The departure checklist, how to “summerize” against heat and humidity, hiring a home watch you can trust, and the technology that lets you check on the house from 1,200 miles away. By Nicholas Nolan, REALTOR®.
Every April, half of Naples packs up. And every October, a few returning owners open the front door to a smell they'll never forget — because a supply line dripped for four months, or the A/C quit in July and the house spent a Florida summer at 92 degrees and 90% humidity. The difference between a happy October homecoming and a five-figure insurance claim is almost never luck. It's a checklist, a good home watch, and about $500 of technology. Here's all three.
Up north, you winterize against freezing. Here you summerize against the opposite: months of 90-degree heat and tropical humidity working on a sealed, empty house. The three failure modes that cause nearly every seasonal disaster are mold (humidity above ~65% for weeks), water leaks (a failed supply line with nobody home to hear it), and power loss (a summer storm trips the A/C, and nobody knows). Every item below exists to defeat one of those three. And remember the calendar: a snowbird who leaves in April is away for the entire hurricane season — your home needs a storm plan that works without you in it.
☐ Book your home watch service (more below) and schedule the first visit for the week you leave.
☐ Call your insurance agent. Many policies have unoccupancy provisions that kick in after 30+ days — ask exactly what your policy requires (some want the water off, some want documented checks). Get the answer in writing.
☐ Service the A/C. A clean system in May is what's still running in August. Have the tech clear the condensate drain line — the #1 cause of summer water damage in Florida — and ask about a float switch that shuts the system down if the drain clogs.
☐ Forward the mail (USPS makes seasonal forwarding easy) and pause deliveries, newspapers, and any subscriptions that betray an empty house.
☐ Update your HOA and gate contacts — make sure the association and the gatehouse have your summer phone number and your home watch company on the approved-entry list.
☐ Empty and clean the refrigerator — or empty it entirely, prop it open, and shut it off. At minimum, toss anything that outlives you coming back, and put a cup of baking soda inside.
☐ Clear the lanai. Anything that can fly in a storm — furniture, planters, umbrellas — either comes inside, gets strapped, or is on your home watch's pre-storm list with written instructions.
☐ Run the dishwasher and washing machine empty, then leave their doors cracked so seals don't mildew.
☐ Pour a little water down rarely-used drains and consider a tablespoon of mineral oil on top — it slows evaporation in the traps so sewer gas stays where it belongs.
☐ Treat for pests — a perimeter spray now beats discovering in October that something else summered in your house.
☐ Shut off the main water valve. This is the single highest-value action on this page. No water pressure, no flood. (If your insurer or plumber prefers, shut the individual supply valves at every toilet, sink, and the washer instead — but most owners and most policies favor the main.)
☐ Turn the water heater off (breaker for electric; vacation mode for gas) — never leave a heater energized on a drained or depressurized system.
☐ Set the thermostat to 77–80°F — not off. The A/C is your dehumidifier; an off A/C is how houses mold. If you have a humidistat, set it around 55–60% relative humidity.
☐ Unplug what you can — TVs, small appliances, garage fridge (emptied) — both for surge protection and the standby power bill.
☐ Toilets: close the lids over a splash of water; some owners stretch plastic wrap over the bowl to slow evaporation.
☐ Lock up like you mean it — every window latch, the garage man-door everyone forgets, and the lanai sliders. Leave one set of keys (or a smart-lock code) with your home watch.
☐ Cars staying behind: battery tender, full tank with stabilizer (or near-empty per your dealer's advice), tires at proper pressure on a clean garage floor, and parked with the parking brake off (humid months can seize it).
A home watch service is a professional who physically walks your home on a schedule — typically weekly or every other week — checking for leaks, A/C function, pests, storm damage, and anything “off,” with a photo report to your phone after every visit. In Southwest Florida this is a mature industry, and for a seasonal home it is not a luxury; it's the difference between a problem caught Tuesday and a problem compounding until October. Many insurers effectively require documented checks for unoccupied homes.
