How to protect your home and family during a storm.

2/10/2020 (Permalink)

Year-to-year, the severity and frequency of bad weather is anyone’s guess. But, inevitably, a lot of homeowners end up dealing with property damage as a result of storms. Some things you can do to keep your home and family safe from these storms are...

1. REPLACE MISSING OR DAMAGED SHINGLES

If a shingle is damaged, it’s more likely to break free. If it’s missing, well then you’ve got a gap for wind to get under and do even more damage.

Note that when you’re installing or replacing shingles, they must be nailed properly — NOT above the nail line.

2. REPAIR LOOSE SIDING

The same rules as roofing apply to siding: it’s important to ensure your siding isn’t damaged.

3. KEEP YOUR GUTTERS CLEAR

Make sure your gutters are free-flowing and your downspouts flow away from your foundation.

Water damage or flooding is one of the quickest ways to devalue your home. So ensuring your gutters are clear is the first line of defense in helping water to flow away from your home. Which leads to another important preventative measure …

4. ENSURE WATER CAN FLOW AWAY FROM YOUR HOME

The grade of your lot should keep water flowing away from your home and into a ditch, drain, or some other proper retention area.

5. KEEP YOUR SUMP PUMP IN WORKING ORDER

Before Spring rains start up, we suggest checking whether your sump pump is in working order. If you want to feel extra-secure, having a backup sump pump is a sure-fire way to prevent basement flooding.

6. ENSURE PROPER SEALING OF DOORS AND WINDOWS

Wind only needs a small opening to get underneath something like a shingle or siding and rip it off. And in the event of tornadic winds, a small opening in your windows or doors could enlarge (read: break) and allow enough wind inside to compromise your home’s roof.

7. CHECK FOR LOOSE FENCE POSTS

Wind will surprise you. Anything that’s not nailed down is a liability, and that includes fence posts, which are often forgotten or ignored in homeowner’s storm-prep.

Checking your fence’s footing is as easy as giving each post a strong shake to check for loose ones.

8. REGULARLY TRIM YOUR TREES

Problem tree limbs can damage your home, a vehicle, or even your neighbor’s property. Regularly trimming the trees on your property is an excellent way to protect your roof and windows.

9. WALK AROUND YOUR PROPERTY

A lot of people don’t have the time or skills to check and/or repair everything on their property before storm season kicks up. But, if you know a storm is coming, there are some very basic steps you can take to minimize its impact.

10. KEEP A GENERATOR ON HAND

A bad storm could potentially knock out power to your home for a couple of hours — or days. Having a generator on standby could go a long way towards ensuring you don’t lose your food, or the livability of your home until power is restored.