Winter storms aren't a joke; plan accordingly to keep your family safe
Preparing for a winter storm protects your home from power failures, burst pipes, and communication loss by completing essential tasks before severe weather arrives.
You need weatherproofing steps like insulating exposed pipes near exterior walls, covering outdoor faucets, and sealing windows with fresh caulk to prevent freezing damage.
Your winter storm preparedness includes gathering non-perishable food, warm clothes, blankets, medication, and alternative power sources to keep your family safe during extended outages.
Hiring a local natural gas plumbing professional provides reliable support for insulating vulnerable pipes and preventing burst pipe emergencies that cause extensive water damage.
Winter storms cause more than snow accumulation. They can lead to power failures, burst pipes, and even loss of communication services. Knowing how to prepare for a winter storm is crucial to staying safe and comfortable in the aftermath. Many of these steps for how to winterize your home can be done long before winter weather hits, ensuring you're prepared as early as possible.
Walk around your house before winter hits and take notice of any trees with large, overhanging limbs that could snap and damage your house in a winter storm. Strong winds or heavy snow could put pressure on the limbs, causing them to fall on your house. They could break off and damage your roof and windows or clog your gutters if left untouched. Also, look for anything near your house that could get carried in the wind and cause damage to your home. Put these items away for the winter.
Your roof may have leaks without you knowing it. Before winter hits, do a quick roof inspection from the ground or hire a professional roof inspector. Don't climb on your roof unless you're a professional.
If you do inspect the roof yourself, walk around your home's perimeter and look for loose, missing, or damaged shingles, which signal roof damage. Also, look for damaged or missing flashing and water spots inside your home on the ceiling or in the attic, as these indicate roof leaks.
If you notice any of these signs, call a professional for roof repair before winter hits to prevent serious water damage from occurring during a bad winter storm.
Before the weather turns cold, remove all hoses from outdoor spigots and drain any remaining water from the hose. Store the hose somewhere safe and turn off the outside water from the control valve.
After turning the water off, turn the spigot on and let any remaining water drain from it. Once emptied, install a faucet cover, which can be purchased from your local hardware store, to keep the faucet from freezing during a winter storm.
Winter storms come in fast, and temperatures can drop drastically, putting vulnerable pipes inside your home at risk of freezing and rupturing. Burst pipes can lead to extensive water damage and mold growth throughout the house.
To prevent such a disaster, consider insulating exposed pipes with foam sleeves from your local hardware store or even old rags and duct tape. The key is to keep the pipes warm so the water doesn't freeze inside them, causing a rupture. Do this to all pipes near an exterior wall or below ground in your home.
The American Red Cross also recommends that you open kitchen and bathroom cabinets to let warm air make its way around the plumbing and let cold water drip slowly from the pipes to prevent freezing. If you miss a pipe and it bursts, call a plumber near you immediately to fix the problem and minimize water damage.
There's a strong chance you could lose power during a serious winter storm, which means you'd have no heat. Plan an alternate way to heat your home that doesn't require electricity.
If you have a fireplace, ensure you have plenty of firewood on hand. If not, consider a generator to use as a backup power source until the electricity is restored
Windows and doors that aren’t properly sealed can cause drafts inside the home, making the house feel colder than necessary. Fortunately, adding new caulk or weatherstripping is a simple job you can do yourself that can keep the cold air out and keep the warm air in your house.
If you want to DIY your window and door repair, first check the caulk. If there are holes, rips, or peeling caulk, replace it. Next, check the weather stripping for similar issues. Any damaged or loose areas must be replaced to keep your home warm during a winter storm.
If you plan to use your fireplace or wood stove as a backup heating source, be sure to have your chimney inspected. This should be done annually to ensure the safety of your house, but it is even more important before winter starts.
You'll need a professional to inspect it to ensure no fire hazards exist before using your fireplace or wood stove. Having your chimney swept is also a good idea to decrease the risk of any fire hazards.
Cold weather keeps people indoors more, increasing the risk of carbon monoxide poisoning from excess (unvented) heater use. Before winter hits, check your fire and carbon monoxide monitors. Use the “test” button on both monitors to ensure the alarms work well, and put a fresh set of batteries in each.
If you have a smoke or CO detector with an expiration date, be sure to replace it before winter, when you'll likely use the fireplace and other heaters more often.
