Preparation for Water Damage During a Hurricane

How to Prepare Your Home against Water Damage during a Hurricane

The only thing worse than a natural disaster is when you are not prepared for the worst. After gathering your personal emergency kit, you should also protect your home. Before a hurricane hits your town, you can apply several safety measures to limit the damage to your property. We will discuss how to prepare your home against water damage before, during, and after a hurricane.

Prepare Your Home against Water Damage before a Hurricane

The best time to protect your home is before any disaster occurs. You should safeguard any potential entry points of water. You must be certain that your door and your windows can be sealed completely to ensure that no water can go through it. In addition to this, the windows must be resistant to shattering since the heavy winds can end up breaking your windows. You can also choose to get a window shutter or a window board for reinforcement so that you are able to protect your home better. Another potential entry point for water is through the roof, which means that you should check if there are any holes on your roof.

Moreover, you must also ensure that all necessary repairs are done, especially when it comes to plumbing and water leakage. You should also clean the gutter and ensure that the drainage is working well. There should also be no faulty electrical wirings on your home since this will be unsafe for the residents.

You can also add plants and trees to your garden to ensure that they can seep the water to ensure minimal damage to your property. It is also beneficial to remove the debris around your yard to prevent the danger caused by the flight of these items due to the strong winds. You should also check for huge branches that can easily fall off as they can be harmful when the wind blows heavily.

Before any natural disasters will occur, you must also have an evacuation plan that you have tested for its efficiency. You should also watch the local news and check the weather reports to be aware of the current weather conditions. When the local news has alerted for an imminent hurricane, you must head to the nearest supermarket to ensure that your pantry is filled with basic necessities like food, water, and toiletries. You must do this as quickly as possible since the shopping aisle can be cleared as soon as word gets out.

In addition to this, you must also review your insurance policy because this will serve as your financial protection against the financial damages that your property will incur. To ensure that you can apply for an insurance claim swiftly, you must protect all the necessary documents in a waterproof storage. You should also do it to your other critical documents like your medical, legal, and financial documents.

Prepare Your Home against Water Damage during a Hurricane

a.       Disconnect Electricity at the Breaker Panel

The rise of modern technology has made us hugely dependent on electricity. However, when you are in the middle of a hurricane, it will be unsafe to charge your gadgets. This is why you must be equipped with a battery-operated radio and you must ensure that your gadgets are fully charged. It is also important to disconnect electricity since there could be faulty wires around your property that can cause an electrical shock when it comes in contact with water.

b.      Protect Potential Water Entry Points

Before the landfall of a hurricane, you must begin locking your home tightly. You must close the doors that lead to your home. In addition to this, you must also check your garage door. Moreover, your windows must also be tightly shut to keep the rain from penetrating the inside of your home. You can use a window board to reinforce the safety of your windows. Another entry point that some people forget about is the ventilation system. This is another entry point that should be shut tightly in the event of a hurricane.

c.       Move Belongings to Higher Ground

In order to minimize water damage, you must move the items on the floor to a higher ground. You should move the items from your basement or ground floor to an upper floor. In addition to this, you must move your appliances to a concrete block so that it would not be affected by water damage. It is harder to save your appliance if they have been soaked in water. In addition this, it can also cause potential danger if the electrical plugs are drenched in water.
You should also secure your consumables such as food and toiletries against flood water. This is because they will be unsafe to use once they have soaked in flood water. When the hurricane is devastating, you should protect your stocks at all cost since you do not have the luxury of online grocery shopping during this time. Moreover, the local grocery may already be filled with a long queue of people and they may have already run out of the supplies that you need.

d.      Protect your Outdoors

Before the rain drops heavily, you must clear your drainage system immediately to prevent flooding. You should check your gutter since they can get clogged up if they are filled with debris. In addition to this, you can also move your outdoor furniture inside your home to keep them safe. Smaller items like a trash can and potted plants can be blown away by heavy winds since they are lighter in weight. This will also prevent water damage on your outdoor furniture since they would not be directly exposed to rain.

Prepare Your Home against Water Damage after a Hurricane

Once you are certain that the hurricane is outside your territory’s area of responsibility, it is time to check your property for the severity of the damage caused by the hurricane. You must check the outdoors, as well as every nook and cranny of your home for potential water damage. However, you should prevent walking or driving through flood water since the danger of the hurricane is still looming. In addition to this, the flood water will also contain bacteria that can be harmful to one’s health and wellness.

As a safety measure, you should check for fallen power lines and avoid them.  If there is large debris, you must not attempt to remove them on your own since you can slip easily. You should also use proper tools and clothing to prevent any accidents. When you are outdoors, you must also be wary of any tall items that are flimsy like trees and poles.

You must also try to remove as much flooding as possible by mopping the area. You can also blot the wet areas, but you should not use a paper with writing on them since the ink can transfer to the floor. Additionally, you can begin drying out your belongings under the sun. It is preferable that you air dry your items to ensure that no molds will grow on them. Moreover, it is ideal if you prevent using appliances when they are standing on wet surfaces.

If someone with a respiratory issue is living with you, it is best to keep them away from the building as it can damage their health greatly. You must prevent handling items that have been contaminated by sewage unless you are wearing protective clothing. You should also prevent drinking tap water since they are unsafe to consume during this time. In addition to this, you must not consume any food that has been exposed to flood water even if they are canned goods.

When your property has been flooded, it is extremely traumatizing. However, you still need to deal with the effects brought by severe water infiltration due to a hurricane. After a flood, you will be faced with mold growth and it can pose a serious danger to property and health. If you are certain that there is water damage on your property, you must not clear the damage on your own, especially if the water damage is immense. You must leave it in the capable hands of professionals who are trained in water damage remediation. Moreover, you must make the call immediately to prevent the growth of mold, mildew, and bacteria on your home. You should not attempt to handle the issue on your own, but you must face the problem with the help of a professional.

At Water Damage Miami, we offer the best water damage service in Miami to provide you with complete peace of mind to ensure that you can get back to your normal life as quickly as possible. We know the potential repercussion of incorrect and delayed treatment of water damage, which is why our water damage service is done in an accurate and timely manner. We employ a team of highly trained water restoration specialists and we only use the best and latest equipment as a solution to water damages.