When Mother Nature decides to show her furious side, it can be devastating for humans and their property alike. Many times people will die or be seriously injured physically and sometimes they are emotionally damaged because they can lose everything they own or most of it. Either way it is not a good situation to be put in.
When it is property that is damaged, it can take years for an area to recover from the destruction that can be left behind because of a hurricane, flood, tornado, or earthquake.
When there is an earthquake somewhere, there will not likely be any damage from wind, but there is a great possibility of water damage. Earthquakes can break city water lines and home plumbing and this can cause property damage. Streams and creeks, lakes or ponds can gush over their banks and flood anything nearby.
When there are hurricanes and tornadoes, there is usually a significant amount of wind damage for obvious reasons. There can be a considerable amount of water damage to property and lives lost because of the water that accompanies these particulars disasters of Mother Nature as well. Sometimes it can be hard to determine which element can cause the most damage, the wind or the water.
Either one does not bode well for home or businesses owners. In a matter of minutes or hours their entire living space or livelihood can be blown away by high destructive winds or washed away by raging flash flood water that can accompany a torrential rainstorm.
A wind damaged roof can leave the home vulnerable to the falling rain. Sometimes even if there is not that much wind, continual heavy rainfall such as the Midwestern United States recently had can cause the flooding.
For those who have their homes damaged or completely destroyed by wind or water, the results will be the same. It will be heart wrenching for them to except all the things they probably lost and it will likely take weeks or months to have their homes restored to their previous condition if it is possible at all. So when it comes to which is worse, the wind or the water, they both can cause more than their fair share of destruction when they are at their worst.
These kinds of terrible events are the reasons why insurance is necessary. It might be painful to have to pay out those sometimes expensive premiums every month wondering if you will ever have to use it, but it will be much more painful to end up needing it and not having it.
What does wind damage roof look like?
If you’re standing in your living room and look up – it looks pretty muck like the sky.
Tornado levels Metrapark Ken Fichtner, Laurel, President of the Advisory Board Metrapark was one of the first men on the Metra grounds to witness the damage at Metra Arena on Sunday afternoon after a tornado ripped the roof of the building. He arrived about an hour after the hurricane hit.
Roof Insurance
Roof Insurance
Reasons To Try Metal Roofing
Unlike popular beliefs long held by people around Australia, metal roofs do not need to be ugly. In fact, there are more attractive designs available in roofing than ever before. When combined with their great benefits, these roofs are becoming quite sought after.
Brisbane roofing trends are no exceptions to these rules. In fact, business is positively booming for roofing companies in the area, as more customers than ever before are inquiring about metal roofs. Anyone who has experienced the damage caused by extreme weather is sure to be curious about these fine additions to their homes, and this at least partly explains the rise in these roofs’ popularity. Ask any roofing company around this part of Queensland, and they are sure to confirm that metal roofs are among the most asked about products available today.
Durability of Metal secures long term appeal -
Durability is just part of the equation when it comes to this type of roofing’s skyrocketing appeal, though. As many homes in the area age, re roofing Brisbane companies are experiencing more calls than ever before. And when people decide that their old roof needs replacement, more of them than ever are open to the possibility of installing a metal replacement this time around. They are especially more open minded when they learn about some of the financial benefits of this style of roofing.
Insurance companies absolutely love metal roofs. This is because a home with a roof made of metal is much likelier to withstand many different types of extreme weather. Metal Roofing can sustain many harsh conditions where other styles of roofing may cave, buckle or incur damage. When viewing from and perspective of an insurance company this can be quite compelling. It makes insurers look at a home in a more favourable light, and the home becomes less of an insurance risk as well. For homeowners, this can translate into reduced premiums and can save them a great deal of money over the course of a year..
The Value of Metal Roofs is higher than its counterparts -
Property values of houses with metal roofing is known to increase the overall value dramatically. Home appraisers are likely to increase their overall appraisal of a home that has a metal roof. This is because a house’s roof is a huge part of the appraisal equation, and metal roofs are incredibly durable. Therefore, they add to the value of a home by guaranteeing that future owners will not have to worry about replacing the roof for quite some time.
Finally, metal roofs are available in more styles than ever before. Gone are the days of the dull, rolled metal roof look. Today, people can choose roofs that look like traditional shingles. Metal Roofing that resemble conventional tiling are also very popular sellers. People can also select slate, cedar shake or many other attractive designs for their roof. It is little wonder, then, that these roofs have become more popular than ever before, all around Australia.