Florida does not license home watch companies — anyone with a car and a flyer can claim the title. So vet hard. Questions that separate professionals from hobbyists:
“Are you insured and bonded — and can I see the certificate?” General liability plus a bond, minimum. A real company sends the certificate without flinching.
“Are you accredited?” Membership in a professional body like the National Home Watch Association means background checks, insurance verification, and standards — not a guarantee, but a strong filter.
“What exactly is on your checklist?” You want specifics: A/C reading, water heater, under every sink, ceilings for stains, breaker panel, lanai, signs of pests or mold. Ask for a sample report from a real visit.
“What's your storm protocol?” Pre-storm: lanai cleared, screens deployed per your instructions. Post-storm: an inspection visit with photos, as soon as access is allowed. This is half the reason you're hiring them.
“Who has my key, and how is it secured?” Coded lockbox or smart-lock codes, not a labeled keyring on someone's passenger seat.
Expect to pay roughly what a nice dinner costs per visit — small money against what it prevents. Your neighbors' recommendations carry real weight here; the same few good companies serve most of a community. (I keep a list of providers my clients have used happily — ask me.)
Ten years ago, remote monitoring meant a neighbor with a key. Today, about $300–$800 of devices gives you live eyes on everything that matters. Build in tiers:
Smart thermostat (Ecobee, Nest, or your A/C brand's own): live temperature and humidity on your phone, alerts when either drifts out of range. If the A/C dies in July, you know that afternoon — not in October. This single device defeats the mold scenario.
Water leak sensors ($25–$40 each): hockey-puck sensors under the water heater, washer, dishwasher, each sink, and each toilet. They scream to your phone at the first drop.
A camera or two: a doorbell camera for the front, one interior camera positioned to see the main living area. Check in whenever you like; confirm the home watch visits happen.
An automatic water shutoff valve (Moen Flo, Phyn, and similar, professionally installed on the main): monitors flow continuously, detects abnormal patterns, and closes the main automatically — even catching pinhole drips via pressure testing. Some insurers offer credits for these. If you only make one upgrade, make it this one; paired with leak sensors it effectively retires the flood risk.
Smart lock: issue your home watch (and the occasional contractor) individual codes, see every entry time-stamped, and never mail a key again.
Whole-home generator + remote monitoring app — keeps the A/C (your dehumidifier) alive through summer outages, with start/stop status on your phone. At Esplanade, generators and screens are exterior modifications — my builder-vs-aftermarket guide covers cost and the ARC approval step.
Motorized storm screens with remote control — deployable from your phone, or by your home watch in minutes.
Power-outage and temperature sensors with battery + cellular backup — the failure mode of Wi-Fi-only monitoring is that an outage takes your internet down precisely when you need eyes. At least one sensor should phone home without your router.
Before you pull out of the gate: confirm your homestead status facts haven't changed (if this is your primary residence, time away doesn't affect it — but renting the house out can), check that your auto-pay covers HOA dues, the CDD line on the November tax bill, utilities, and insurance renewals that land mid-summer, and leave a written authority list with your home watch: who may enter, who to call for A/C, plumbing, and pool, and what they're pre-authorized to spend in an emergency. The $300 decision made instantly on a Tuesday is what prevents the $30,000 claim by Friday.
Do it right and re-opening takes an hour: water on (watch every fixture for a minute), water heater on, thermostat back to living temperature, run all faucets and flush all toilets, fridge on, cars off their tenders, and a slow walk of the lanai. The best version of this article's advice is invisible — it's the season's first sunset on the lanai with absolutely nothing to report.
Notes: General guidance for Southwest Florida seasonal homes — verify specifics with your insurance carrier (unoccupancy provisions vary by policy), your A/C professional, and your association's current rules before relying on any single item. Exterior modifications at Esplanade by the Islands (screens, generators) require Architectural Review approval — see the Resident Toolkit. Product names are examples, not endorsements; the author has no affiliate relationships. This article is general information, not insurance, legal, or engineering advice.
Esplanade by the Islands specialist with The Nicholas Nolan Team at Realty ONE Group MVP. Florida license SL3504588. I've tracked every sale in this community since it opened — this site is where I publish what I learn.
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