What does a hurricane remind you? It reminds you that you are to yet to prepare your patio and deck for inclement weather. If you have been lucky and have evaded the wrath of Sandy, it is time to get your patio ready for the upcoming cold months. As the last of the leaf drops, you must make sure that your patio furniture is safe and preserved.

Some of the prep works will be fun that will keep you busy on the weekends of winter.

You got patio umbrellas? Take them down

Before the winter approaches, it is time to get your patio umbrellas a good wash. You can get them cleaned by your dry cleaners or you can clean it with warm water, vinegar, and a brush. Be sure that they have become dry and then put them in a dry place for the winter.

Manage your awnings

Your patio has removable awnings? If yes, you need to take care of them. Take them down and keep them in a dry spot as well.

Evaluate, fix, replace and store outdoor stuff

· Find out if your furniture needs any repairs. If it is there, fix it before winter arrives. The best part to solve this problem is to take a winter project. In this project, you need to re-stain or re-paint your furniture and other wooden stuff when you get spare time. Give your old furniture a fresh coat of paint.

· Find out if you have left any pieces without repair. If there is a discount, get your furniture replaced.

· Clean furniture and store them for the next year.

Remove the outdoor furniture slipcovers

Your furniture slipcovers need to be taken away and cleaned. However, in order to do this, you do not need to get them to the washer. You can do this in your family' laundry.

Assess the condition of the furniture covers and find out if they need any replacement. In this regard, you need to find the replacement fabrics or sew new covers yourself. After the covers are cleaned, fold and keep them in a dry place.

Get in vases

If you have plants or flower plant on your patio, and if you have kept them in the cold places like a shade of the garage, remove them first so that they do not crack during the older days.

Take care of your Barbecue

Believe it or not, most individuals of cold regions prefer to grill a large piece of steak in the snow. Therefore, it is essential to take care of your grill. Well, it is up to your personal preference.

· The best thing to protect your grill is to make an investment in a quality cover.

· If you do not stay in the cold region, you can store it in a garage or a shed. Make sure not to keep any hot charcoals in it for weeks. Hot ashes can pose serious risks.

· Go through the manual for your grill for advice to keep it in the snow.

· If you use propane to power your grill, do not keep the tank on the ground.

As you can find, every stuff on your outdoor patio needs to be stored in a safe and dry place so that you can keep them intact and reuse them at their best conditions. Well, is it possible to protect your outdoor stuff without having opted for the right storage?

You need to think is it possible for you to keep all this stuff inside your house. I would say it is not. This is because if you try to keep these things in your house, your house will look cluttered. You may wonder then what would be the right thing to store them. Patio storage cabinet can make a good storage solution. Get it and install it in the place where no one can see it.

However, it would be best if you choose a cabinet that can be used as a center table. Just keep all the stuff inside this and cover this with a beautifully decorated cloth. No one can understand that it is a cabinet.

Winterize your patio and enjoy it when it finally arrives with winter statues and evergreen trees.