First Fall and Winter in a New Burnaby Custom Home: The Checklist

We handed over a house in Deer Lake in late August. In the second week of October the owner sent a photo of water sheeting off one corner of the roof. The gutter on that corner was full of leaves from the maple next door. Ten minutes on a ladder and it was done.

That picture is the first wet season in one frame. A new house has never been rained on with people living in it. The gutters have not seen a Burnaby fall. The sump pump has never had to run. The heat pump has not worked a cold week. This post is the list we hand to owners who move in between August and October, so the house meets its first winter with everything ready. The first-year maintenance playbook covers the whole twelve months; this is the seasonal slice.

Gutters, downspouts and where the roof water goes

Start at the top. In Burnaby, and across the Lower Mainland, the roof water on a new house runs down the downspouts into rain water leader piping and out to the storm connection, as one half of the two-pipe drainage system the City describes in its Foundation and Surface Drainage Installation Guide. The other half is the perimeter drain around the footings. Both halves depend on the gutters staying open.

Walk the house after the first big leaf drop, usually mid to late October under a Burnaby tree canopy. Look for gutters overflowing at the corners, water running down the cladding beside a downspout, and splash marks on the siding at grade. Check that each downspout still sits in its connection at ground level; a downspout that has been kicked loose during landscaping dumps the whole roof beside the foundation. On a house with mature trees on the neighbour's side, plan on clearing the gutters twice in the fall, once after the first drop and once after the last.

Perimeter drains, cleanouts and the sump

The perimeter drain is the pipe around the footings that keeps groundwater away from the foundation. Section 9.14 of the 2024 BC Building Code requires foundation drains to run to a sewer, a drainage ditch or a dry well, and where gravity cannot get the water there, an automatic sump pump has to lift it out of a sump pit. The code also sets the pit size and requires a cover that resists removal by children and is airtight.

Before the rain settles in, find the cleanouts. On our builds they sit at grade near the corners of the house, capped, and they are the access points a drain contractor uses to flush or camera the line. Know where they are before you need them, and keep landscaping off them.

If the house has a sump, test it. Lift the cover, pour water in until the float rises, watch the pump run and empty the pit, and reseal the cover so the airtight seal is intact. A pump that has never cycled since the plumber tested it can stick, and the first storm in November is the wrong time to find out. In Burnaby, a perimeter drainage system that needs pumping has to be designed by a registered professional under the City's drainage guide, so the pump and pit on your house were sized on purpose. Your job is to confirm they still work.

Storm drainage on hillside lots in Capitol Hill, Westridge and up the Coquitlam and Port Moody slopes carries more water and more debris than a flat Deer Lake lot, and the surface drains at the base of retaining walls and the bottom of driveways need the same leaf check the gutters get.

Hose bibs and the outdoor water

Pull every hose off every exterior tap at the first frost warning. A frost-free hose bib is built so the valve seat sits inside the warm wall, and it only works if the hose is off and the body can drain. Leave a hose on and the water trapped in the valve can freeze and split it, and the leak shows up inside the wall in spring.

If the house has interior shutoff valves for the exterior taps, close them and open the outside tap to drain the stub. Irrigation systems get blown out by the irrigation contractor before the freeze. Outdoor kitchens and hot tubs with plumbed water lines get the same treatment as a hose bib.

Heat pump, HRV and the filters

A new Burnaby house is airtight by design and heated and cooled by a heat pump, and both of those systems live or die by their filters through the first heating season.

Natural Resources Canada recommends changing or cleaning the heat pump's air filter every 3 months and having a qualified contractor do annual maintenance on the unit. In the first winter, check the filters monthly, because the house is still shedding construction dust and it ends up in the filter. The same agency's new home maintenance guidance puts the heat recovery ventilator on an annual service schedule for peak efficiency, and the HRV core and filters are the ones owners forget, because the unit sits in a mechanical room nobody visits.

Outside, keep the heat pump's outdoor unit clear. Leaves pile against the coil in October, and snow can bury it in January. The unit needs air moving through it on all sides. Two things about a heat pump in cold weather are normal and worry first-time owners: the outdoor fan running in a defrost cycle with steam rising off the coil, and a puddle of condensate under the unit that freezes on a cold morning. A unit that stops heating, short-cycles, or ices solid is a different matter, and it belongs on the list we come back to below.

We covered how the heat pump and HRV work together as one system in an earlier post. The short version for the first winter: run the HRV, do not switch it off to save power, and change the filters.

Windows, humidity and the first cold mornings

The first winter is when new owners meet condensation on the coldest glass. Some of it is normal. The framing lumber, drywall compound and concrete are still drying into the indoor air, and a tight house holds that moisture. The answer is ventilation: the HRV on, the bath fans used, the range hood used, and a cheap hygrometer on the counter so you know what the indoor humidity is doing.

What belongs on the warranty list is standing water: a pool on the sill that keeps coming back, frost on the frame, moisture between the panes of a sealed unit, or a draft you can feel with the window locked. Our guide to windows and glazing for a Burnaby winter walks through which of those is a defect and which is the house finding its balance.

The first winter is the house showing you how it drains and how it breathes. Watch it, write it down, and fix the small things before the big rain.

Icon Projects Team

Decks, exterior wood and the fireplace

A new cedar deck goes into its first winter unfinished, and that is on purpose. Fresh cedar needs a season to dry and weather before a finish will go on evenly, and sealing wet boards in November traps water under the coating. Through the wet months, keep leaves off the boards, lift planters and mats so water does not sit under them, and leave the finish for a dry stretch the following summer. The same holds for cedar soffits and any exposed timber at the entry.