Couple In Dispute With Insurance Over Roof
Nationwide Insurance Prepares for Hurricane Alex
CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas—-Nationwide Insurance claim representatives and agents are prepared to assist customers should Hurricane Alex become a weather-related disaster. As weather alerts and reports from around the country track the storm patterns, Nationwide has people and resources in place to respond quickly to its customers’ needs.
Windstorm Certificate
Windstorm Certificate
Find Forces
After a devastation that was brought by Hurricane Andrew in 1992—nearly $25 billion in damage—a new emphases was born to fight windstorm on building construction. Florida’s Dade County adapted a new code after Hurricane Andrew made its statement. With hurricanes ripping through our country, especially the south coast, everyone is looking for answers—and ways to prevent it. Although there are no practical ways for us to prevent hurricanes, or any kind of high wind velocities, there is something that can be done to minimize the devastating effect of it on our structures, and most important, on our lives.
After Hurricane Andrew, Dade County officials were trying to find answers why Andrew has brought such destruction to a building. After proper investigations, the officials found doors, windows, skylights and garage doors damage from Andrew showing the reason for such destruction. The reason that such building components where, and still are, an area of concern and a weakness is because when windows or doors are broken by high wind and debris the building pressurizes and causes the roof to give-in to hurricane’s ripping hand. Those structures that survived roof blowout still were severely damaged by the wind and rain that came through ripped doors and broken windows. Because of such destructive experiences, codes were updated and added-on to resist the devastation of high wind velocity. As an example, ratings were moved to a new “worst case” scenario with a certification mark. Surprise to some, the effect of such changes in codes and ratings have not been so devastating on the industry; the answer—since the entire state of Florida is under single code. All parties involved understand, for the most part, the straightforward requirements that were passed in response to fight the wind. To draw my point, let us take doors, for example; certification agencies will indeed punish materials directory that lists improper certified components/parts and their ratings; a hardware distributor will get his or her requirements; the labeling program will permit certain certification marks to applied to doors and frames; and, distributors should have no problem, since most already have such coverage for fire doors.
What does all of this mean on cost? Manufactures pass the extra cost testing and redesigning on their distributors; after that, distributors will pass it on to supply and eventually the cost will be absorbed by customers and owners alike. Although the owner is the one how might be in a losing situation here, rewards of abiding by the code will come when the winds come. “As Florida recovers from four devastating hurricanes in one season, a clear lesson is emerging: The new codes worked. Better nailing, sturdier shear walls, more framing hardware, and beefed-up opening protection made the difference.
With so many Hurricanes that ripped through the State of Florida, its statewide building code does affect existing building and structures located within the High Velocity Hurricane Zone. The current buildings, as much as new construction, are required to comply with the code. What effect of such codes in Florida has made affect on the rest of United States? Most impact on code change was made on coastal states such as Georgia, Louisiana, Carolinas, and the entire state of Hawaii; those states felt the good effect of it—quality of construction in high wind zones. All of the components in the building were looked in—structural, outside cladding, roofing, and especially windows and doors, as mentioned earlier.
Because of new codes that are in place, not only safety of our lives and integrity of our buildings are improved but also new product development creates better economical situation, as some individuals put it; this encourage of new products and technologies increases safety, bringing improved ways to produce better products that are less expensive—balancing the whole extra cost for high wind zones altogether.
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Paul Peshkov is a general contractor/business developer. As a favorite hobby, Mr. Peshkov is extensively involved in studying alternative medicine. He enjoys helping people reach their full potential in life. For more info on his latest developments visit his website, http://www.PaulPeshkov.com
PSB sets hearing July 8
BRATTLEBORO — The Vermont Public Service Board will be at Brattleboro Union High School on July 8 to take comments from the public on whether Entergy should be fined for a leak of tritiated water at its Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant in Vernon.
High Wind Damages
High Wind Damages I was told I should never turn my new home PC off. What say you?
I have a surge protecter, but I live in the country and our power poles and lines are subject to damage from high winds, falling trees and drunken cowboys in pick-ups. So our power comes and goes a lot. I thought if the PC is turned off it would be safe if the power surged. Not so? Why is it bad to turn it off at night and back on the next day?
1. I have a UPS hooked to my firewall / router and also have 7 networked systems, and keep three computers ON at all times.
2. I have serviced delicate computers and peripherals since 1965, the first 20 years on active duty in the USAF. Some were mobile, on the ground, or in the air.
My experience is that the systems left on all the time cost less to keep running, than the ones that get turned off and on.
The biggest user of energy is the CRT monitor, so they get shut off at night. And, I am switching to LCD monitors, having three so far.
