Things to Do to Prepare Your House for a Hurricane
Hurricanes can cause very dangerous conditions including strong winds, heavy rainfall, tornadoes, floods and more. They can cause serious amounts of damage to your home. Therefore, it’s important to make sure you are prepared ahead of time for when a hurricane comes instead of waiting until the last minute to get everything you need. Here are some things you can do to prepare your house for a hurricane.
Stock Up On Supplies
In order to be ready for a hurricane, it is important to have lots of supplies stocked up and ready for if you need them. In your storage you should include at least a three day supply of water, plenty of nonperishable foods such as canned goods and any medicines you or your family might need. It’s also good to have flashlights, batteries and a fire extinguisher. It’s also smart to have any important documents like personal identification, passports or medical documents stored safely.
Be Ready for Long Term Power Outages
A hurricane lesson plan includes how hurricanes form and what kind of weather conditions make them worse. When the conditions are extremely severe, it’s possible that you could lose power for days. Therefore, you have to be ready for long term power outages. One way you can be ready for this is by purchasing a generator that can power your AC, heat and refrigerator if need be.
Prepare Your Yard
Hurricane force winds can cause a lot of damage in your yard and will cause any loose debris to fly around and be a huge hazard. Before a hurricane, trim your trees so that branches don’t damage your roof. Also, if you have trees in your yard consider which way they are leaning and if they are likely to fall in a storm. Clean out your gutters and drains so that water can flow through and away from your home. Clear away or secure anything you have sitting in your yard including patio furniture, decorations, grills, plants and trashcans. In hurricane conditions, the wind can pick these items up, making them a dangerous hazard. You should also cover your air conditioning unit so that any flying debris doesn’t damage it.
Check Your Home for Leaks and Secure Windows and Doors
Check your home for any leaks, including at any doors, windows or places in the walls where cables or pipes are and seal these areas. If you can, install hurricane windows. If not, get window shutters so that if a window breaks the glass doesn’t fly through your house. You can use plywood to protect your windows too. At the very least, tape them up because it’s better than nothing. Also, get garage door braces and roof clips so that your roof or garage door doesn’t fly away. Also check for any cracks in the foundation that could allow for flooding and patch them up.
Check On Your Sump Pump
Your sump pump is important because it keeps your basement from flooding. Before a hurricane, check on it to make sure it’s working. Make sure there is no debris around it so that it doesn’t get clogged or damaged. Also, look into having a backup battery system so that if the power goes out your sump pump continues to work.
Install Surge Protection
During a hurricane, power surges can happen that can damage your electronics and your appliances. Therefore, you should install a surge protector and use power strips that have surge protectors. This can help protect your heating and air conditioning systems, refrigerator, washing machine, water heater and any other appliances and electronics. Even with the surge protection, make sure to unplug electronics before a storm to avoid damage.
Review Your Insurance Policy
Before a hurricane you should also review your insurance policy. Make sure your valuable items are covered, that you have flood insurance and that your policy will cover the cost of rebuilding if your home is damaged in a hurricane.
Don’t wait until the last minute and end up not being prepared for a hurricane. Before the hurricane comes, do these things to make sure you and your house are prepared.
