Storm Prep Checklist & Water Damage

4 min read

Louisiana is no stranger to extreme weather. The state experiences an average of 60 days of thunderstorms every year, higher than all other states except Florida. Strong storms and hurricanes have also hit the state in the past years, leaving different degrees of water damage to both residential and commercial properties in affected areas.

With the hurricane season already well underway, the chances of heavy rains and even flooding happening rise again. While you can always enlist professional water restoration in East Baton Rouge after a strong storm, it’s still best to avoid extensive damage by fortifying your property as early as now.

Homeowners and business owners in the area need to take preventative measures because of its coastal location and abundance of tropical cyclones. With that said, the situation isn’t entirely helpless. Adequately preparing for a potential storm or flood damage can help you prevent significant losses.

Below, we delve into some practical ways you can start safeguarding your home or business today.

How To Keep Water Out of Your Property

The most straightforward way to prevent water damage before a storm is to find ways to keep water from entering your property. To do this, you’ll have to look at the following vulnerable areas in your home or workplace:

Roof and Gutters

As the highest part of your building, your roof takes the heaviest blows during a storm or hurricane. This is why it’s crucial that you keep it strong and free from leaks. Otherwise, it can give in to gales and eventually allow water to enter and wreak havoc on your property’s interior.

Regular inspection is one way to secure your roof from water damage. Removing dead leaves and other debris from your gutters also helps in letting water flow from the roof, down the rainspouts, and away from your property as freely as possible.

Windows

Wherever they are in your home or workplace, glass windows can be vulnerable to debris carried by strong winds. But while broken glass is a significant cause for concern, natural elements entering your property through the opening is the main issue to consider.

Properly sealing and caulking windows are effective ways to storm-proof them and keep wind and rain out. Installing impact-resistant storm shutters over larger windows can also help protect the glass surfaces from shattering in the middle of a storm.

Lastly, replacing your old windows goes a long way in storm-proofing your property. Newer windows usually come with a better seal for better energy efficiency, but the feature also helps prevent natural elements from entering your building.

Garage Doors

Since most residential garage doors are lightweight, they can be highly vulnerable to heavy winds. When compromised, they can expose not only your vehicles but also parts of your property to the raging storm outside.

Installing horizontal bracing on each panel can reinforce your garage doors and keep them from being pulled from their tracks. Using hinges heavier than the standard ones for new doors is another way to secure them from destructive winds.

Other Tips To Reduce Water Damage to Your Property

Besides inspecting these vulnerable areas of your home or commercial facility, here are some more useful tips you can follow to survive a storm with the least amount of water damage possible.

• Dry floodproof your property by using concrete to make its foundation watertight. An alternative is to wet floodproof the place by installing sump pumps. These ensure water flows through your home instead of pooling inside or around it.
• Examine and trim the trees in your yard to prevent the chances of heavy winds snapping and carrying large tree branches in the air.
• Seal all spots where pipes, cables, or vents go through walls. The areas you’ll want to look at are your furnace and hot water vents, kitchen vents, and exterior light fixtures.

To complete your preparations, ensure you have a reliable restoration company to call when the worst-case scenario happens. While nobody wants to end up with a home that’s wrecked or submerged in water, being able to seek professional help in the most critical situations can help you get back up from any disaster.

If you’ve got water in your home and all over your possessions, don’t hesitate to call Restoration 1 for water restoration in East Baton Rouge. Day or night, we’ll be there to help you restore your home or get your business back up and running as soon as possible.