4 Household Disasters – How To Prepare!

4 Household Disasters – How To Prepare!

Whether you are a homeowner or you are renting a property, you are likely to experience some form of household emergency at some point. Having a contact list of specialists, like a plumber or an excellent roofing contractor is imperative when living in a house. Being proactive can save you time and money.

Taking a note from the famous motto of the scouts, being prepared can prevent a lot more destruction to yourself and your home. Stocking up on supplies like food and water is one element. But also, it’s best to have other supplies on hand, like sandbags, emergency radio, waterproof matches or the best electrical insulating gloves for men just in case the power goes out or a tree comes down in a storm.

If you are prepared for any disaster, you can try to ensure the emergency doesn’t turn into a disaster, or at least you can lessen its impact. In this article, we are going to look at some of the more common situations that may occur and discuss strategies to alleviate any damage that may occur whilst maintaining safety and reducing the cost of fixing problems.

Get your roof checked! Image

Flood

Try to identify quickly where the water is coming from. If you find that it is a plumbing problem, turn off the water at the mains as soon as possible. If the water is definitely coming from the pipes, call emergency plumbing services immediately and they will be able to send someone out sooner rather than later.

One tip here would be to take note of where all your utilities shut off before a flood occurs. Ensure the flood water is nowhere near any electrical appliances, light switches or heating systems. There is a strong chance of electrocution. If necessary switch off your electricity at the mains. Before turning your electrics back on, ensure you get everything checked by a suitably qualified electrician.

You may experience flooding caused by Blocked Drains in this situation it would be wise to call an emergency drain care expert.

For future reference, try to avoid a flood situation by keeping drains clear of leaves and rubble to lessen the likelihood of them becoming blocked. Don’t put anything down the drain that shouldn’t be there such as cooking fat and sanitary products.

There is not much you can do about pipes freezing being the cause of a flood, other than using pipe lagging in the winter.

Fire

A situation involving fire in your home is potentially lethal. Your main priority is to evacuate anybody in your house before attempting to tackle the fire. Develop an escape route that everyone is aware of.

The potential main source of fire is from cooking, electrical appliances, wood burners, open fires and candles either for decorative or lighting purposes. Anything that involves heat or a naked flame. If the fire is small you may wish to attempt to put it out with the appropriate equipment. Ensure everyone is safe first. If in doubt phone the fire services.

To avoid fire in the first place, ensure everyone in the household uses electrical equipment safely. Make sure electrical appliances are in a good state of repair and check regularly. Only allow adults to use wood-burning stoves and ensure all candles are extinguished before retiring. Don’t use candles near flammable materials such as curtains.

Power cut

A power cut may occur either due to a fault in your own electrical wiring or there may be a fault on the electrical grid external to your house. If the fault is on your property call out a qualified electrician to rectify the problem.

Electricity needs to be done by the experts so don’t attempt to fix it yourself, consider calling out an Electrician Armadale way or from somewhere more local to you to solve the issue. A power fault external to your home means that you will just need to sit it out. Hopefully, this will be for a short while, but there are some occasions when you may be without power for longer, such as power lines brought down in adverse weather conditions.

It would be a really good idea to have a good stock of torches (with spare batteries) and candles to hand to make waiting for the power to come on a little more comfortable. Perhaps batteries for a radio would be a good idea too. To preserve food in your freezer, avoid opening the freezer door. This will keep the food frozen for longer. If your central heating system requires electricity to work, you will be left without heating. Wrap up warm and ensure vulnerable adults and children are ok.

Leaking roof

Get in the habit of checking your roof regularly. Check if there are any roof tiles loose. Internally you won’t know if your roof is leaking until you get watermarks. The longer you leave a roof leak, the more expensive and extensive the damage will be, so call out a roofing expert as soon as possible. In the case of water pouring through your roof, put a bucket under the leak to catch the water and call out an emergency roofer asap! Turn off your electricity, too as water may have seeped into the electrical wiring.

Hopefully, these tips will help combat experiencing too much damage in situations such as flood, fire, power cuts and a leaking roof. The main point is that speed is the key. So don’t delay, call an expert asap!

Tia, and TipsfromTia.com  is trying to keep you looking good and
feeling good, from the inside out. If you’ve got a problem or a tip email me! Be sure to Like and share on Facebook or Follow on Twitter or Instagram.