Climate challenges are a major component in outdoor maintenance for Sun Peaks homes. Heavy snowfall in late fall, winter and spring are the obvious villains. But fluctuating temperatures, humidity, seasonal shifts, summer highs and droughts all contribute to the hurdles hounding homeowners. 

Maintaining a home’s exterior is essential for preserving its value, whether for resale, rental or personal enjoyment. From the integrity of the roof and gutters to the upkeep of hot tubs, windows, doors, locks and balconies, every detail plays a role in both functionality and aesthetics. And it’s not just the structure. Thoughtful, climate-resistant landscaping around the property not only enhances durability and curb appeal, but also plays a crucial role in fire safety through strategic material choices, conforming with community guidelines and proper maintenance.

In a resort community like Sun Peaks, where tourism thrives and architectural charm is a point of pride, curb appeal is more than just an aesthetic afterthought – it’s a key investment. Well-maintained properties not only attract visitors, renters and potential buyers but also contribute to the overall character of the destination.

Local residents, Harold and Kathy Richins own ‘Morrisey Chalet at Sun Peaks’ on Mountain View Drive. 

Built in 2006 it is a large property covering close to 275 square metres. The chalet enjoys excellent views of the Burfield ski runs, and outside there is a spacious driveway, various decks and patios, as well as a private back yard separated from the golf course by conifer trees and a large lawn area. In short, plenty of maintenance is required.

While the couple and personal cleaner Gwen Boggiss, do much of the weekly cleaning and maintenance chores themselves, they use local professionals for larger indoor and outdoor projects – such as Bear Country for hot tub care and maintenance, and Wallace Plumbing.

A major area for concern and continual vigilance is snow, with its related issues of ice and melt water. 

“Water is one of the biggest challenges in a snowy climate,” Richins said. “From melting and runoff to the way water moves through a property, it creates ongoing maintenance issues.” 

Managing the piles of snow on outdoor surfaces can sometimes feel like a never-ending task. The charismatic pitched roofs that give Sun Peaks its charm also have functional disadvantages in winter. The texture of roofs required by municipal policy means that snow is accumulated rather than sliding off. 

“The pitches can create troughs, leading to ice dams in the spring,” Richins explained. 

Heat escaping from inside can melt some of the piled up snow, which then refreezes, creating potentially dangerous ice dams, which may cause water ingress issues. 

“Water always finds a way,” Richins added. “When snow melts and refreezes, it forces its way back up under shingles, through walls and into homes. We learned that in our first winter here in 2015. If a roof isn’t well insulated or doesn’t have an airspace or electrical tape on the roof, problems arise – especially with high vaulted ceilings.” 

The great room at Morrisey Chalet has a 23-foot vaulted ceiling. It also has huge panoramic windows with mountain and forest views that really bring the outside in, but these require extra equipment for cleaning inside and outside due to the height. Inaccessible windows can create further dilemmas for cleaning and seal maintenance. 

Professional help in Sun Peaks

For many homeowners, especially those who are not consistently year-round residents, it can be overwhelming to take responsibility for outdoor upkeep themselves. This is when professional services come into play. 

Sun Peaks Aquatics dates back to 1996, with Kurtis Wyllie taking over ownership in October 2020. His sales and service manager is Anthony Van Vliet. 

“Hot tubs in the winter are a great thing to have after a long day of skiing,” Van Vliet said. “But they can be challenging in the winter given the temperatures that we get with keeping their set temperature.” 

Properly insulated covers are key for this so Sun Peaks Aquatics keeps a range of the lightest and highest quality insulated covers. Breakers can trip too, due to the numerous power outages in the area. This requires regular monitoring as well as checking the heater element is still functional. 

Having developed an external heater that can be monitored via Wi-Fi, Sun Peaks Aquatics has been able to offer some part-time residents peace of mind. 

If a hot tub does freeze, it can easily spring a leak within the plumbing system, requiring draining and repairs. Another priority is the walking area around a hot tub which, for safety reasons, has to be kept as dry as possible by clearing snow regularly and ensuring that hoses are intact, allowing water to flow freely to the drain. Keeping a path around the tub, a clear cover and access to the door are the very minimum requirements for hot tub maintenance. At other times of year, hot tubs are less problematic, but it is over-heating which is likely to cause a technical issue that requires resetting. Dirt from outdoor sports, spray tans, lotions, leaves and needles are some of the other seasonal hazards.   

Despite looking ethereally beautiful around a home, Van Vliet said “icicles are scary,” after an incident when a large one landed just a foot away from him. 

“I wondered if I should start wearing a ski helmet to work.” 

Freeze-thaw weather cycles cause icicles to fall suddenly. They are created by hot temperatures inside attic spaces. 

“The temperature of the space beneath your roof should be at the same temperature as the ambient temperature outside,” Van Vliet explained. “When houses have poor insulation above their ceiling your house heat will escape into the attic space and cause the snow to melt from the bottom. This in turn causes ice to form and lift up shingles and the water dams up and, when it eventually finds its way underneath your roof, the excess water runs down into your frozen gutter and causes an icicle to form.” 

He recommends three ways to prevent this: Heat trace gutters and lower roof, increase insulation in attic spaces and manage air flow to the attic.

An important outdoor maintenance tip is to use snow shovels made from plastic to ensure no damage to decks or other surfaces. It’s hard work but Van Vliet thinks of it as “getting paid to work out.” 

For the 2025/2026 season, Sun Peaks Aquatics is expanding to offer a wider snow clearing service for walkways and decks that do not have hot tubs.

Other local professional services for outdoor maintenance include Sun Peaks Property Services Inc., a locally-owned, family-run business that was established in 2000. Alpine Interiors & Maintenance is another Sun Peaks-based service specializing in interior and exterior building maintenance, painting, drywall repair, deck and fence repair/staining and general upkeep.

This story was featured in SPIN’s Home Issue. To read more from this print edition, visit our archives.