With NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) predicting another above-normal hurricane season for the Atlantic, it’s a good time to review how to best prepare your home for a hurricane or major storm.
This year, NOAA is predicting 14-21 named storms, 6-10 hurricanes and 3-6 major hurricanes. So far, this hurricane season has been relatively calm, but most Atlantic hurricanes do come in the latter portion of the season so take advantage of the calm and prepare your home today!
Here are some tips to ensure your home is in the best possible condition to withstand a hurricane
- Install storm shutters: Windows and glass doors are the areas of your home most susceptible to storm damage, so install storm shutters to protect them from flying debris that could shatter the glass and let in copious amounts of rain. Alternatively, you can measure and cut pieces of wood to your windows and doors specifications so that you have ready to install wood covers whenever a hurricane warning is issued.
- Perform maintenance on your trees and shrubs: Check your trees thoroughly for rot and cut any branches that look damaged or extend over your home. Hiring a professional tree service to perform an inspection of your property is a good way to ensure that you’re not paying a lot more after a tree has fallen on your property. Also, directly after a storm, tree services will be in high demand and the wait time for them to get to your property might be days, that’s a long time to wait with a tree in your living room!
- Ensure your garage doors are wind and impact resistant: One of the biggest dangers to the structure of your house is sustained wind entering your home through a large opening. To prevent this, ensure that your garage door is up to the task and consider replacing or reinforcing the door if it isn’t.
- Check if your home is in a flood zone: Even with a well-prepared home, flooding can cause thousands of dollars in damage. If you are in a high-risk flood zone invest in flood insurance before the hurricane comes and make sure that you have access to sandbags to help reduce the amount of water damage.
- Create a plan for your outdoor furniture and decorations: Make sure that you have space available to store outdoor furniture indoors. Patio furniture can become dangerous debris once winds pick up.
Preparation is the key to hurricane readiness, so performing routine maintenance before there is a problem will get you the most bang for your buck when it comes to your home. There is no full-proof way to protect your home from a hurricane, but with these tips the damage can be minimized and limited to the exterior of your home.
