Cold Weather Safety Tips

Winter storms can bring cold temperatures, power failures, loss of communication services and icy roads. These conditions can make being outside dangerous. Although staying inside your home as much as you possibly can, can expose you to hazards inside your home.

Outdoors

Disconnect any hoses you may have connected to the outside of your home; cover the outside faucets with insulating covers.

Clear snow from around vents and exhaust panels of gas and propane fired appliances. Uncovered vents can lead to buildup of dangerous gases.

Inspect and clean fireplace chimneys. Chimneys can also build up with snow and even ice and can also lead to the back up of smoke.

Inside the Home

Let a faucet inside your home drip to prevent frozen pipes. In the event that your pipes have already froze, unthaw with a hair dryer, heat lamp, electric heat tape, or a space heater to allow water to start flowing again.

Take precaution when running the washing machine in your home. Let a small amount of water drain from the machine to help break up ice that may be stuck in the trap. This will prevent the dirty water from going all over your floor when it drains at the end of the cycle.

Whether you are using a wood burning stove, or a gas stove, make sure you have the proper safety devices inside your home. Smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors.

Inside the Car

Stay up to date on the road conditions. Your state should have a road conditions page on their site which will tell you what roads have closures and what the conditions of the roads are.

Keep bagged salt or cat litter in your vehicle as it can help with traction in the event you get stuck.

Make sure to have a new(er) car battery installed. The cold weather can drain batteries quicker and lead to a dead vehicle.

There are lots of precautions that you can take to protect yourself, your loved ones, and your home in the event of cold weather. We hope everyone stays warm and safe during this cold snap!