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Five to nine hurricanes, with as many as four “major”Ones with sustained winds of more than 111 mph are what the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has just predicted for this storm season. This is what they are calling for. “active”Six months, or so, from the beginning of November.
While no one is predicting another season of the devastating triple whammy last year – yes, Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Maria – just ask anyone who still has to deal with the destruction of their home after one of those storms.
“It only takes one storm to devastate a community,”Daniel Kaniewski is Acting FEMA Administrator.
For the best advice about preparing for the next storm (which is inevitable), read on.
* Check your insurance. For many of the most affected last year, it was finding out that they had to pay some or all of their rebuilding expenses themselves. There were many reasons, from a lack of flood insurance (only federally backed mortgage holders who live in high-risk areas are allowed to purchase it) to an increase in labor and material costs.
“Hurricane Harvey (in Texas) showed that flooding can also damage properties outside the highest-risk zones,”According to The Wall Street Journal, the Wall Street Journal quoted a former New York commissioner of insurance as saying: “even financially literate people”You don’t realize that floods are not covered by the standard homeowners insurance.
* Clean your gutters. Angie’s List warns that even in perfect weather you can still have a problem. “nightmare”If your roof is clogged up with leaves, sticks, and other debris, it can cause a roof leak. If you consider the possibility of flooding from a hurricane, the very component of your roofing system that regulates the flow and protects your roof, walls, foundation and landscape can become useless.
“If you let gutter cleaning go by the wayside, it could cost you hundreds of thousands of dollars,”Warning!
* Make sure your roof is in good condition. The Insurance Institute for Business and Home Safety built a test room where experts could simulate the effects on full-scale, one- and two-story homes of hurricanes and other natural catastrophes. Julie Rochman, the CEO of the Insurance Institute for Business and Home Safety, shared her story. CBSNews.com“s “MoneyWatch”That “it all starts with the roof,”Attention is required.
“The roof,”She stated, “is the largest potential opening on the house, and wind and water can do terrible things if they get through (it).”
Now is the right time to have a professional roofer inspect your roof for signs of wear and tear, such as missing or broken shingles, cracked fiberglass mat, loosening of the self seal strip, and other indications of damage. These signs can be difficult to identify, especially if they are caused by hail damage. If you do decide to have your roof replaced, “Consider shingles that have passed the UL2218, Class 4 impact test,”Jason Joplin is the program manager at CARE (the GAF Center for the Advancement of Roofing Excellence).
Joplin particularly likes the Timberline ArmorShield IIGAF offers a line of shingles (line of shingles)gaf.comNorth America’s largest roofing manufacturer ( They look great and are made from SBS modified asphalt. He described them as “a beautiful product.” “a rubber-like material for enhanced flexibility and durability during extreme weather conditions.”
A bonus: Shingles like these may help you get significant discounts on homeowner’s insurance, depending on where you live.
* Trim weak tree branches. We need to add that many people have died because of branches and trees falling into their homes.
