Pre-hurricane home checklist — what to do this week if a storm is in the Gulf

This is the action checklist. If you’re reading this because a storm just formed in the Gulf and a Florida landfall is possible, the list below is what to do this week, in order of impact.

It’s not a comprehensive theoretical checklist (we have a more general one elsewhere). It’s the seven things that actually move the needle when you have 5 days.

How to use this list

The seven steps below are ordered by impact, not by ease. Start at step 1 and work down. Most homeowners can finish 5 of the 7 in a single Saturday morning. The remaining two (board-up and bracing) may take a second session.

The single rule: don’t wait. Florida hardware stores run out of plywood, water, and tarps inside the 48-hour window. If you start at 72 hours, you have options. At 24 hours, you don’t.

Step 1 — Photograph everything

Time required: 30 minutes.

Walk every room and photograph each wall, every appliance, every electronic, every piece of furniture you’d want to claim. Walk the exterior and photograph from each side, including the roof from the ground.

Email the photos to yourself so they’re cloud-backed. The phone in your hand may not make it through the storm; the email account will.

The hardest part of a post-hurricane insurance claim is proving what was there. This 30 minutes saves you weeks during the claim.

Step 2 — Locate and test your main water shut-off

Time required: 15 minutes.

Find it now, not during a 3am pipe failure during the storm. In most St. Johns County homes built since 1980, the main shut-off is labeled and near where the supply line enters the slab. Older homes (some in St. Augustine and Palm Valley) sometimes have it in less-obvious spots.

Turn it off and back on. If it’s stiff or won’t turn smoothly, that’s a pre-storm repair worth scheduling. Our plumbing page covers shut-off replacement — typical job is $125–$200.

Step 3 — Secure or store outdoor items

Time required: 60–90 minutes.

Walk the yard. Look at every item that can move in 80mph wind. Each one is a potential missile aimed at your or your neighbor’s windows.

What goes indoors or into the garage: chairs, umbrellas, planters, hoses, decorative items, kids’ toys, trash bins, the small grill. What gets tied down or shoved against the house: heavy patio furniture, the big grill, anything immovable.

Trim any tree branches over the roof. Move the cars off the street and into the garage if you have one.

Step 4 — Window protection

Time required: 2–4 hours depending on number of windows.

Pre-cut storm panels installed cleanly with proper anchors are best. Plywood (5/8 inch minimum, properly anchored) is acceptable backup. Impact-rated windows already installed are best of all.

Tape on glass doesn’t work. It doesn’t strengthen the window and doesn’t prevent breakage. Don’t waste your time.

If you can’t board every window, prioritize east- and south-facing windows first — those typically take the worst direct hits during a Florida landfall. If you don’t own plywood or panels, our pre-storm board-up service covers this when you give us 24–48 hours’ notice. Schedule fills fast once an advisory is active.

Step 5 — Clear gutters and downspouts

Time required: 20–45 minutes.

Most Florida gutter clogs are pine straw and Spanish moss. A 20-minute clear-out before the storm prevents the cascade of damage that starts when gutters overflow:

• Water pools against the roof line → roof leaks
• Water runs down siding → siding damage and paint failure
• Water saturates foundation perimeter → potential settling and water-intrusion

After cleaning, run a hose into each gutter and watch the downspout discharge. If a downspout is also clogged, snake or flush it.

Step 6 — Brace the garage door

Time required: 90 minutes.

This is the highest-impact task on the list and the most overlooked.

The garage door is the single most common catastrophic structural failure point in Florida homes during hurricanes. When the door fails, wind enters the house, pressurizes it from inside, and lifts the roof off from below. The roof goes; everything in the attic goes; everything in the house gets soaked.

A garage door bracing kit from Home Depot is around $200 and rated for most standard residential doors. Install per kit instructions — it’s an afternoon task.

A hurricane-rated replacement door is $1,500–$3,000 and is a permanent fix. If your door is original 1990s or 2000s construction, the replacement is worth pricing.

Step 7 — Stock essentials

Time required: 60 minutes.

Five days of water (1 gallon per person per day), prescription refills, cash (ATMs and card readers go down with power), battery banks for phones, ice in the freezer, non-perishable food, headlamps, a paper map of the area.

Buy at the 72-hour mark. By 48 hours the shelves are thinner. By 24 hours the lines and parking are misery.

What to do during and after

Once the storm is past, our post-storm checklist covers the first 48 hours of damage assessment, documentation, and emergency repair.

If your home took damage during the storm, our 24/7 emergency line is (904) 871-5791. We do roof tarps, board-ups for broken openings, and water-intrusion drywall once the immediate hazard is secure.

What we don’t cover

We don’t install impact-rated windows or doors (specialty contractor with permitting). We don’t do full structural reinforcement (engineer-required). We don’t do tree removal (specialty trade).

We do everything else on this list when you call ahead.