Ottawa & the Valley
Someone Checks Your House. Someone Who Can Fix What He Finds.
Weekly checks on your empty home while you're away for the winter. Photos and a note after every visit — and if something's wrong, you've got a tradesperson standing in the room rather than a phone number to call.
$250 / month — weekly visits, photo report each time
The difference between this and a house sitter
Plenty of people will walk through your house while you're gone. A neighbour, a nephew, a service that sends whoever's free. They'll all do the same thing when they find water on the basement floor: take a photo and phone you in Florida.
I'm the person you'd be phoning. Twenty-five years in the trades, gas licensed, and I carry the tools. If a supply line lets go I shut the valve and start drying it that afternoon. If a toilet is running I fix it. If it's genuinely beyond me — a dead furnace in January, an electrical fault — I'll say so straight and help you get the right trade out, which is a lot faster when someone local is already standing there with the door open.
An empty house also announces itself. Flyers wedged in the door, untouched snow on the drive, bins that never go out, lights that never change. Turning up every week undoes all of that, which is worth something on its own.
What every visit covers
Not a padded checklist — this is what actually matters in an empty Ottawa house over winter.
Heat and temperature
Furnace running, thermostat where you set it, and the actual room temperature logged — not just what the display claims.
Water, the slow way
Taps run and toilets flushed so the traps stay sealed and sewer gas doesn't come up. Under every sink, checked by hand.
Basement and sump
Floor checked for water, sump pump cycled to confirm it still runs. A sump that failed in November is found in November.
Ceilings and walls
Looking for the brown ring that means something upstairs is leaking. Caught early it's a patch; caught late it's a ceiling.
Doors, windows, perimeter
Everything locked, nothing forced, a walk around the outside for ice damming, fallen branches and anything that's changed.
Making it look lived in
Mail and flyers cleared, bins handled, tracks in the snow. Small things that stop a house advertising that nobody's home.
A report you can actually read
Photos and a short plain-English note the same day — what I saw, what I did, and anything worth knowing about. Not a form with ticked boxes.
What it costs
$250 / month
Weekly visit, photo report every time, Ottawa and the surrounding area.
No setup fee and no contract — pay by the month and stop whenever you're home. If something needs fixing while I'm there, small jobs get done on the spot at no extra charge. Anything larger I'll quote before touching it, at the same rates as everything else on the rate card.
Cottages and anything past the usual run are priced by distance — send me the location and I'll give you a straight number.
Questions
What does a visit actually involve?
I walk the house on a set schedule — furnace running and the temperature where it should be, taps run and toilets flushed so the traps don't dry out, a look under every sink, a check of the basement and sump, ceilings for stains, and a walk around the outside. Doors and windows get checked, mail and flyers cleared. You get photos and a short note the same day.
What happens if you find something wrong?
That is the whole point of hiring a tradesperson rather than a house sitter. If there's water on the basement floor I shut the valve and stop it that afternoon, then call you. If it's beyond what I do — a furnace failure, an electrical fault — I'll tell you plainly and help you get the right person out. Either way you find out from someone standing in the house, not from a neighbour two weeks later.
How often do you come?
Weekly, on a set day. That's frequent enough to catch the things that matter — a furnace that quit, a slow leak, a door left unlocked — without paying for daily visits you don't need. If you want a different frequency, ask and we'll work it out.
Are you available if something happens between visits?
Honest answer: I check on schedule, and if something comes up between visits I'll get there as fast as I can. I'm not a 24-hour emergency service and I won't pretend to be. What I am is local, reachable, and able to actually do something when I arrive.
Does this satisfy my home insurance?
Possibly, but don't take my word for it. Insurers differ on what they require for an unoccupied home over winter — some want checks at a set interval, others want the water shut off and the system drained. Ring your broker and ask what your policy says. I'll happily provide dated reports if that helps you meet it, but the requirement is between you and your insurer.
What do you need from me?
A key or code, the alarm details if there is one, your contact number, and a short note giving me permission to enter. That last one matters — it's what stops a well-meaning neighbour calling the police when they see someone unlocking an empty house in January.
Which areas do you cover?
Manotick, Kanata, Stittsville, Barrhaven, Nepean, Carleton Place and Almonte. I take these one area at a time so the round stays tight — if I'm already checking three houses in your neighbourhood, scheduling yours is easy. Ask and I'll tell you honestly whether you're in a cluster I'm covering.
Do you do cottages?
Yes, west of the city and out through the Valley. Cottages are the same job with a longer drive, so the price depends on where it is. Send me the location and I'll give you a number.
Going away this winter?
Tell me where the house is and when you're leaving. I'll tell you honestly whether I'm covering your area and what it would cost.
Call or Text (613) 706-4271