Tips for a long stay away

[kirstyfly]

Hi all

My husband and I are off to the USA and to WDW for the first time in November. We will be a way for a month long holiday.

I'm not sure what to do with the house/cat. I have looked at booking my cat into the local cattery for his stay which would cost $210 dollars.

What to do with the house?? leave it empty and ask neighbours to collect mail and friends to check on it every now and again, ask a friend who isn't working full time to come over to where we live and stay here ( she lives an hour away) and only works on call as a relief teacher. If she was coming to stay here then she couldn't work while here if needed.

If we do leave the house empty we should turn the power of on everything not needed right and turn the hot water off so it isn't boiling away and being charged for hot water.

what do you guys normall do?

 

[Pop Daddy]

I just have someone come and check on it daily, but never gone more then a week

 

[Dan Murphy]

Welcome to the DIS, kirstyfly!!! And hope you enjoy your holiday to the States and WDW!!!!

This might be of help.......

Essential Things to do Before You Leave list.

Make your house look lived in.

Stop the mail and newspapers or have a friend or neighbor pick them up.

Set lights on a timer.

Make arrangements for someone to mow the grass in summer, or make tire tracks in the driveway and shovel the walks in winter.

Notify a friend or neighbor that you'll be away, and leave a vacation itinerary with them. They can also check your house periodically to ensure everything is alright.

Notify the police and security system company to immediately consider any alarms as real. Leave them the names of anyone responsible to watch over your house.

If traveling out of the country, make two copies of your passport and bring along a spare. Also give a copy to a friend or neighbor at home in case your copy is lost or stolen.

Empty out the refrigerator of food that may spoil and take out the garbage.

Pay any bills that will come due while you're on vacation.

Unplug electronic items such as your computer to protect them from an electrical storm while you're away. Check surge protectors to insure they are working properly. It's also a good idea to turn off the water to prevent any water damage that could occur.

We are never away that long, so no personal experience here. But again, welcome, and enjoy.


Dan

 

[browneyes]

My mom is puppy sitting for us for our next trip (she's already planning what she and our puppy will do together ). We are surrounded by my SO's family where we live, they all watch the place 24 hours a day anyway. My SO's oldest brother might come down and watch the place from the inside and get our mail for us.

 

[cart-mom]

Great ideas Dan! One tip to help make the house seem lived in just in case anyone breaks in - leave a radio on a talk radio station. Radios don't pull much power but then again nothing else will be on for a month. If you don't want to leave it on all the time then put it on a timer like your lights.

If anyone breaks in they'll think there is someone there when they hear the talking.

When I go away for a long time I also make sure that my outside lights are on a sensor so they are on at night and off during the day. One more thing - hide your valubles like jewelry in the freezer in an empty pizza or waffle box.

Hope you have a great trip.

 

[RUDisney]

When we went to Russia for 3 weeks, we turned off the water, unplugged expensive electronic equipment, scheduled neighbors to attend to our yard and snowfall, if it came early. Our next door neighbor used one of our garbage cans. We cancelled our mail delivery with the post office and cancelled our newspaper delivery.

Our neighbor went to our house daily to feed our fish. The tank was on a timer, as were some of our lights. He also watered our house plants a couple of times. Our dogs stayed with my parents.

The one good thing about your trip is that everything is readily available in this country, so you don't have to worry about bringing your own towels, TP, snacks, etc., like we did. Heck, you can even wash your clothes in machines instead of having to wash them in a sink!

Have a safe and WONDERFUL vacation!

 

[nativetxn]

You've already gotten some great advice, I just wanted to welcome you to the DIS. I'm very glad you found us and I hope you can visit often.

We pay to board our dog at a kennel, much more expensive then $210 for a month, but she is diabetic and we just feel more secure knowing that she has a vet available 24/7.

My mother usually stays in our house when we are away