Closing the cottage for winter: the complete checklist

It’s the last weekend of October, and there’s one job left before heading back to the city: closing up the cottage. Whatever gets missed that day usually turns up in the spring. Here’s the list, in order, with what you can do yourself and what belongs to a plumber.

Before you start: heated or shut down?

The list depends on your choice. A fully closed cottage is drained and left with little or no heat. A heated cottage keeps the water and heat running, with regular visits. Some steps apply to both; the ones that only apply to one are marked. If you’re undecided, talk to your plumber and your broker before closing day, not after.

The closing checklist, in order

1. Walk through with your phone

Before you touch anything, photograph every room, the basement, the top-floor ceilings, the outside and the roof from the ground. Those photos show the state of the house on closing day. In spring, they help you see what changed.

2. Empty the fridge and cupboards

• Remove all food, including bags of flour, rice, cereal and pet food.
• Closed cottage: unplug the fridge and freezer, clean and dry them, and prop the doors open to prevent odours and mould.
• Leave nothing that can freeze and burst: bottles, canned goods, liquid cleaning products.

3. Shut the door on mice

• Store bedding and linens in sealed bins.
• Look at the bottom of the siding, the foundation, the soffits and where pipes come through: a new hole is easier to plug in October than in April.
• Close the fireplace or wood-stove damper once the fire is completely out and cold.

4. Water: shut off, then drain

• Find the main shut-off, close it, and label it clearly for whoever will be stopping by.
• If the cottage is on a well and its breaker is clearly labelled, switch off the pump.
• Shut off and drain the outdoor taps, and put the hoses away.
• Closed cottage: the full drain — lines, pressure tank, water heater, connected appliances — then antifreeze in the traps and toilets. It’s the most critical item on the list, and an incomplete drain leaves water where you can’t see it. Have it done by an RBQ-licensed plumber or a closing service that documents every step. Use only antifreeze made for plumbing, never the automotive kind, and if the cottage is on a septic system, ask your plumber which one is suitable.
• Heated cottage: the water can stay on, but note in your instructions whether the main shut-off should be left open or closed between visits.

5. The water heater

• Closed cottage: cut its power before any draining. An electric water heater switched on while empty can burn out its elements. For a gas or propane unit, follow the manufacturer’s instructions or call a professional.
• Heated cottage: ask your plumber about an away mode or what temperature to leave it at.

6. Electrical

• Unplug electronics, the toaster, the coffee maker and chargers.
• Don’t shut off the whole panel if the heat, the sump pump or a dehumidifier needs to keep running.
• Replace the batteries in the smoke and carbon-monoxide alarms.

7. Basement and humidity

• Make sure the sump pump is plugged in and its float moves freely.
• Lift anything sitting directly on the floor onto shelves.
• Leave interior doors and cabinet doors open so air can move.
• Leave a hygrometer and a thermometer somewhere easy to read.

8. Outside

• Clean the gutters once the leaves are down and make sure the downspouts carry water away from the foundation.
• Put away lawn furniture, toys and anything wind or snow could carry off or break.
• Leave barbecue propane cylinders outside, upright — never indoors or in the basement.
• Clear the wall exhaust vents and note where they are for winter.
• Stake the driveway for the snow-clearing crew, and mark rocks or edges.

9. Doors, windows and looking lived-in

• Lock every door and window, including the basement ones.
• Forward the mail and pause deliveries.
• Leave a light or two on a timer if the power stays on.

10. Paperwork and instructions

• Call your broker: tell them the cottage will be unoccupied over the winter, and ask what your policy requires. Conditions vary from one insurer to the next.
• Confirm the snow-clearing contract in writing and, if the cottage stays heated, the fuel delivery.
• Leave a key and written instructions for whoever will be stopping by: main shut-off, heat, who to call.

Why closing comes down to details in the Townships

Additions hide plumbing. In Sutton, Potton or Brome Lake, plenty of three-season cottages were added onto. A bathroom added later, a sink in an extension: those are often the stretches of pipe missed during draining.

Thaws are deceptive. A partial drain can get through one cold snap fine, then give way on the next freeze-thaw cycle.

Mice go looking for warmth in the fall. A closed cottage in the woods with forgotten food is an open invitation.

Storms come early. A first big snowfall in November makes clearing an unstaked driveway harder, with rocks and edges nobody can see anymore.

What you can do, and what belongs to the plumber

What an owner can do: everything to do with food, storage, mice, the yard, doors, paperwork and instructions; closing the main shut-off; draining outdoor taps; checking the sump pump.

What belongs to an RBQ-licensed plumber:

• Any change to or repair of the plumbing.
• Installing frost-free outdoor taps or heat cable.
• The full drain and antifreeze, if you don’t hand it to a closing service. Our fall closing includes draining the lines and antifreeze, with a photo of every step.

In an empty house, how long before anyone notices?

Even closed properly, a cottage is still exposed: snow on the deck, an ice dam, mice, a window broken by the wind. Nobody sees it until somebody stops by. A good closing lowers the risk; visits shorten how long a problem goes unnoticed.

What we look at on a visit

After closing, every visit, we check that the main shut-off is in the position you asked for, look at the toilets and whether antifreeze is in the bowl, and check the base of the water heater and its drain pan. We check the sump pump and the water level in the pit, make sure the wall exhaust vents are clear, and walk around the soffits, siding and foundation looking for any new hole. Every finding is photographed and time-stamped in the report.

If something’s off, we call you the same day, with photos. If needed, we meet an RBQ-licensed plumber on site and document the work.