It is Always a Good Idea to Prepare Your Home for a Natural Disaster

You can hope that your home is never struck by fire, flood, earthquake, hurricane, tornado, landslide or any other natural disaster, but it is always a good idea to prepare yourself. There are some quick home protection ideas that will help you sleep more peacefully knowing that you did what you could for your home and your family.

In earthquake areas, you should fasten lamps, chin and other valuables to shelves or surfaces that anchor them with museum wax, which is now available at hardware and home supply stores. As long as they are not overly heavy, this will also work for ceramic objects and fine crystal.

You can also install latches on your cabinet doors, and this will keep them from opening and the objects from spilling out. Your bookcases, tall furniture and china cabinets can be secured with L-brackets or bolts to wall mounted studs.

In addition, your water heater can be secured with a water-heater strap to a wall stud. You can also find ways to secure your TVs if they are not already wall-mounted, and you can also secure your stereo equipment.

In case of fire, you are going to need fire extinguishers, so make sure that they are readily available in the kitchen and in any other rooms where a fire can start, which is just about any room in the house. Make sure that the extinguishers are easy to use, somewhere in the 2 to 5 pound range, and that your entire family knows how to use them in case of a fire.

You need smoke detectors in the laundry room, kitchen, hallways, bedrooms, furnace room, and even in the attic, or anywhere else where a fire could originate.

In case of floods, wind and rain, you need to install weather-stripping around windows and doors to keep water from getting into your home. If you have not already done so, install storm shutters, or you could even use plywood to create your own, and make sure you cut the plywood to fit snuggly.

By the way, when you do install storm shutters, make sure you remember to secure them in case of storms or hurricanes. Those heavy swinging doors can do a whole lot of damage if you do not remember to secure them.

You need to make sure that you install storm doors, and consider a hurricane-rated garage door to replace your existing garage door. If your home has not already been build, and you live in a hurricane prone area, consider building with concrete blocks rather than wood. This is more likely to withstand wind-driven debris which can go right through wooden walls.

Make sure you create an emergency tool kit that includes essential supplies such as soap, personal hygiene products, disinfectants, alcohol, bandages, band aids, scissors, a wrench, screw drivers, a knife and matches. If you think of other things that should be included in your tool kit, then by all means include them, and don't forget to have plenty of canned food and water on hand in case you cannot get to store or some sort of emergency aid center for a few days.

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