Gas fireplaces get a service call in the fall. Technical Safety BC recommends annual servicing for gas-fired appliances, carried out by a certified gas fitter employed by a licensed gas contractor. For a fireplace, that visit covers cleaning the glass and the unit to the manufacturer's guidelines, checking the entire vent system and its termination outside, and checking the gas valve and pilot system. The contractor leaves a completed checklist. Book it in October, because every gas contractor in the region is booked solid the week of the first cold snap.

Snow on a flat or low-slope roof

Modern Burnaby houses carry a lot of flat roof, and the first snow makes owners nervous. The structure itself was designed to the snow load the BC Building Code assigns to the location, and the code's climatic data tables list Burnaby by name, so the weight of a normal Lower Mainland snowfall was in the engineer's numbers from the start.

The practical risk is different. A flat roof sheds water through roof drains or scuppers, and if those are blocked by leaves when the snow comes, meltwater ponds, refreezes at night, and the cycle repeats. Clear the drains before the first snow, and if snow piles deep, clear a path to each drain by hand and leave the rest. Never use a metal shovel on a membrane roof. Wet coast snow is heavy, and on a hillside lot in Port Moody or up Burnaby Mountain it sits longer than it does in Metrotown, so the drain check matters more the higher the house sits.

Sloped roofs with a gutter at the eave have one snow issue worth watching: ice forming in the gutter where meltwater refreezes. It is a sign heat is escaping through the roof or that the gutter is holding water, and either one goes on the list.

What to note for the warranty list

Every item above is maintenance. The reason to do it carefully in the first winter is that it separates what you can fix in ten minutes from what the builder or the warranty provider has to fix.

The BC Housing home warranty on a new custom home starts at occupancy or the first occupancy permit, whichever comes first. The 2-year layer covers defects in materials and labour for 12 months on a detached home, and for 24 months it covers the major systems, including heating, ventilation and air conditioning delivery and distribution, plus exterior cladding, windows and doors. The 5-year layer covers the building envelope, including unintended water penetration. So a heat pump that will not hold temperature, a window that leaks, or caulking that has split open on the flanking wall each has a coverage layer and a deadline.

Through the first winter, keep one running list with the date, the location and a photo for each item. Put the maintenance items on it too, so the year-end walkthrough has the full picture. The things that turn into a claim are the ones the season reveals: water where water should not be, a system that does not perform, a seal that failed. Our guide to making a warranty claim after move-in covers how to submit, to whom and by when.

Clear the gutters, test the pump, pull the hoses, change the filters, book the fireplace, keep the roof drains open, and write everything down. That is the whole checklist, and a new house that gets it done in October goes into its first Burnaby winter with nothing left to chance.

Frequently asked questions

What should I do to prepare a new Burnaby home for its first winter?

Clear the gutters and check that every downspout drains into the storm connection at grade, find the perimeter drain cleanouts and the sump, disconnect hoses and shut off exterior hose bibs, clean the heat pump and HRV filters, keep the outdoor heat pump unit clear, book the gas fireplace service, and walk the house with a camera. Burnaby's tree canopy fills gutters fast in October, so the roof drainage check comes first.

How do I test the sump pump in a new house?

Lift the cover, pour water into the pit until the float rises, and confirm the pump runs and empties the pit, then reseal the cover. The BC Building Code requires an automatic sump pump where gravity drainage is not practical, and a cover that resists removal by children and is airtight. If the pump does not start or the pit does not drain, report it to your builder right away, before the first storm.

Do I need to shut off outdoor hose bibs before winter in the Lower Mainland?

Yes. Take every hose off, and if the house has interior shutoff valves for the exterior taps, close them and open the outside tap to drain the line. A frost-free hose bib only protects itself when the hose is removed, because a hose left on traps water in the body of the valve and it can split in a freeze. Do it at the first frost warning, which in Burnaby can land in November.

How often should the heat pump filter be changed in a new home?

Natural Resources Canada recommends changing or cleaning the air filter every 3 months and having a qualified contractor do annual maintenance on the unit. In the first year, check more often, because a new house sheds construction dust into the filters. Keep the outdoor unit clear of leaves and snow so air can move through it.

Does a gas fireplace need to be serviced every year in BC?

Technical Safety BC recommends annual servicing for gas-fired appliances, including fireplaces, carried out by a certified gas fitter employed by a licensed gas contractor. The service covers cleaning the glass and unit, checking the vent system and termination, and checking the gas valve and pilot system. Book it in the fall, before the first cold evening you want to use it.

Is snow on a flat roof dangerous for a new house?

The structure is designed for the snow load the BC Building Code assigns to the location, so the weight of a normal Lower Mainland snowfall is accounted for. The practical risk on a flat or low-slope roof is a blocked roof drain or scupper, which lets meltwater pond and refreeze. Keep the drains clear of leaves before snow arrives, and clear snow away from the drains by hand if it piles up.

What should go on the warranty list during the first winter in a new Burnaby home?

Anything the first cold and wet season reveals: a window that lets in water, exterior caulking that has split, a door that no longer seals, a heat pump that struggles, or a drain that backs up. Write down the date, the location and a photo for each item. The 2-year layer of the BC home warranty covers materials and labour for 12 months and major systems including heating and ventilation for 24 months, so the timing of the submission matters.

Should I seal or stain a new cedar deck in its first winter?

No. New cedar needs to dry and weather before it will take a finish evenly, and applying a sealer to wet wood in November traps moisture under the coating. Keep leaves and debris off the boards so water does not sit on the surface, keep planters and mats off the deck through the wet months, and plan the first finish for a dry stretch the following summer.