You have finally booked a flight to your dream destination and are planning to go on a well-deserved vacation with your loved ones. Vacations are great because they allow people to relax and make memories, but sometimes the joy and excitement of the holidays turn to pain when you return home and discover that your place isn’t how you left it. While you are gone, fire and/or water can wreck your home as these forces of nature don’t take breaks and can cause damage anytime.
To ensure that your vacation doesn’t turn into a bad memory, we will show you some important things you must do before going on holidays to prevent fire damage and water damage while you are away.
Things to do to Prevent Fire Damage
Fire can wreak havoc in minutes. While the firefighters will extinguish the fire while you are gone, the damage will be done by the time they are finished. Therefore, take these precautions before going on a vacation to decrease the probability of your home catching fire.
-
Check the Smoke Alarms
The battery of your smoke alarms may have worn out. If that is the case, it won’t go off when a fire starts. So before you leave for the trip, test all your smoke alarms to see if they are working fine and replace the batteries. You won’t be in the house, but your neighbors might be able to hear the alarms going off and call the firefighters who can extinguish the fire before it turns your home into ashes. It would be a good idea to inform your neighbors that you are going on a vacation so that they can stay alert to respond to fire damage.
-
Unplug all Unnecessary Electronic Equipment
Since you will be away for several days or a couple of weeks, it makes no sense to keep unnecessary electronic items and applications plugged. So before going on a vacation, unplug all unnecessary electronic equipment like TVs, video game systems, microwave, computers, mobile chargers, etc. This will reduce the risk of fire from an electrical malfunction.
Things to do to Prevent Water Damage
Water damage can destroy your home, especially when you are away and can’t do anything to minimize the damage. Therefore, do the things listed below before leaving for a vacation to decrease the risk of water damage.
-
Turn off Water Supply
Turn off the main water supply to reduce the risk of water damage. If you have to leave it on due to some reason like to keep the sprinkler system operation, then consider turning off valves to your bathrooms, laundry room and kitchen. In the unfortunate event that there’s an issue, water won’t flow unrestricted while you are away since you turned off the valves.
-
Clean the Gutters
If your gutters are clogged and it rains, the rainwater wouldn’t drain away from your home. When that happens, water will start accumulating around your home’s founding, leading to water coming inside your home through the foundation walls or basement windows. Therefore, before leaving for a vacation, remove debris and leaves from gutters. If you can’t do it yourself, hire a plumber to clean the gutters for you to ensure that you are protected against water damage from clogged gutters.
-
Make Sure Your Sump Pump is Working
Sump pumps collect excess water and pump it out of your home’s basement. If you have one installed in your basement, make sure that it is working fine before going on a vacation. To see if your sump pump is working, pour some water into the sump and see it pumps it out. Also, check the battery backup of your sump pump if you have the backup system and consider adding it if you don’t.
-
Get Leaks Fixed
Minor leans often conceal internal corrosion that could result in a rupture any time. So, if you notice any nagging leaks, get them fixed before you leave for your vacation.
Final Thoughts
We have discussed some important things you should for preventing fire and water damage to your home while you are away on vacation. However, despite taking these precautionary measures, your home can still suffer from fire damage or water damage. If that ever happens, call Square One for water damage or fire damage clean-up and restoration. If you find out about the damage while you are still on a vacation, call us at 602-714-1092 and give us your approval to do the clean-up and restoration work while you are away.