Prepare Your Business & Home for Winter Weather

10/18/2016 (Permalink)

Tips for Preparing Your Business for Winter Weather:

• Check your business property for downed tree limbs and branches. Weather, such as wind, heavy rain, ice and snow, can cause branches to fall, which could cause damage to the property and potentially cause personal injuries.
• Inspect property, especially walkways and parking lots, for proper drainage to alleviate flood hazard potential.
• Inspect all handrails, stairwells and entryways to address and correct potential slippery or hazardous areas. Install mats or non-slip surfaces and post caution signs where water could be present.
• Ask your rep at SERVPRO of Tupelo about starting your Disaster Recovery Plan for your business.

Tips for Preparing Your Home for Winter Weather:

• Keep cabinet doors open during cold spells. This allows warm air to circulate around pipes.
• Keep a slow trickle of water flowing through faucets, especially if the pipes for faucets run through unheated or uninstalled areas of your home.
• Consider shutting off outdoor faucets. Find the shut-off valve in the basement or crawl space and turn it to "off".
• If you follow the previous step, then open the outdoor faucet to help ensure it drains completely and the inner valve is shut off.
• Ensure gutters are clean and secure. Leaves and debris accumulate, causing a damming effect on gutters, which could lead to roof problems and water damage.
• Proper maintenance of your furnace can help reduce the risk of puffbacks.

FROZEN PIPES - - A frozen pipe can burst at the point where the ice blockage inside the pipe is located, but typically the rupture is caused by the backflow pressure between the water source and the blockage. A burst pipe can cause considerable damage to your property if not addressed quickly.

ICE DAMS - - Ice dams can be a major problem during the winter season. They form when heated air melts roof snow downward into water dammed behind still0fromzend ice. When the trapped water cannot safely flow or run into the gutter system, it can backflow under the roof's shingles and into the structure's interior areas.

PUFFBACKS - - A puffback is a messy furnace malfunction that occurs when an oil burner backfires, sending soot throughout your home or business. It can happen all at once, covering an interior in grimy soot, or a puffback can leak soot particles more gradually.