Fall is almost here-and you know what this means, right? Well it means the harsh, bitter weather of winter is right around the corner and there are things to do to ensure your home is ready for the battle. Here are 21 ways to take care of your home this fall:

1. Clean the gutters.

Depending on how much foliage you have surrounding your home, this might just need to be done once after all of the leaves have fallen for the season-for many homes though, gutter cleaning will be necessary a couple of times as the trees shed their leaves for autumn. (Tip: Having gutter covers installed does prevent a great deal of maintenance!)

There is no denying the summer heat is here. It is bad enough when you have to go through the stifling heat when you are outside-but if you are suffering from the heat when you are inside as well, it’s time to make some changes. Take a look at these fifteen energy efficient ways to stay cool in the summer. You can make your home green and cool at the same time. Be comfortable and help the environment by incorporating these ideas into your home.

Think saving thousands of dollars on ordinary home improvements and household related expenses is impossible? Well, fortunately, it’s not impossible at all. In fact, by starting with these 32 ordinary ways to save extraordinary money on the homefront, you’ll see that saving money at home is as simple as ever.

1. Add Zones To Your Home - For heating and air condition, that is. If you’re like most folks, you probably spend most of your time in just a few areas of your home. Why pay extra to maintain the entire residence at just the right temperature? Consult with an experienced HVAC provider to find out just what zoning your house will require.

It’s not new news that the economy continues to post reason after reason for serious concern and the stock market has reached the lowest levels seen since 1997. When approximately 10% of all Americans are either in foreclosure or behind on their mortgage (according to a recent release from the Mortgage Bankers Association) and home sales have dropped to significant lows, buying new homes isn’t exactly on the forefront of most peoples’ plans for 2009.

At first, it would seem that 2009 is all about saving money. But while things have slowed down a bit, the home improvement industry is certainly not devastated. Want proof? Just take pay a visit to a local home improvement big box store this weekend-yep-there are still plenty of homeowners and contractors alike keeping themselves quite busy with new projects. Keeping all of this in mind, here are what promise to be the top 5 home improvement ideas for 2009.