Mitigate Storm Damage with Regular Maintenance

7/17/2020 (Permalink)

You can't control when a storm is going to happen but you can help limit your risk by keeping your property maintained.

We all know that in Canton, Ohio we can expect our fair share of severe storms. Spring and Summer are major culprits for high winds, heavy rains, and lightning in our area. These extreme weather conditions could cause trouble for home and business owners by inflicting damage on their property. Sometimes, these unfortunate instances are entirely out of our control but there are a few things we can do regularly to help limit the amount of damage that severe weather will do when it inevitably comes our way.

1. Test your sump pump. Testing is easy and anyone can do it. Simply fill the pump pit with water and see if it begins to drain. If it doesn’t, it needs maintenance to do its job when flooding happens.
2. Clean your gutters. Keeping gutters clean means that they will be able to drain water off the roof and away from your building. Clogged gutters and downspouts could mean water damage during a storm.
3. Trim your trees. Trees with dead or rotting branches could mean disaster for your home or business during a storm. Proper pruning allows the trees to be stronger and more stable in the face of extreme weather.
4. Clear debris from your yard. Debris left laying about could turn into projectiles during a storm and cause damage to your building. Cleaning up yard waste is an easy way to prevent disaster.
5. Make sure your roof and siding are in good shape. You shouldn’t have to worry about checking on your home too often but loose or missing shingles and loose siding could leave your home vulnerable to excess damage during a storm.
6. Make sure that water can drain away from your building. This might be a bigger project for a professional but if water isn’t moving away from your home or business and is standing or moving towards it instead, you could be at risk for flooding and water damage.

Keeping an eye on these areas and items around your building could save you a lot of trouble in the long run. If storms come through and damage your property, however, know that you can call on SERVPRO of Canton to help you. We are disaster restoration and cleaning experts, with a staff of highly-trained technicians on call 24/7/365 to respond when you are in need. Make sure you call SERVPRO when things go wrong.