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FAMILY DISASTER PLAN
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Discuss the type of hazards that could affect your family. Know your
home's vulnerability to storm surge, flooding and
wind.
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Locate a safe room or the safest areas in your home for each
hurricane hazard. In certain circumstances the safest areas may not
be your home but within your community.
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Determine escape routes from your home and places to meet.
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Have an out-of-state friend as a family contact, so all your family
members have a single point of contact.
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Make a plan now for what to do with your pets if you need to
evacuate.
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Post emergency telephone numbers by your phones and make sure your
children know how and when to call 911.
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Check your insurance coverage - flood damage is not usually covered
by homeowners insurance. National Flood Insurance Program
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Stock non-perishable emergency supplies and a Disaster Supply Kit.
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Use a NOAA weather radio. Remember to replace its battery every 6
months, as you do with your smoke detectors.
- Take
First Aid, CPR and disaster preparedness classes.
RETROFITTING YOUR HOME
The most important precaution you can take to reduce
damage to your home and property is to protect the areas where wind can
enter. According to recent wind technology research, it's important to
strengthen the exterior of your house so wind and debris do not tear
large openings in it. You can do this by protecting and reinforcing
these five critical areas:
ROOF
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STRAPS
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SHUTTERS
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DOORS
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GARAGE DOORS
A great time
to start securing - or retrofitting - your house is when you are making
other improvements or adding an addition.
Remember:
building codes reflect the lessons experts have learned from past
catastrophes. Contact the local building code official to find out what
requirements are necessary for your home improvement projects.
FLOOD INSURANCE
The National Flood Insurance Program, is a pre-disaster
flood mitigation and insurance protection program designed to reduce the
escalating cost of disasters. The National Flood Insurance Program makes
federally backed flood insurance available to residents and business
owners
Flood damage
is not usually covered by homeowners insurance. Do not make
assumptions. Check your policy.
Gabled Roofs
Does your home have a gabled roof? If so, the end wall of
your home takes a tremendous beating during a hurricane. If not properly
braced, it can collapse, causing significant damage. However, gable
end walls are easy to strengthen and deserve to be a high priority
on your retrofit list.
Typically, gable end trusses are directly attached to the top of
gable end walls. The bottom of the truss must be securely nailed to
the top of the wall and braced to adjacent trusses. This prevents wind
from pushing or pulling the gable end at its critical point, where the
gable truss is connected along the gable wall. Without adequate bracing,
the end wall may be destroyed during hurricane winds.
To secure your gable end wall, fasten eight-foot long braces to the
bottom chord of the gable truss and the adjacent trusses with
sixteen-penny (16d) nails. The braces should be perpendicular to the
truss, spaced at a maximum of four feet on center. In addition, be sure
to tie back the gable truss with at least one eight-foot long brace,
along the ridge of the roof, to several of the interior trusses.
Shingles
Shingles are usually not designed to resist hurricane
force winds. They come with integral locking tabs or factory-applied
adhesives that on occasion do not adhere properly to the underlying
shingle because of cold weather installation, uneven surfaces or any
number of other reasons. For increased wind resistance, have a qualified
person inspect several shingle tabs to see if the adhesive has engaged.
If not, use a quick-setting asphalt cement to bond them together.
To cement the shingle tabs to the underlying shingles, place two spots
of quick-setting asphalt cement about the size of a quarter under each
tab with a putty knife or caulking gun. Press the tab into the adhesive.
Be sure to cement all the tabs throughout the roof, being careful not to
bend them farther than necessary when applying the adhesive. Replace any
damaged shingles immediately.
Attach Roof Sheathing with Adhesive
You can also improve the uplift resistance of the roof deck from the
attic -- without removing the roof covering. This is how:
- Using a caulking gun, apply a 1/4 inch bead of wood adhesive
along the intersection of the roof deck and the roof support element
(rafter or truss chord) on both sides.
- At places where you have limited access, such as where the roof
meets exterior walls, use quarter round pieces of wood approximately
two to three feet long and apply the adhesive along the two adjacent
sides of the block. The length of the quarter round pieces can be
longer or shorter to suit your installation needs.
- Press the wood pieces in the intersection making sure the
adhesive has made solid contact with the sheathing and roof support
elements.
According to static pressure tests, using the wood adhesive can increase
the wind uplift resistance of the plywood roof sheathing by as much as
three times the conventional method of securing the sheathing with
nails. It should be available at your local hardware and building supply
stores. Please ask your local hardware expert if other products are
available that could provide the same strength and properties as a wood
adhesive.
The above information is taken from the
Institute for Business & Home Safety. Learn more from
"S Marks the Spot", their instructive pamphlet on hurricane
protection.
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