Preparedness Makes for Fewer Winter Woes

As most New Englanders know, ice, snow and wind can take a toll on residential property, so remember to protect your home well before the snow starts to fly. Homeowners, especially those who spend the winter in warmer locations such as Florida, should do the following:

• Remove debris from gutters. Cleaning out leaves, acorns, sticks and pine cones allows melting snow and ice to flow freely. Cluttered gutters can cause ice damming. 
• Trim trees and remove dead branches. Ice, snow and wind can cause trees or branches to break, damaging your home, automobile or injuring someone walking on your property. 
• Add insulation to attics. If too much heat escapes through the attic, it can cause snow or ice to melt on the roof. If melted snow refreezes, it can result in a collapsed roof, and contribute to ice damming. Additionally, well-insulated basements and crawl spaces will also help protect pipes from freezing. 
• Protect exposed pipes. Wrap pipes with heating tape and insulate unfinished rooms such as garages that frequently have exposed pipes. 
• Keep temperature at a minimum of 65 degrees. Install programmable thermostats to maintain temperature. 
• Have furnaces, boilers and chimneys serviced at least once a year. Make sure that smoke and fire alarms are working properly and consider installing a carbon dioxide detector. 
• Make repairs. Broken stairs and banisters can become lethal when covered with snow and ice – make sure they are ready for winter weather. 

If you have additional questions about preparing your home for winter, or would like to discuss your home insurance policy, please contact your insurance agent by calling Hunter Insurance at 401-769-9500.

Properly Winterizing Your Boat

Boating season is coming to a close, so it’s important to properly winterize your boat prior to inclement weather. Failure to winterize your boat can cause it to suffer significant damage such as cracks that can lead to leaks, corrosion, frozen pipes, interior damage, and fuel degradation.

When spring comes, these problems could be expensive to repair, especially since most insurance policies do not cover damage resulting from lack of maintenance.

Prior to making any decisions for winterizing your boat, you should check the owner’s manual for their recommendations on winter storage.

A few ways to store your boat exist, including storing it in your driveway, yard or somewhere else on your property. However, some homeowners’ associations don’t allow for this kind of storage, so it is important to check first.

Another option is to place your boat in a boatyard where it can be shrink-wrapped. Shrink-wrapping keeps boats dry and well ventilated which often prevents mildew.

A third option is to store your boat indoors. Indoor boat storage provides numerous options for climate control and keeps your boat protected from any winter weather.

As a general rule, boat storage professionals encourage boat owners to properly cover their boats, whether by shrink-wrapping or with a durable, breathable, water-resistant cover.

If you have additional questions about boat or other watercraft insurance, please call Hunter Insurance at 401-769-9500.