Preparing Your Home to Avoid Storm Damage Storm damage to a home can be devastating, if the home owners do not prepare properly for the storm. There are many different ways that a home can be damaged when it is inside of a storm and it is important that the home owners are prepared for the storms that may occur. Depending on the area in which you live, there are probably different types of storms that you will want to be ready for. If you know that you live in an area that is prone to hail storms, it is important that your home is prepared for the hailstorm to prevent major damage.
Steps in Preparing Your Home First, you will want to know how you can identify that a hail storm is approaching. When a hail storm is approaching there will be tell-tale signs of the hail storm and if you own a home you will want to be able to recognize the signs of the hail storm. A hail storm often comes alongside a strong thunderstorm. The hail is produced in the storm and some of the storms will include dark clouds, strong wind, thunder, lightning and even heavy rainfall. When you can recognize a hail storm, you will ensure that your home and your family members are going to be safe. Recognizing a hailstorm may give you enough time to get indoors and protect yourself and your house from any damage that could have occurred. Second, sometimes damage is done to a home during a hail storm simply because the trees in the yard are not trimmed. Although this may sound ridiculous, hail will add a lot of weight to trees and if they are not trimmed the branches may fall onto your house and cause a lot of damage. When a branch falls on to your home it may break windows, ruin the roof, tear down walls or even ruin your yard. Trimming your trees on a consistent basis can help you minimize the damage that you incur throughout the duration of a hail storm. Third, as you are working on protecting your home from a hail storm you will want to try to channel the energy from the wind, to the roof of your home, down your walls and then to the ground. This way, the energy of the storm will dissipate into the ground. Making sure that your roof is up to the challenge can be difficult. The sheathing on your roof should be in great condition to ensure that the shingles on your roof are not flying off into the neighbors’ yards when the wind starts to blow throughout your yard.
Contacting a Contractor Talk with your contractor about the sheathing material that is going to protect your roof from the wind. Although it can be expensive to go through and fix the sheathing throughout your roof you will want to compare it to the cost of repairing the damage to the roof after a big storm. Sheathing and trimming your trees will help you prepare for storm damage. Do not postpone your storm preparation any longer.