Five Ways you can Prevent Storm Damage to your Home

10/1/2021 (Permalink)

Hope you prepared, buster. If not, have a Red Bull and hop to it!

Storms are an ever-present part of life, and our species has been waging a war against the winds for as long as we have been on this planet, but you don’t have to be completely helpless against storm damage.

Check out these five tips to prevent storm damage to your home:

1. Shingles: Periodically check and verify your roof’s shingles are in good working order.

Shingles that are damaged run a higher risk of being ripped off the roof during storm, leaving your roof vulnerable to even more wind damage. Those shingles are there for a reason! Either DIY a replacement or contact a professional to do it for you.

2. Siding: It’s the same story with your siding. You may think a small-ish gap in your siding is nothing more than a moderate eye-sore, but it can actually be a danger to the structural integrity of your home! Without siding protecting the walls, wind is more able to blow in and do serious damage to the house instead of being redirected safely by your siding. Depending on where it is on your house, you might be able to DIY it, but if it’s >20 ft in the air, you might want to contact a professional!
3. Fenceposts: If you have a fence, you should do a quick run-thru of each post, verifying it is indeed sturdily inserted into the ground by giving it a solid shake. This may seem unnecessary, but if a decent-sized gale blows through your neighborhood, flying fenceposts aren’t out of the question! This is an easy task to knock out yourself in twenty minutes or so.
4. Tree branches: If you have any mature trees in your yard or nearby, pop on over to them and look for any branches that seem weak or older, and trim them off to nip that problem in the bud (literally!) You don’t want branches turning into projectiles and destroying your windows or roof. If your neighbor has a tree that needs trimming, pester him to do so before the storm comes. Neighbors love being told to trim their trees by other neighbors!
5. Yard Projectiles: If you have children, you likely have some toys scattered about the yard or hidden in the grass for later play. If you don’t have children, you likely have a fire pit and some lawn furniture for your own leisure time. You might even have both! Regardless, wind can toss around anything that isn’t bolted to the ground, so either pull what you can inside, or tie it to something that’s not going anywhere, like a tree or a shed or whatever you can find.

We can’t ever ensure we will never be the victim of storm damage, but we can take easy steps to lower our chances. Good luck, and if worst comes to worst, call SERVPRO of Kernersville at (336) 748-0250 and we can help you clean up the damage.