The CRT monitors use between about 200 watts (15 inch) and 400 watts (21 inch). The LCDs use 20Watts(15″) to 40 watts (19″). The LCD monitors us less power when fully on than the CRT monitors use when ‘asleep’.
Thermal cycles of Power On vs Power Off cause failure. Many computers that have run successfully for years will not start back up, after they have been shut down.
If parts are going to fail, it is usually during the surge of current flow upon start-up.
Also, Microsoft FAT, FAT32, and NTFS do seem to cause a higher failure rate than Linux EXT2/3, ReiserFS in all my experience. One more reason I run http://pclinuxos.com
High Wind damage – Apr 2, 2006
Hurricanes and Water Damage
June 1st ushered in the beginning of yet another hurricane season. As the storms begin brewing in the warm Atlantic waters, nervous homeowners are wondering, “Will a hurricane damage my home this time around?” Perhaps. Especially if you live in Florida, Georgia, Texas, Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Washington DC, Delaware, Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Maryland, Rhode Island, or New York. These seventeen states and Washington DC are regularly pounded on by hurricanes.
Residents living in these areas suffer from devastating water damage and property losses each hurricane season. To make it even more devastating, some of this water damage is NOT covered by your homeowner’s insurance and even if it is, high insurance deductibles apply.
After a hurricane damages your home, your insurance company needs to assess the damage. Not only will your insurer confirm that your home has been damaged, if water damage is involved, your insurance company will need to determine whether or not the damage is covered. For example, if the water surged into your house due to the storm surge, that’s considered flooding. Unless you have a national flood insurance policy, the water damage will not be covered by insurance.
On the other hand, if your home’s roof was blown off and the rain came pouring in, then it’s more likely that you’ll have coverage for the resulting water damage. After all, it wasn’t a flood that caused the water, it was the wind that blew your roof off and exposed your home to torrential rains.
If you’re lucky and the water damaged is covered by your insurance policy, you’ll be responsible for paying your insurance deductible. However, in the above mentioned hurricane-prone states as well as the state of Hawaii, different insurance deductibles apply when a hurricane is involved. It’s important to understand your state’s hurricane deductible options so that you can plan accordingly. While each state has its own unique laws in this area, in general, hurricane deductibles are much higher than your standard insurance deductible.
For example, you may be required to pay a percentage of your home’s total value rather than a small fixed fee as a deductible. This difference can be dramatic and you could be looking at tens of thousands of dollars of out of pocket expenses before the insurance company pays a penny.
Hurricane deductibles are higher because of historically high hurricane losses in these states. Not only do hurricane force winds blow off roofs and smash trees into homes, extensive flooding occurs. Between the torrential rains, coastal flooding, and storm surges, water damage is inevitable when a hurricane blows through.
If you’re reading this now, before hurricane and water damage have affected your home, now’s a good time to prepare for future hurricanes. Do you fully understand your insurance policy? Have you reviewed all hurricane deductible options and selected the one that makes the most sense for your financial situation? Have you looked into a flood insurance policy? Do you have storm shutters? Do you know how to secure your garage door against high winds? Have you considered roof retrofitting? Have you installed hurricane straps? Have you looked at flood maps? Do you have an evacuation plan? Do you have a plan for returning home and dealing with the wind and water damage?
If you’re reading this now, after a hurricane has ravaged your home and you’re faced with a home full of water damage, you’ve got a soggy, heart-wrenching task ahead of you – and time is critical. Hurricanes and water damage bring with them an unwelcome after effect: mold. High humidity levels after a hurricane mean that you have to work quickly to dry out your home and prevent a mold infestation. The sooner you can get in and start draining, drying, disinfecting, and cleaning up, the better.
Unfortunately, hurricane water damage is rarely minimal and you’ll likely need professional help. Look for a water damage expert with industrial blowers and portable generators as power may be out for several days. You can’t afford to wait for the power to come back or else you may have an unpleasant black monster to deal with, too.
Hurricanes are coming. Are you ready?
