Most expensive household breakdowns do not come out of nowhere. They give warning signs for months and nobody looks. One check-up per season catches almost all of them in time.
Spring: water and air
Clear the gutters and balcony drains before the next rains. Check the air conditioning filters and vacuum the extraction grilles in the kitchen and bathroom. A clogged filter uses more electricity and lets damp settle in.
Summer: anything that heats up
Open the consumer unit and check that no breaker feels warm to the touch. Descale the dishwasher and the washing machine. Use the heat for the painting you keep postponing, since paint dries in hours rather than days.
Autumn: seals and damp
Run your hand around the windows on a windy day. If you feel a draught, the seal is worn and it will cost you heating all winter. Look at the ceiling corners in north-facing rooms, which is where damp usually starts.
Winter: plumbing and heating
Bleed the radiators before you really start using them. Find the main water shut-off valve and make sure it turns, because on the day of a burst pipe there is no time to go looking for it.
The five-minute rule
If a check takes less than five minutes, do it the moment you think of it. Group the rest into one morning per season. Four mornings a year will spare you most emergency call-outs, which are always the expensive ones.
Whatever you would rather not do yourself is in the OSCAR app, with verified professionals and a fixed price before you book.