April Showers Bring Risk for Water Damage

Spring is rolling in and most of us couldn't be happier. We love the sunshine and the warmer temperatures! But as those from Texas know, we have to endure the storm before the calm – sometimes literally. There are a few different reasons that springtime can take a toll on your home in terms of water damage:

• Springtime Thawing – If you're in an area where snow or ground freezing is an occurrence, the thawing of the ground with warm weather could result in flooding.
• Seasonal Showers – Texas is notorious for its early spring storms, which could drop down several inches of water over the course of just a few hours. Consistent rainfall over the course of a few days could do it as well. If the ground should become oversaturated or storm drains should overrun, your house could be in for some damage to the basement and lower levels.
• Seasonal Flash Floods – Thunderstorms are notorious for causing flash floods, and during storm season, flash floods are extremely common. Again, your basement and lower level could be at risk.
• Erosion of Levees – It's happened before: a flood so intense it's caused a partially eroded levee or dam to fail under the pressure.
  

You have to protect yourself against flood damage all year round, but storm season should be your reminder. Here are a few tips for protecting yourself against spring water damage:

•  Have a family evacuation plan and emergency kit. Hopefully you won't need them, but it's always best to have a plan in case of emergency.
• Have flood insurance. Unfortunately, your homeowners insurance probably doesn't cover flood damage – only flood insurance can cover that. The sooner you sign up for a policy, the better; if you sign up for a policy a few days before a storm, you'll be out of luck since they take about a month to go into effect.
• Make a home inventory. Know what you've got in your home that could be damaged in case anything important or valuable should be damaged. Move all documents to somewhere high and/or waterproof.

Salt Water and Hurricane Damage

After Hurricane Sandy crippled New York, New Jersey and other states on the eastern coast, officials noticed something: the salt water brought in from the storm made the damage way worse than it might have been had it happened near fresh water.

When a city is hit by a hurricane, the problems are manifold: power outages; damaged switches; flooded homes, buildings, and infrastructures; and so much more. After Sandy, the subway in NYC was down for several days – one can imagine the impact that had on such a busy city.

It was evidence from Sandy's impact that made us realize what differentiates a hurricane from a rainstorm. Hurricanes, or superstorms, come off oceans, lifting up salt in their travels from oceans and estuaries. Thus, when water is carried inland, much of it is brackish water and saltwater, which is much more damaging than fresh water – especially for electronics.

We all know what happens to a bike when it's left out in salt air, or a car driving over a road that's been salted before a snowstorm. Salt builds up and creates chemical reactions with metal, which is present just about everywhere. This means if you're near a shore and a hurricane is headed your way, you can expect damage to your car, certain structures of your home, and even the public transportation systems in your city. Salt reacts when it comes into contact with concrete, iron, wire insulation, steel, zinc, and many other fundamentals of our manmade settings. When it reacts, it damages – or at the very least, alters – these components, which could mean corroded wires (and more likely power outages) or even fires due to worn away insulations and safety features.

So what's the lesson learned from Sandy? Homeowners and city planners alike should know that speediness is everything when it comes to hurricane damage repair. The longer salt buildup sits, the more time it has to chemically react and the more detrimental the ruin will be. It's important to get specialists to your home immediately after a hurricane, but also to lend a hand in the community if possible.

The Risks of Natural Disaster

Equipped with the "it could never happen to me" mentality, it's astonishing how many people continue to move to, and happily reside in, known danger zones in our country. For example, despite being hurricane prone and dangerously below sea level, New Orleans is still home to a number of different celebrities and residents who are Louisiana loyal. Similarly, many thing southern California is worth a seemingly low risk for earthquakes because of the gorgeous weather and sandy beaches. It's a mindset that our nation needs to get out of – natural disasters show no mercy, and having your home and property destroyed is most definitely something that could happen to you.

Homeowners always need to be aware of the conditions of their homeowners insurance policies. Are you covered for disaster repair, and if so, to what degree? Review the stipulations carefully; if you live in an area that's disaster prone and you aren't covered by your insurance, now might be the time to switch. If, for whatever reason, switching isn't a viable option, consider purchasing additional packages or riders that can cover storm-related costs.

Furthermore, if you're moving to a new location which is prone to a certain type of natural disaster – tornadoes in Alabama, flooding along the Gulf – check to see if the builders of the home you are shopping had this in mind. Is the foundation structurally sound? Is there a basement in case of a tornado? Is the house built far enough off the ground to withstand a flood? So many homeowners don't consider these things, and buy homes that are essentially asking for natural disaster damage.

Think about the location on a personal level, too. Should a disaster occur, where would you be able to go? Is the gas valve and water main easy to find in case of an emergency? What about the breakers? Is there a fire department, police department, and disaster restoration company nearby? These seem like the basic facts of preparedness when buying a home, but many buyers overlook them because they don't want to sully the image of their otherwise perfect home.

National Fire Protection Association Study: Shocking Results

The National Fire Protection Agency, or NFPA, released a study this April on home structure fires. The surveys were based on information from the U.S. Fire Administration's National Fire Incident Reporting System as well as the NFPA's annual survey. The results of the study were sobering.

The study concluded that there were an average of 366,600 home structure fires – this does not include businesses – reported on a yearly basis between 2007 and 2011. This works out to an estimated average of 2,570 deaths per year, which does not include the 13,210 injured people and some $7.2 billion in direct property damage. About 71% of these fires take place in single-family houses or duplexes; the other 29% affected apartment complexes and other types of communal housing.

Perhaps not-so-surprising are the causes of these fires. Cooking equipment, such as ovens and stoves, caused the highest number of fires of all the causes, accounting for 43% of all incidents. These sorts of fires also account for the vast majority of injuries at 38%. Other major culprits are heating equipment; sources of electricity and lighting; and, disturbingly enough, purposefully-caused fires. Smoking, washers and dryers, candles, and improper use of heat sources are also contributors. Smoking materials and heating equipment-related fires caused the most deaths.

When a civilian takes into consideration the common causes of fires and deaths by house fires, it realizes the notion that this could happen in any home. The main causes are household items that the majority of residents have and use fairly often. Brush up on your fire safety tactics, know your emergency phone numbers, and find a Conroe fire damage company that you trust.

Flood Damage: Is My Carpet Ruined?

Floods are an unfortunate occurrence that many homeowners have to deal with in some form. If they're not on a larger scale, they can be fairly manageable – they often only affect the basement, and hopefully they won't take too many important items with them. But what about areas that have carpeting… does a flood always mean you need to get new carpeting?

The biggest question you need to consider when deciding if the carpet is ruined is: was the flooding sanitary or unsanitary? Sanitary flooding usually encompasses broken water pipes that lead to the sink and shower; unsanitary flooding is, obviously, sewage as well as the drainage from dishwashers, sea water and water that comes into contact with the grown. If there's any question that the water has any degree of contamination, it's best considered unsanitary.

If you had a small amount of sanitary flooding, the first thing you should do is treat the carpet with a disinfectant to avoid bacteria growth immediately. Keep the traffic on this carpet to a minimum, as the adhesive will be weakened. Remove as many pieces of furniture from the carpet as possible, as they will likely stain or disfigure it. Then, contact a Houston water damage restoration team to do the rest of the work – they'll be able to extract the water, use heavy-duty fans, and take the carpet from the tack strip to elevate it.

There aren't very many safe options if unsanitary water has come into contact with your carpet. It's usually a significant threat to health due to contaminants, bacteria and mold, and therefore, it's best just to get a new carpet.

Your insurance company will most likely cover the cost of your carpet damage, but keep in mind that most manufacturers void their warranties after a flood has occurred.