We understand the importance of keeping your home leak free and energy efficient. By using our professional handyman services, you guarantee the proper insulation installation which leads to a more comfortable and energy efficient home. Our handyman can also do any repairs, major or minor, to ensure your attic is in perfect condition.

Now is a good time to get your attic inspected to get your home ready for fall and winter. Sealing air leaks, commonly found in attics but a lot of times the last place people look, is one of the first things to do. Also make sure your insulation is up to another cold season, which is something we can help you with – learn more about our insulation services here. We highly recommend AttiCat Insulation. Without good insulation, heat will just escape all winter and your heating bills will be very high.

But for the day you do make it up to the top floor and start working, there are a few safety tips we’ve picked up from working thousands of customers’ attics. As always, if you think you need an expert to help you out, we’re just a phone call away and can get you a qualified technician up in your attic who will tell you what you do and don’t need to repair and maintain your attic so your family is comfortable and warm this winter.

Here’s what to do and not to do while working on home repairs in your attic:

  • Do the work on a cool day. Chicago weather has been really hot recently, so you may want to wait until a cooler day so you’re not working in sweltering heat – this is not only uncomfortable but can lead to real health risks
  • Always wear protective gear, such as disposable clothes, gloves, and a double-elastic mask or half-face respirator to protect you from the insulation, especially if your insulation isn’t in good condition – exposure to insulation can irritate your skin and cause other health ailments
  • Protect your eyes with safety glasses
  • If your attic is in anyway unstable, bring least two pieces of plywood big enough to span two or three joists to support you as you work – you don’t want to fall through the ceiling
  • Make sure you don’t step on anything that is not a truss or a joist
  • To save trips up and down a ladder, try to move up all of the materials you need before you get started, this reduces your chances of injury getting up and down the ladder as you work
  • Let someone at home know that you’re working in the attic so they know where you are in case anything does happen while you’re up there, or accidentally get stuck up there
  • Work during the day – most attics have minimal lighting that doesn’t get used that often. Don’t get stuck up there with no light. If you have to go up at night, bring a spare flashlight
  • Position a drop cloth under the hatch and have a vacuum cleaner handy to vacuum your clothes off as well as any attic matter you may have knocked through the hatch
  • Don’t walk around your home in the clothes you just worked in, you’ll get debris and insulation particles in the air