05.01.2023

Exterior To-Dos by Season

When the exterior to your school, business, or health center looks well-maintained, it gives visitors a positive first impression. Green grass, clear walkways, clean windows, and trimmed trees and shrubbery provide a welcoming environment to visiting clients.

We may have been told not to judge a book by its cover, but in reality, we can tell a lot about a business by how much effort they put into their curb appeal. That’s why we offer property maintenance services, as we understand the benefits of proper building care.

But it’s important to know what time of the year different exterior services should be done. That way, you can plan your schedule and budget accordingly.

Spring

Planting Flowers

Nothing says spring like blooming flowers. Getting seasonal flowers planted outside your building not only adds a pleasant pop of color, but fills the air with sweet scents. Even the most industrial building can instantly be brightened by flowers outside the door.

Getting flowers planted is also good for the environment, as it gives the bees that pollinate our planet’s plants a food source in the early spring months. Consider requesting flowers native to Massachusetts that flower year-round. This will result in happy, healthy bees and a greener world.

Painting

A fresh coat of paint is the easiest way to update a drab-looking building. It can drastically make a school more welcoming, make an office building pop, or simply increase the value of your property. The exterior will look cleaner, brighter, and newer, inviting clients to come inside and do business.

Spring is a great time to paint a building as the weather won’t be too hot, allowing the paint to dry more evenly and consistently. Just make sure to keep an eye on the weather so the rain won’t wash it away.

Power Washing

From clearing away the grime that’s built up over winter to cleaning up a fresh coat of pollen, power washing is important to do during the spring months. It gets all the gunk out of the cracks and crevices of the building, making the walls and walkways easier to maintain and repair.

Power washing can, of course, also be done in the summer, but it’s preferable to have it done before temperatures get too hot. Summers in Massachusetts can get very muggy, so power washing when the humidity is already high could result in a very unpleasant walk to your building’s front door.

Summer

Lawn Mowing

Lawn maintenance is essential during the summer months. The hot sun and drought can burn your grass and even cause fires if not maintained properly. However, if you’re keeping your lawn well-watered, you’re going to have to make sure it’s mowed, too.

Unless you’re an expert on grasses and their specific needs, it’s important to leave major lawn care to the professionals. We’ll know what kind of grass your property has and what it takes to keep it green and healthy.

Shrub Pruning

Overgrown shrubs and bushes can really make a property look unkempt. Perhaps you aren’t looking for elaborate topiary, but trimming and pruning those bushes can instantly make a difference in your exterior aesthetics.

Pruning shrubs is important to the health of a bush as much as the aesthetics. Pruning cuts away dead branches off at the base, keeping the plant free of diseases. It also includes making thinning cuts to tame overgrown shrubs, giving a neater, nicer appearance. 

Fall

Lawn Aeration

Is your grass looking stressed? Is the soil hard to the touch? Do puddles form on the lawn when it rains? Then your lawn may have compaction problems. This is a common issue for places that have a lot of heavy foot traffic, like schools or medical facilities, and is easily solved by lawn aeration.

Compaction prevents the flow of air, water, and nutrients the grass needs, which can lead to either scraggly-looking lawns. Getting your lawn aerated will make it easier for water and nutrients to get into the soil, and give new plant growth room to grow.

In a state like Massachusetts, lawn aeration is best done during early fall, though you can also do it in early spring. If you do it in fall, you’ll have a fresher, greener lawn when you’d typically expect it to look brown and haggard.

Leaf Raking

Fallen leaves at tree stump.

As classic as colorful leaves on the ground are in New England, when they fall they can easily go from looking idyllic to messy. The wind can blow the leaves all over the walkways, or autumn rains can come down and pack them down to create a soggy carpet on your lawn.

Having leaves raked, blown, and removed as they fall will keep your lawn looking clean and professional. It’s also a task that can’t be put off too long – if you wait, the leaves will be buried beneath the winter snow. By the time the snow melts in the spring, they’ll be soggy and rotten, which will make them much harder to rake and dispose of.

Winter

Snow Removal

New England blizzards can be intense. Snowfall can vary from mere inches to over a foot high. That’s why it’s essential to have someone to clear your walkways and parking lots after a storm. After all, your employees need to be able to park and get into the building.

Having walkways that aren’t properly cleared can be a safety issue, too. Snow can partially melt and refreeze, creating a sheet of ice. Can you risk a client slipping and falling on their way to meeting you? No, so that’s why you need the snow cleared away ASAP.

Parking Garage Clean-Up

If you have a parking garage, it’s going to see increased foot traffic, and especially a lot of dirt and salt tracked in during the winter. As snow and slush make the floors extra slippery, it’s necessary to schedule regular cleaning services to prevent accidents.

It’s also important to keep up parking garage maintenance in winter as the days get darker earlier. Parking garages are already typically short on natural light, so you need regular crews coming in to ensure all the lights are functioning properly and there have been no accidents.

There’s a lot of work that needs to be done to keep your building’s exterior in tip top condition. We at S.J. Services provide professionally-trained teams that will keep your property clean and presentable. Contact us today to get started on improving your curb appeal and pleasing your clients with a beautiful lawn year-round.