Preparing Your Home for Winter Storms in Ohio

10/2/2018 (Permalink)

Here at SERVPRO of Huron & East Seneca Counties, we advise area homeowners to prepare homes and property for the coming winter storm season. Extreme weather can lead to power outages and disruption of communications, while damaging personal and business property and belongings. People even lose their lives in winter weather. Auto accidents on icy or snowbound roads and fires from improper heating methods are some of the main ways these tragedies can happen, while flooding and large snow accumulations can cause travel to become extremely dangerous and even deadly. It’s important to be prepared for many different serious situations to occur during winter here in Ohio.

Here are some essential safety tips you can observe to get ready for the coming winter season:

• Trim bushes and trees. Remove dead trees and tall bushes and all broken branches from around your home. These can cause injury and damage the roof of your house if they fall during extreme weather involving wind, ice, or heavy snow accumulation.
• Clear clogged rain gutters. When snow melts, it needs to be able to flow down your rain gutters and away from your roofing. If there is dirt and debris left in your gutters from last spring, the water will pool and begin to back up, possibly damaging even interior wall spaces in your home, and this can even lead to mold growth, causing a need for mold removal on top of the storm damage. A rain gutter that is full of dirt can become heavy and can pull away from the building, creating another set of issues.
• Check chimney and heating equipment. Have your chimney inspected and cleaned after winter and again before it comes around again, to prevent chimney fires. Your HVAC system also needs to be inspected, and all ducts clear and ready for use. Change out all your filters in the system, as well. If any space heaters are to be used, make sure they are in great shape and that everyone in the house knows the proper way to use them and when. They should never be left on if there is no one in the room.

The team at SERVPRO of Huron and East Seneca Counties cares about your safety and the safety of your loved ones and your property, and we operate in the greater Tiffin and Sandusky areas, including Fremont, Willard, and many more cities in the area! We are experts in water damage restoration, as well as fire damage cleanup and restoration. You can call us any time at (419) 443 1790.