Heavy snow means a lot of water accumulation. You might not think snow is a big deal because it’s not a puddle of water, but as soon as the temperatures change, snow turns to water, and water can find its way into homes faster than you think.
If the water often sits near your foundation or on your roof, it can leak into your home, causing water damage and mold growth. To ensure water moves away from your home, add downspout extensions that channel the water into a safe spot where accumulation won’t be an issue.
As you learn how to prepare for a winter storm, you must have plenty of supplies on hand. Prepare for the worst, meaning no electricity or ability to travel to the store.
In your emergency preparedness kit, have the following to keep your family safe:
Warm clothes for every family member
Blankets
Emergency and utility phone numbers
Enough non-perishable food for at least a few days
Alternative power sources for electronics
Necessary medication for family members
Tools for snow and ice removal
Forms of entertainment for the family
If you want to pay the most exorbitant prices possible for your job, this is the company for you. “By the job” pricing is a rip-off, at least how these people use it. Every job is plugged into a category and prices are set by category. You might have a job that takes half an hour or one that...
Benjamin Franklin PlumbingCole has been handling plumbing and general contracting for our four properties over the past three years, and he’s always done a great job. Most recently, he installed a sink and countertop in our retail store where none existed before, and it turned out exactly how we needed. He’s...
ANB Renovations LLCMatt is a consummate professional. The work turned out to be far more difficult than expected and rather than turn the job down, Matt rose to the occasion and completed a near impossible task. I can not recommend Greene's Plumbing Service more highly. On a scale of 1-5 I would give Matt a...
Greene's Plumbing ServiceThis was our second experience with The Waterworks and both times have been Exceptional! This time, Michael P. was our technician. He arrived on time, was super professional and respectful of our home and he even wore booties, a face mask, gloves and protected out kitchen floors with drop...
The WaterworksInvolved an extensive bathroom remodel, including removing tub & installing walk in shower, new drywall, custome tile work to ceiling, plumbing, etc. Overall, job was done on time and on budget. Nick & his team were very professional and had high attention to detail. Quality was great. Highly...
Stamos Flooring and Remodeling LLCAwesome company. Had a jacuzzi tub taken out and replaced with huge walk in shower with partial glass enclosure. Onyx to the ceiling with a decorative border, moved plumbing and installed hand held shower, new ceiling, flooring, and paint. Replaced window with glass block. Everything was done...
Columbus Bath DesignThe initial quoted price from a walk-through seemed high, but we discussed that the quote represented worst case scenario (re-wiring to two floors) and we were excited about the opportunity to have the work done in a timely manner with closing for fire safety reasons, etc. When the job was...
Initially, I called the Service People to have a leaking garbage disposal replaced. I had purchased a special deal through Angie's List: $79 for $200-worth of plumbing services. <br /> When I went to schedule the work, the earliest date I could get through Angie's List was after the upcoming...
This company did a very good job on the brick wall and it looks just amazing. The staff was always professional and was practically OCD on how the bricks were stacked and how they were laid. Although it took longer than expected, I am willing to sacrifice time over perfection anyday. The...
My Handy Mate LLC Improvement & Remodeling<p>I am so glad we called Rotor-Rooter. I was hesitant to call them because we usually prefer to give business to local providers. But when we had sewage back up in our basement on a Saturday evening, I had a hard time getting a hold of someone, not to mention the high weekend/evening rate...
Roto-Rooter Plumbing & Water CleanupFrom average costs to expert advice, get all the answers you need to get your job done.
Winterizing a house depends on its type, size, location, and more. Our guide breaks down how much it costs to winterize a home.
If you live in an area where tropical storms, nor’easters, or hurricanes are common, these hurricane prepping tips could be lifesaving in an emergency.
Hurricane winds and flooding are extremely dangerous, so follow this guide for how to prepare for a hurricane to keep yourself and loved ones safe.
When the temperatures drop, it’s time to hunker down at home. Before you do, use these tips to prepare your HVAC system for the winter.
Planning to install a new or replacement storm door? Learn how to measure for a storm door to ensure a snug, secure fit for your home.
Learn how to protect your trees from winter storms. By practicing some routine maintenance, you can guard against broken limbs and damaged property.
