Pre-Hurricane Home Checklist for Florida Homeowners (2026)

The checklist in order of importance

Florida hurricanes do the most damage through three failure modes: wind entry through breached openings (windows, garage doors), water entry through compromised roofing or gutters, and flying-debris impact on exposed structures. Your prep should address those three failure modes in priority order.

Below is a step-by-step walkthrough with timing. You can do all of this in a single Saturday morning if you start early. If a named storm is forming and you’re inside the 5-day cone, start now.

Step 1 — Photograph every room and the exterior

The hardest part of a post-hurricane insurance claim is proving what was there before. Walk the house. Photograph every wall. Photograph every appliance, every piece of furniture, every electronic. Then photograph the outside from every angle — roofline, all four sides, every window, the AC unit, the pool cage, the fence, anything in the yard.

This takes 30 minutes. It saves weeks during a claim. Email the photos to yourself so they’re cloud-backed.

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

Most Florida homes built since 1980 have a clearly-marked shut-off near where the line enters the slab. Older homes (especially in St. Augustine) sometimes have the shut-off in unintuitive spots.

Turn it on and off. If it’s stiff or seized, that’s a pre-storm repair worth scheduling. We do shut-off replacement as part of our plumbing service — typical job is $125–$200.

Step 3 — Secure or store outdoor items

Look at your yard like an engineer. Anything that can move at 80mph is a missile. Storms break the umbrellas, throw the patio chairs through the sliding glass door, and rip the grill cover off and wedge it in the AC unit.

Bring movable items inside or into the garage. Tie down heavy patio furniture or shove it against the wall, downwind side. Trim branches that are over the roof. Move the trash and recycling bins into the garage.

Step 4 — Window protection

Pre-cut storm panels are the best option. Plywood is workable. Tape is theater — it doesn’t prevent breakage, only somewhat helps with shattering.

If you have hurricane-rated impact windows (most homes built in Nocatee after 2010 do), you don’t need additional protection. For older Florida homes, board-ups are essential.

Our hurricane-damage and pre-storm service includes board-up scheduling. We need 24–48 hours notice; the schedule fills fast once a storm advisory is active.

Step 5 — Clear gutters and downspouts

Saturated soil + clogged gutters = roof leaks and foundation water. Most Florida gutter clogs are pine straw and Spanish moss. A 20-minute clear-out prevents a 4-figure water-damage claim. We do gutter clearing as part of quarterly home maintenance — if you book us before hurricane season, this is automatic.

Step 6 — Brace the garage door

The garage door is the single most common structural failure point in a Florida home during a hurricane. When it fails, wind enters the house, pressurizes the interior, and pushes the roof off from below. The roof comes off, and everything inside follows.

A bracing kit from Home Depot is around $200 and is rated for most standard residential garage doors. A hurricane-rated replacement door is $1,500–$3,000 and is a permanent fix.

Step 7 — Stock essentials

• Water. 1 gallon per person per day, 5 days minimum.
• Medications. Refill prescriptions early; pharmacies close.
• Cash. ATMs and card readers go down with the power.
• Battery banks. Phone chargers, headlamps, lanterns.
• Ice and non-perishable food. Plan for 5 days without power.
• A paper map. GPS may not work.

After the storm

If you have damage, our 24/7 emergency service responds for tarping, board-ups, and immediate repairs. We document everything from arrival so your insurance claim has what it needs. We answer the phone day and night during storm response.

For a full walkthrough of what to do in the first 24 hours of damage, see our hurricane damage repair page.