Between pumpkin patch visits, school programs, gift shopping and holiday parties; your calendar is proof that the holiday season is getting closer each day. Don’t add “disaster restoration” to your already-long list of things to do. Instead, follow these 5 steps to stay safe during this season’s hustle and bustle.
Food Prep Precautions
They say that numbers don’t lie, and according to ours, 3 out of every 5 fire damage projects involve cooking equipment. To avoid adding to that statistic, make sure to stay present when cooking your holiday meals, and take extra precautions when in the kitchen. Start by turning pot and pan handles inward to avoid hot spills, and be sure to plug no more than one high-wattage appliance in at a time to prevent overloading. And as an additional pro tip– if you’re deep frying a holiday turkey, do it outside on level ground, and stay at least 10 feet away from the house.
Have a Kitchen Emergency Plan
Between your family’s appetizers warming in the slow cooker, dinner roasting in the broiler and dessert baking in the oven; your family’s feast could easily have a mishap. Even if you practice the food prep precautions above, be prepared in case things don’t go as anticipated. Have appropriately rated fire extinguishers on hand, and verify that both your carbon monoxide and smoke detectors are working in case you have to use that fire extinguisher. And if there’s a grease fire? Have hand towels and a big box of baking soda within sight to smother it.
Protect Your Pipes
Frozen pipes are one of the biggest risks of property damage during freezing temperatures, and here at Pro Service Builders, they’re also one of our most frequent project-causers. So remember, as the temperature plummets during Arkansas winters, protect your plumbing! Insulate accessible pipes (especially those in your attic and basement) and keep one or two faucets slowly dripping when the weather is below 32°. As an additional precaution, leave kitchen sink cabinets open, so that your home’s heat can warm up your pipes.
Heater Safety
The outdoor temperature is dropping by the minute, but with that, the risk of using kerosene and space heaters is doing the opposite. Before you warm up with one of these portable, handy heaters; make sure that you not only know where its safety switch is, but that you are also aware of how to use it.
Avoid Ice Dams
When the upper part of your roof becomes warmer than the bottom of it, ice and snow melt and flow downward, before refreezing into a dam at edge of your rooftop. And if you thought uninvited party guests were stressful during the holidays, just wait until you encounter an ice dam! This frozen wall forces itself under shingles and into your home, resulting in damage to your roof, paint, insulation, gutters and drywall. Avoid ice dams by keeping your attic well-ventilated and your gutters clean.
The holiday season is meant to be remembered for happy memories– not disastrous ones. Celebrate safely with these tips, and if you ever need help from pros, contact Pro Service Builders. From remediation to full-service disaster restoration, we work hard to get your home or business back to normal as quickly as possible.