Preparing for Rainy Season Below you’ll find some of the fastest, easiest ways you can get your property ready for the storm season. Some of these fixes are DIY projects while others may require professional assistance. Rest assured that Paul Davis Restoration of Broward is here to help give your home a springtime makeover in preparation for the boisterous weather ahead.

Things That Go Boom in the Night

With thunderstorms, it’s not really the thunder that gets you—it’s the rain. The South often suffers through copious downpours in the spring. Warm, moisture-laden air travels over most of the country at this time of year, bringing much needed water to freshly sprouting vegetation. You’ll enjoy those May flowers. In the meantime, you may not enjoy the flooding and mold problems that happen when rain is too much of a good thing.

What to Do:

·         Clean out your gutters and check them for leaks. Don’t forget to check the downspouts for hidden clogs. Use a garden hose sprayer and a plumber’s snake to unblock downspouts if necessary.

·         Consider grading your lawn and installing French drains to direct water away from your foundation and prevent water from pooling in your yard.

With Hailstones Like These, Who Needs Golf Balls?

Hailstorms in Broward are not common.  However, it does occur from time to time and is often accompanied by lightning and high winds. It’s like Nature is pitching a fit—when it all starts hitting the roof it’s not a pretty sight.

What to Do:

·         Close your blinds, shades or curtains. Fasten these window coverings to the windowsill or wall with tape or tacks so if hail does break a window, the glass won’t be blown throughout the room.

·         Stock up on some plywood so you can immediately patch up damaged windows and prevent rain from getting inside your house.

·         Use thick blankets to protect vehicles and other property that can’t be put under a carport or in the garage. This may reduce paint damage and minor dents.

·         If the hail is severe and large, call a roofing restoration specialist while you wait it out. Make the call early to be one of the first clients on the list for damage assessment and repairs after the storm.

What you can do protect your home prior to high wind conditions

Some of the same methods that helps limit damage from hurricanes can also be used for protection against straight-line winds. Straight-line winds are common throughout the southern regions of the U.S. as the weather warms up. Knowing that you’ve done what you can to keep your house from being exposed can help you ride out these wind disasters with piece of mind.

What to Do:

·         Consider protecting your home with roof tie-down clips. These clips anchor the roof deck to the frame of your house to make the whole structure stronger. Unlike many other roof upgrades, they don’t require extensive retrofitting.

·         Install storm shutters and wind resistant doors. These can be helpful in protecting against wind, keeping out water and preventing damage from tornadoes that are accompanied by hail.  A more expensive option is to install impact windows.  Impact windows not only protect in the event of a storm, they deter burglars and dramatically improve soundproofing.

·         Add a vertical bracing system to your garage door. This type of system takes only a few minutes to put in place (after initial installation) so you can prep your garage at a moment’s notice.  If you replace an old garage door with a new one, bracing will not be necessary.  New doors are MUCH stronger than doors made prior to Hurricane
Andrew.

·         Prune trees so that the branches are a safe distance away from the roof or other structures around the house. Branches scraping across the roof can do a lot of damage to roof tiles/shingles, windows, and flashing. It is also very noisy and stressful during a storm.  Broken limbs falling on your roof can cause an instant leak.  Trees with a large uncut canopy also have a much greater tendency to snap in half or completely fall over, roots and all.

·         If a piece of yard furniture is light enough for you to lift it, high winds can probably pick it up too. Store loose furniture, toys, decorations, lawn equipment, and other items in a garage or shed. Offer to help neighbors move their lawn furniture too since windstorms don’t respect property lines!  If you can lift it, bring it inside.

Paul Davis Restoration Broward is headquartered in Fort Lauderdale and serves all of Broward and portions of North Miami.