8 Tips to Keep Your Home Safe During a Storm

When a storm is in the forecast, keeping your home and your family safe is foremost in every homeowner's mind. To ensure that everyone stays safe when the storm hits, there are a few things that need to be done to prepare. You also need to do a few things while the storm is happening to keep everyone safe.

To ensure that no harm comes to you and your family, and to keep damage to your home at a minimum, here are 8 things you should do:

• Always have a storm kit ready – Storm kits, or emergency kits, are a must for every home. You should have one kit for each member of the family, and these should contain food and water for 3 days, first-aid supplies, clothing, blankets, copies of important documents, and a flashlight.
• Have a contingency and evacuation plan ready – Even the storm seems likely to bypass your area, things can change very quickly. Always be prepared for when there is a need to evacuate to safety.
• Cover windows and doors for safety – Wind and rain can cause a lot of damage to a home if preparations are not made ahead of time. To prevent window panes from breaking and keep doors from suffering damage, it is a good idea to cover these with shutters or plywood.
• Check gutters ahead of time – Checking your gutters before the storm can prevent clogged gutters and the water damage they can cause. Remove debris to ensure that these are in good shape before the storm hits.
• Trim branches and limbs from trees – If you have large trees in your yard, trimming them before the storm helps reduce any damage that your home may suffer from flying tree debris.
• Ensure all drains are clear of clogs – Sewer drains, landscaping drains, and other drainage systems at your home should be cleared of debris in order to handle any runoff that comes from your home and its surroundings.
• Bring in or tie down outdoor items – Secure your lawn furniture and other outdoor items that might become projectiles in strong winds. If you can bring these into your home, do so.
• Have a sump pump installed in your basement – You can never tell when flooding can and will occur. Having a sump pump that will remove water from your basement automatically can be a huge asset. Aside from keeping your home from flooding and water damage, it also helps protect the structural integrity of your foundation and your basement walls.

These are just a few of the things you should do when a storm is looming. Keeping you, your family, and your home safe requires just a bit of preparation to ensure that nothing bad happens when the storm hits. When the storm has passed and after surveying your property, you notice some damage that needs to be addressed, you need to contact a restoration specialist for help.

When you need storm restoration help in Cleveland County and its surrounding areas, the company to contact is American Restoration Disaster Specialists. We are a restoration company that has been serving this part of the country for more than 4 decades. We specialize in water damage restoration, fire damage restoration, and even environmental damage restoration needs.

To get the help you need after the storm, contact us at (704) 482-7586 and we will gladly help you get things back to the way it was before the storm hit.