Citizen Wind Insurance
Citizens Wind Insurance Question:
On the news, there was an announcement that citizens wind insurance will increase their rates by 55% enhance in insurance rates. Our politicians are wringing their hands and say they don’t know what to complete. Well, I’ve a suggestion (1) Allow everyone to join Citizens and have Citizens roll back the premiums for the rate of three years ago. (two) have a law that insurance premiums can’t improve much more than the Federal Expense of Living Adjustment. (three) have a fee leveled at all insurance corporations, no matter what kind of insurance coverage they sell (say 1% of premiums) that will be utilized to spend any damages more than the amount of dollars Citizens collects for homeowner insurance coverage. (four) If any company desires to offer homeowner insurance, they cannot visit Citizens insurance for policyholders unless they’ll give as excellent benefits and as low a premium (in other words nobody is often forced off the Citizens Insurance coverage (five) lessen the decible for wind damages down to degree ofother damages.I was an insurance coverage adjuster (not agent) for over 8 years, and during that 8 years the corporation I worked for never had less than 25% profit on their car insurance in the state of Florida. Insurance coverage Business are creating a killing in this state. Agents have no idea in the amt of income which is profit on a policy.
Replies:
Ya know, I typed out an enormous answer to this about what the outcomes of each of these tips would be, but then had a huge fight with my husband, and he closed the window just before I could send it.
So the brief of it truly is, the corporations cannot make any capital below your concepts, as claims are too high, so they’d all quit carrying out company in Florida – not just homeowners, but ALL enterprise. In order that would make the overall insurance scenario WORSE.
The True problem is, the insurance coverage claims are growing substantially, producing it really, genuinely costly to would like to insure a home (from the company’s point of view) in Florida. Losses are up. When losses are up, you cannot legislate payouts down, that is the only way you’ll get premiums down!!
Health Insurance – How To Make It More Affordable
You hear about the problem every day on the news: this country has a problem with its health care system. We are the richest country on the face of the planet, yet we are unable to provide adequate health care to each and every citizen. The rising cost of health insurance is a primary factor contributing to this problem and it doesn’t look like that will improve any time soon. There are some things you can do to try and make health insurance more affordable to you and your family though. Let’s look at some of these.
If you work for a small company that doesn’t offer health insurance or you are self employed, there are private insurance companies from which you can obtain a policy. Many of them don’t even require you to have a physical exam. Most will, however, require you to fill out a detailed health questionnaire. If you are healthy and young, with no pre-existing medical conditions, you can get insurance for somewhere around $100 per month. A quick search online will help you find these companies quickly and easily.
Once you do have health insurance, either through your employer or a private insurance carrier, the next thing you should do is carefully consider what your deductible should be. You may not have a choice on this if you are getting insurance through your employer. Still, if you do have a choice, you can save considerable money on premiums if you choose a higher deductible. You must balance this, however, with the amount of coverage you will need. Whatever you choose, don’t go for a deductible higher than $1000, as the insurance won’t be worth the money you pay for it at that point.
Another factor that will weigh heavily on the price you pay for insurance is the presence of pre-existing conditions. If you or a member of your family does have a pre-existing condition, your premium is likely to be higher and chances are that you will have some kind of waiting period, usually six months to a year, before the insurance company will cover that condition. Every company has a different policy when it comes to pre-existing conditions, so if this applies to you make sure you find out what the companies position is before purchasing coverage.
As always, it pays to compare quotes from several different companies when considering the purchase of health insurance coverage. You will be amazed at how much difference there is between companies for the same exact coverage. If you don’t take the time to find out which company is the most affordable, you could be costing yourself hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars per year. You can do this comparison by searching out companies online, or by contacting them over the phone. Just make sure that you are comparing similar policies when you do this. This means that each policy should include the same coverage, including dental and vision insurance, deductibles, and pre-existing condition clauses.
If your employer offers health insurance benefits, chances are that this will be your most affordable option for coverage. Still, it may pay to do some comparison shopping on this, as there is a possibility that you may find more affordable coverage elsewhere. If they only offer coverage for you, and not your family, it may still be more affordable to take that coverage and obtain separate insurance for your family. The same goes for dental insurance coverage.
Whatever you wind up doing to control the costs of health care for you and your family, don’t choose to not get health coverage. The fact is, one major medical emergency can wipe you and your family out financially for years to come. Aside from that, you will find that your access to health care will be severely limited without adequate insurance. Carried to the extreme, lack of health insurance can mean the difference between life and death.
Citizens Wind Insurance
Why don’t illegals understand that they are ruining health care and making health insurance?
If somebody goes to the emergecy room because they are illegal…guess what?…that costs more than a clinic. If you think illegals have no affect on the health care system that is like saying the wind has no effect on the ocean.
60 hospitals closed in So Cal because of this
payback for what ballooney
pam…that is so stupid..pay the doctors less..that would be capitalism at its best lol….it’s not immigrants it’s illegals…not our system..it’s illegals…Canada’s social system workes because they don’t have many ILLEGALS
It’s not that they don’t understand – they just don’t care. get what you can while you can
