Storm season is well and truly here, and at this time of year, those bright sunny days can quickly make way for dangerous weather and intense lines of storms, without much notice.
If you’re not prepared, storms can lead to injury, or damage to your car, home, and belongings. It can also wreak havoc on your pipes and drains.
For a start, make sure you’re signed up to weather alerts, which you can do through a weather app, your local council or government – or, your insurer may even offer this service. This way you’ll know when bad weather is on its way. Although by this stage it’s often too late to fix any small issues which could lead to much bigger problems when combined with wild winds, torrential rain, or dangerous hail. So getting your home prepared in advance is key.
Four ways you can get your home ready for storm season
Here are some of the ways you can prepare your home for storm season.
1. Secure loose items
Take a look at your backyard or balcony and think about what isn’t secured. You may have outdoor furniture, swing sets, bikes, pot plants, garden tools, umbrellas, or kids toys. In strong winds during a storm, those items could become airborne, which has the potential to cause damage to a person, your home, or somebody else’s home. Even your garbage bins could be dangerous if they’re picked up by strong wind.
If you can’t tie them down or store them somewhere safely, try filling them with some water to weigh them down and keep them secure. If you have a swimming pool, it can actually be best to remove the cover during heavy rain and storms. And don’t forget about pets too—make sure they’re safe and secure during storms.
2. Clear your gutters
Throughout the year, gutters can gather leaves and other debris, and during wild and windy storms and rain, this can happen even faster. This debris can block gutters and drains, meaning they can’t do their job of diverting water from your roof and home. This water can actually flood your roof or worse still, enter the home, which can ultimately damage your property and lead to costly repairs. In the warmer months, excess leaves in your gutter can also dry out and create the perfect conditions for a fire to start, making them a fire hazard.
So during storm season, it’s important to clear your gutters every couple of weeks to avoid a blocked drain or broken pipe. Make sure you use a sturdy ladder and use the relevant safety equipment to keep you safe while cleaning out the gutters. You can also engage a professional to do it for you.
Also check for blocked stormwater drains near your house. These drains are responsible for taking away excess water during heavy downpours, so blocked stormwater drains could lead to flooding and water damage to your property. Your local council or government looks after fixing or unblocking stormwater pipes, so if you notice an issue, contact them to find out where to report it.
3. Get your roof checked
When storms arrive, your roof is one of the most important aspects of your home in terms of protecting you, so make sure it’s in good working order. When it comes to the roof, even a small issue can quickly turn into a major problem, particularly when you add wild weather to the mix, so schedule in regular roof checks. Also keep an eye on nearby trees and trim them back if they get too close to your roof, as they can cause damage too.
4. Check your pipes and arrange any pipe repair
With people at home more than usual over the past couple of years, the pipes in your home would be under more strain than they ordinarily would. So now is a great time to check them and ensure everything is in great working order, and get any necessary repairs.
You may think that plumbing services and fixing a pipe are invasive and costly, but modern technologies allow pipes to be inspected and fixed without the need for excavation, and with minimal downtime.
With most pipes hidden behind walls, underground, or under concrete slabs, it can be difficult to see what’s going on, and if there are any issues, with the naked eye. At Nuflow, we use non-invasive, advanced CCTV drain camera equipment to carry out a drain inspection. To do this, a drain camera is sent through the pipe from existing access points, allowing technicians to see inside the full length of the pipe, and diagnose any issues.
Then if there are any broken pipes, blocked drain, or a pipe blockage, our Nuflow technicians offer an innovative pipe relining service. Pipe relining technology is a modern solution that allows expert technicians to fix a broken pipe from the inside using just the existing access points, with no digging or excavation required.
A hardy, specialist material is applied within the existing pipes, essentially creating a new pipe within the pipe, and sealing off any cracks. Pipe relining is fast and less invasive than replacing pipes altogether, and can be used for any type of pipe.
The best way to ensure you don’t have pipe problems during storm season is to be adequately prepared, and ensure any pipe repairs are completed before the wild weather arrives.
Have a blocked drain or broken pipe? Or just looking for preventative plumbing services? Contact your friendly local team at Nuflow to get your home and your pipes storm-ready.
