Although I love living here in the Hudson Valley, I’m not a fan of the very cold weather that winter can bring.  Winter is around the corner and there are a few things homeowners can do to prepare.

Emergency Kit

It’s good to make sure that you have emergency supplies around the house in the event bad weather strikes.  It’s a good idea to have a first aid kit on hand, but don’t stop there.  Make sure you have a radio, extra batteries and flashlights.  Include a list of medication and any special supplies for young children, water and non-perishable food for three days.  Plan for 1 gallon of water per person, per day.  It’s always a good idea to keep enough supplies on hand for about 3 days.

Winterize your home

Is your home adequately insulated?  Ensuring your home is properly insulated will not only keep you more comfortable during the cold winter, it will also save you some money.

Have drafty windows?  Caulk or add weather strips around your windows will reduce the draft coming through and reduce the loss of heat in your home.  If you don’t have storm windows or double paned windows on the inside of your home, cover your windows in plastic to help reduce heat loss.

To avoid having your pipes freeze, it’s a good idea to insulate your pipes.  By insulating your pipes, it adds protection to your pipes by keeping the cold away, reducing the chances of having your pipes freeze in cold weather.

Baby it’s Cold Outside

Like I mentioned earlier, I don’t like the winters because at times it can get brutally cold.  For that reason, it’s a good idea to have extra blankets around.  If the power goes out and you are without heat, it can get pretty cold in the house quickly.  You will want to snuggle up under blankets to keep warm. 

Can You Hear Me Now?

Don’t forget to have a communications plan with your family and friends.  This will help in any emergency.  With our heavy reliance on our electronic gadgets, it’s easy for us NOT to know important telephone numbers of family and friends because they are stored into our phones and easily accessible (when we have battery power).  However during an emergency, our batteries may die and if the power is out, we may not be able to recharge our phones.  Write down the telephone numbers and email addresses of family and friends and keep them in a safe place.  This will help in the event that your battery on your cell phone runs out and you need to use a traditional phone.

Hopefully it will be a mild winter and we won’t need to use any of these tips.  In the event that we get a bad storm, you will be thanking me.  Be safe this winter and don’t get left out in the cold!

For additional preparedness information, visit the following websites: New York State Emergency Management, Ready.gov, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

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