Doing A Spring Checkup At The Weekend Camp
Kevin Felts 03.22.18
Springtime has arrived, and a lot of people will be heading to a weekend camp. This may be a camp at a hunting lease, or a rented cabin off in the woods. Upon arriving at the camp we may find the water does not work, certain lights may not work, and baseboards may have chew marks in them.
Let’s take a few minutes and talk about some things to look for.
Usually, one of the first things to get turned on is the water. Being in a rural area the camp house will probably have a water well. Take a look at the pump and see if there are any cracks in the pump housing. If the past winter was harsh, and there was water in the pump, the water may have swelled enough to crack the pump housing.
Do the wires going to the pump show signs of rodent chew marks? Sometimes squirrels, mice and rats will chew on wires.
Turn on the water and wait for pressure to build up. Then walk around the camp house and look for water leaks. Depending on how low the temperatures got, and if the lines were exposed, there may be a busted water line somewhere.
Next, let’s go inside the camp house and take a look. If temperatures got low enough in the house, the toilets may have cracked. Some people pour car antifreeze into the toilet bowl and holding tank before leaving for the winter.
There is a chance a dead rodent will be in the toilet. They jump into the toilet to get water, then they can not get out.
Check all of the lights to make sure they work. Sometimes rodents will get into the attic and chew on wires.
Look around the baseboards, are there any rat droppings? Was there any rat poison put out last fall? How much is missing? Maybe glue strips were put out?
Windows or doors show pry marks from forced entry? Any broken windows? Anything out of place or missing?
Mattresses have any chew marks in them?
Is there a shed near the camp? Does it show signs of forced entry? Is there anything missing? In rural areas the crack fiends want something that does not draw a lot of attention, and is easy to sell. Because of that, thieves will usually look for stuff that is easy to sell in rural areas, such as hand tools and chainsaws.
Before things get underway, take a few minutes to spray eating and cooking areas down with a solution of bleach water. My family likes to keep fresh sheets and blankets in stock. Maybe change the old linens and put new ones on the bed?
Open the windows, let the place air out, and get ready to enjoy spring.
