Away for 3 Months: How to Prepare an Apartment for Your Absence

Leaving Slovenia for a long stretch — a season, half a year, a long work trip — means leaving an apartment or house unattended for a long time. Three months is no longer a “holiday”, when you can simply lock the door. It is a span over which any hidden problem has time to surface: a pipe starts to leak, damp appears, systems run down, the garden grows over.

This article is a practical plan: what to prepare before a long departure, who to leave keys with, and what should happen to the property while you are away.

It draws on Slovenian seasonal practice and on the DomCare team’s many years of experience preparing properties for long owner absences.

Why three months is a special span

A short absence — a week, two — forgives almost everything: even if something goes wrong, the damage has no time to grow. Three months is another matter. Over that span:

• A leak that began in the first week is only discovered when you return — with maximum damage.
• Damp with no ventilation turns into mould.
• A garden grows over completely in a single season.
• Accumulated post becomes a signal to thieves that the house is empty.
• Any minor fault develops with no witnesses.

So preparing for a three-month absence is not “lock up and leave” — it is a deliberate switch of the property into a safe mode, plus arranging for someone to keep an eye on it.

What to prepare before departure: water

Water is the source of most serious failures, so it gets first attention.

Shut off the main water valve. If no one will live in the apartment for three months, closed water makes a leak physically impossible. This is the single most important measure.

Drain the water from the system where appropriate — especially if the property may remain unheated and there is a risk of frost (relevant for a winter absence).

Check the plumbing before you leave — for any dripping joints or seepage already present. Leaving with a known minor problem is a bad idea.

Don’t forget the traps. In an empty apartment the water in the traps dries out, and a sewage smell appears. It is not a failure, but the apartment will greet your return with an unpleasant “aroma”.

What to prepare: heating and electrics

Heating in winter — do not switch it off completely. If your absence falls in the cold season, leave the heating on a frost-protection setting (around 12–14 °C). This protects both the pipes and against damp. Heating switched fully off in winter is a risk.

Heating in summer — can be turned off, but check that the system is correctly shut down.

Electrics. Unplug any appliances you don’t need. The fridge — either leave it running, or defrost it, wash it and leave it open (a closed empty fridge will “bloom” over three months). Check the consumer unit.

Household appliances. The washing machine and dishwasher — shut off the water to them.

What to prepare: a house with land

If you have a house, there are outdoor tasks to add:

• The garden will not survive three months with no care. You need to either arrange regular garden care or accept that the plot will grow over.
• Outdoor taps and watering systems — shut them off, and for a winter departure drain them of water.
• Gutters and downpipes — clear them, so rain and leaves don’t cause problems.
• Put away anything that could be damaged or blown around — garden furniture, lightweight items.

Who to leave keys with, and why

This is the central question of preparation. Over three months a situation will almost certainly arise where someone needs to get into the apartment: to check it after a storm, to respond to a neighbour’s alert, to let in a service, to deal with an emergency.

So someone in Slovenia must have your key and be able to act. The options:

• A neighbour or relative — works if the person is reliable, available, and understands what to do. But over three months the neighbour may go away themselves, and they may not have the competence to “shut off the water and call a tradesman”.
• A specialised key-holding service — Key Holding is exactly for this: the key is in a safe place, and there is someone to respond.

The main thing is to settle this before you leave, not to think of it the moment the neighbours are already calling.

What should happen while you’re away

Switching the property into a safe mode is half the job. The other half is for someone to at least see it periodically over the three months.

The minimum is a check every 2–3 weeks: someone goes in, inspects, ventilates, collects the post, looks over whether everything is in order, and reports to you. This catches a problem early and removes the “empty-house effect” (piled-up post, signs of abandonment).

If the property is under Property Care, this happens by itself: regular visits, photo reports, a response to problems. If there is no Property Care, it needs to be agreed with whoever holds the keys.

Post. Arrange collection or forwarding — an overflowing letterbox is visible from the street.

Create the appearance of life. Timers on the lights, asking a neighbour to put out your bin from time to time — simple measures against thieves.

Coming back

Plan the return too. It is good if someone prepares the apartment a day or two before your arrival: checks that everything works, switches on the heating, ventilates, and if needed carries out a cleaning. Then you come back not to a musty cold apartment but to a ready home. That is Arrival & Departure — done as a one-off visit or as part of Property Care.

How DomCare helps

DomCare covers both layers of preparing for a long absence. Arrival & Departure — to properly close down a home before departure (cleaning, engineering systems, seasonal measures) and start it up again for your return. Key Holding — to sort out access. Property Care — regular visits while you are away. For a house — garden care, so the plot does not grow over. We work in Ljubljana, on the coast, in the Bled and Bohinj region, and in the Kranj region.

The easiest way to discuss it: message us through the form or on WhatsApp.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need to shut off the water if I’m away for 3 months? Yes, definitely. A closed main valve makes a leak in an empty apartment physically impossible — it is the single most important preparation measure.

Can I switch the heating off completely while I’m away? In summer — yes, if the system is correctly shut down. In winter — no: leave a frost-protection setting at around 12–14 °C, otherwise you risk frozen pipes and damp.

Who is best to leave keys with for a long absence? Someone who is reliable, available for all three months, and able to act when a problem arises. If there is no such person, a specialised key-holding service solves this.

Is it enough to just lock the apartment and leave? For a week — yes. For three months — no: over that span any hidden problem has time to surface, and the damage from an unnoticed failure grows to its maximum.

What do I do with the garden if I’m away for a season? A garden will grow over in three months. You need to either arrange regular care for the time you are away, or be prepared to bring a neglected plot back into order on your return.

A three-month departure is not “locked up and forgot”. It is switching the property into a safe mode (water, heating, electrics, garden) plus a settled question: who has access and who will keep an eye on it. Do this before you leave — and you will come back to a home that has quietly waited for you.

Going away for a long time and want to prepare the property properly — message us.

Sources and further reading

• Preparing a Home for Winter in Slovenia — if the departure falls in the cold season
• DomCare — Property Care — regular visits in your absence
• DomCare — Key Holding — access to the property
• DomCare — About Us — our experience preparing properties for owner absences