’t notice until it thaws and starts leaking. The repair means cutting drywall, replacing pipe, and drying out the wall cavity. The prevention takes fifteen minutes and costs nothing.
How often should I change my furnace filter?
Every 1–3 months during the months your furnace or AC runs, and more often if you have pets or allergies. A good rhythm: check it monthly, change it when it looks gray. Write the date on the new filter’s frame so you know when you did it.
Is it worth doing this if I might sell next year?
Especially then. Winter damage — burst pipes, ice dam stains, a dead furnace — shows up in inspections and appraisals, and buyers price it in. A maintained home with no winter surprises is worth more and negotiates cleaner.
Questions about your home — or its value?
I’m Dana Gallagher, broker with Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Starck Real Estate, serving Huntley, Crystal Lake, Cary, Lake in the Hills, Algonquin, and Barrington. Call or text me at 224-858-0022 — whether it’s a contractor recommendation for the jobs on this list or a free home value report, I’m happy to help.