If you live in an area prone to high winds, terrible storms and hurricanes, you need to formulate a strategy for protecting yourself and your property when the worst hits. Thankfully, there are many measures you can take in order to help you with this. Many people, for instance, fortify the interior of their homes with reinforced shutters, while opening the basement space in which they can feel protected as a heavy storm passes overhead. Ensure you have survival provisions on hand, and only in extreme cases will you need to evacuate. Yet one consideration less talked about is the necessity to prepare our exterior environment in preparation for a hurricane. After all, if your garden isn’t attended to, then high-speed winds could pick up and throw around the objects within it, which ultimately leads to needless danger and pronounced property damage. Here are a few tips for helping you protect your home preemptively, via rational landscaping.
Soft Soil & Mulch
Small pebbles, rocks and pea gravel around your paths or flower beds will, of course, be picked up in high winds and can lead to damaged windows and further property damage. It also increases the risk of injury to those even outside of your property borders. For this reason, using softer mulch, such as shredded bark, can be a great alternative.
Trees Are Your Friends
Appropriate placement of your tree line can help absorb plenty of the wind force that may otherwise be broken at the side of your house. Trees that offer structural soundness and deep roots (taking into account other structures nearby) can help block the winds from hitting your property with such intensity.
Tree Maintenance & Pruning
However, trees are only our friends if we maintain and prune them correctly. The last thing you need is to plant a worthwhile treeline only to see rotten branches or entire trees falling and being carried by the wind. Regular pruning and care, using the services of a tree surgeon, will be essential here.
Water Runoffs
In hurricanes, water tends to accumulate and be carried by the wind. This goes double if you live within walking distance to the sea front or a great body of water. For this reason, you should think about drainage and water runoffs. Landscaping your garden so that water naturally runs down its sides to prevent buildup can be helpful, as can well-placed drains that can help dispel water if need be, perhaps diverting to the storm drain of a local road. You can consult with public land surveyors to help you with this if necessary.
Reinforce Your Home!
As you can see, landscaping is essential, but it’s also important to reinforce your home as a last resort, especially against falling debris. Using a service such as RPS Metal Roofing & Siding Inc can help you establish structurally sound, comprehensively fitted, and totally durable metal roofing. This can prevent the risk of roof tiles being picked up by hurricanes, as well as ensuring your home won’t need extensive repairs after the storm passes through. With this advice, we hope you can protect your family and your property, even in a hurricane.