How to Prepare Your Home for Unpredictable Weather Conditions

While it’s true that the weather everywhere is unpredictable, it doesn’t mean you can’t protect your home from brutal, damaging temperatures that show up without warning.

The key lies in weather-proofing your home all-year-round, especially if you live in areas like Kansas City, where trying to predict the weather ultimately becomes a valiant but futile effort. Now, weather-proofing may sound like a tedious, expensive endeavor, you’ll be thanking yourself for doing it on days when you wake up being battered by more wind, storm, heat, or snow than expected.

Here are six ways to prepare your home from all sorts of weather-brought troubles.

1.  Maintain your roof

 There’s a good reason why roofing upgrades form an important part of all home renovation efforts. The roof is your family’s first line of defense against weather elements like rain, snow, and extreme heatwaves that could cause damage to your property.

Even just a tiny, unnoticeable hole in the roof could cause substantial and irreparable damage to your home if a storm suddenly hits. That’s why it’s important to check the roof for any signs of leaks and wear and tear while the weather is still good. At the very least, a professional check up every month is advisable. 

2.  Keep gutters clean

Your gutters play an important role in keeping water away from your home during unexpected storms or snowfall. The problem is, most of us don’t even check the gutters until they start giving us problems. So if you find that your gutter is blocked by more than several stray leaves, it might be time to ask for help from Kansas City pressure washing companies.

Pressure washing is not only done when you want your deck or patio to look brand-new again. It also helps a great deal in removing the gunk that might be clogging up your gutters, rendering them useless in protecting your home from nasty water damage.

3.  Seal doors and windows

The unsightly gaps around your doors and windows are not just an eyesore — they also pave the way for unwanted drafts of air, water, and even pests to enter your home undetected. If you find your home being exceptionally chilly in the winter even with the heat on, that’s your cue to start sealing all openings into your home.

It also pays not to wait until the winter or the rainy season to do this because you need these outdoor elements to stay out of the house all year long, regardless of the season.

4.  Insulate your pipes

Leaving your pipes uninsulated will make them vulnerable to freezing water that could potentially burst them when it gets too cold. Can you imagine how much water damage a busted pipe can deal to your house? Now, imagine if it happens while you’re out of the house — the damage would be impossible to undo.

Aside from insulating your pipes, don’t forget to let the tap run during those long, winter nights so you don’t end up with frozen water in your pipes come morning. Still, pipe insulation is not only relevant during the winter.

In the summertime, pipes can accumulate water on its outside walls due to moisture condensation. Insulating them can significantly reduce humidity levels in the house.

5.  Prepare an emergency/go-bag

Another great way to always be prepared for brutal weather is to have an emergency bag that contains flashlights, batteries, power banks, radios, and other stuff that you might need in case the weather gets really bad.

To take things further, always have a go-bag in the house so that you can leave at once if you ever need to evacuate. This should contain your important ID documents, some food provisions, and all the emergency supplies mentioned earlier.

6.  Check your insurance

Always make sure that your home and contents insurance is up-to-date and comprehensive enough to cover all weather events that are relevant to the climate in your residential area. Keep in mind that a standard insurance policy may cover regular water damage, but not destruction due to flooding. You might want to consider upgrading your insurance plan in accordance with the kind of extreme weather you get in your area.

These are just the most basic ways you can protect your home from unpredictable bouts of weather. Keep this checklist in mind so you can sleep soundly every night knowing that whatever surprise the weather might bring, your house can stand firm and secure against it.