As the air gets colder and the sun sits lower in the sky, thoughts tend towards winter, and the tasks necessary to get the homestead ready for its onset.

Winter is, in many ways, the measurement of a homestead. Do you have enough food to see you through until the Spring/early summer? Is the homestead secure against the elements? Are you ready for the challenge of Mother Nature’s most difficult season?

We've got a pretty tight routine worked out by now for preparing the homestead for winter. Having spent most of our lives in extreme cold climates, we take this preparation quite seriously. We start with a big clean up where we put away all summer supplies, hoses, and other things so they don't get ruined. Then we move onto other critical things.

Although not an exhaustive list, you’ll definitely save yourself some grief if you go through the items listed below.

Step 1: Move to Australia. Kidding! Sort of.

I certainly feel the temptation to fly south with the birds for winter but for those of us who cant let's get back to the steps we take in our pre-winter hibernation madness!

Check the house

A properly prepped house is a joy to winter in. It will keep you warm, keep the elements out, and in general, behave itself! Here are some things you may wish to do:

• Service all heating systems, as necessary. For some, this will mean servicing the furnace. For others, it will mean de-tarring the wood boiler or sweeping the chimney. Regardless, make sure your heating system is ready for a season of work.

• Check for cracks, gaps and air leaks in the home. Fill in cracks with spray in foam, or use some other technique. Do everything you can to stop the cold air from penetrating your house.

• Blow out any water lines which are not going to be used, so they don’t freeze.

• Check your wood stoves and other heating methods and service if necessary. How long has it been since the hnimney was cleaned?

Check the machinery

Generally speaking, fall is a great time to check over all of your equipment, and prepare it for the winter. For us, it’s a pickup truck, 2 seater UTV, a 40hp tractor, two lanwmowers, two chainsaws, a pole saw and a snowblower.
Although the specifics of this will vary depending on the type of equipment you have, in general, you may wish to:

• Check and change the oil on all devices with a motor. If you are putting a machine away for the winter season, make sure all fluids have been topped off. Leave it in a “perfectly ready” state, so that when it is time to run the machinery again in spring, it’s ready to go. Chainsaws are an exception: leave them empty.

• If your motors have coolant in them, check it to make sure it is able to withstand the temperature drop. If your coolant is not able to handle the levels of cold you experience and freezes up on you, you may very well ruin your equipment! Don’t take chances with iffy coolant: test it, and if need be, put some new stuff in.
  Grease parts that want to be greased.

• Get fresh diesel/gasoline for the generator, and other devices you intend to run during the winter. Depending on your climate, your fuel provider may provide summer and winter fuels: make sure you are getting the winter one!
  Winterize your equipment, as necessary.

• Fire up that emergency generator, or heater, before you need it. Make sure the equipment you may come to count on is actually functional and in good operating order.

Check the out-buildings

You will be well served by examining all of your outbuildings, mostly to ensure they are capable of keeping out the snow for another season. A small gap, caught in the fall, could prevent a catastrophe during the winter. Take some time, and check for:

• Leaky roofs
• Rotten boards / siding
• Problems with foundations
• Standing water
• Lubricate doors/latches and other things that can ice up on you

Check the animals

It goes without saying that you should check your animals, and make sure their shelter and accommodations are up to the task of keeping winter off of them. They’re pretty much like us: keep them dry, well fed and out of the wind, and they’ll probably be fine.

• Water may be an issue: if so, plan for it. The two hundred foot hose you rely on to water them during the other three seasons is going to freeze up, so what will you do instead? Make sure you plan for this ahead of time: you don’t want to get caught having to haul water, multiple times per day, because you neglected to plan for it.

• Ensure that your animals have plenty of fresh warm bedding and good ventilation. Often it's poor ventilation that causes issues rather than cold temperatures.

Check the pantry / supplies

You’re not going to get very far in the winter if your pantry is not stocked: so stock it! In addition to the stuff you’ve grown, take note of the store-bought things you’ll need over winter, and stock up on them! None of it will get any cheaper, and you’ll save yourself the hassle of going to the store during foul weather, or what have you. Why not buy a tonne of:

• Toilet paper, paper towel
• Soap,
• Salt, pepper, flour, oats, dried beans and other staples that won’t go bad, and that you’ll eventually use. If you want to learn more about stocking a pantry you might like to read A Homesteader’s Well Stocked Pantry and How to Stock a Pantry like a Pro

For many homesteaders of days past, winter was a period of time when they were cut off from the world. What was in the pantry is what had to last the whole winter. Although we do not have to approach things quite so seriously, why not try to emulate them, to an extent? Do you want to be trucking to the store in the middle of winter? Or would you rather rely on carefully laid stocks of essentials?

Of course you'll also want to get your winter clothes out, check them for repairs and make sure you have everything you need along with shovels and other winter tools! What else does a homestead need to do to prepare for winter?

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