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Hurricane Preparedness 2024: Property Maintenance Starter Checklist

Hurricane Preparedness 2024: Property Maintenance Starter Checklist

by | Feb 29, 2024 | Checklists & Guides, Helpful Guidance, Hurricane Preparedness, Maintenance

Hurricane Season Property Prep

 

The 2024 Atlantic hurricane season officially runs from the 1st of June to 30th November.

While we are only in February, the time to start 2024 hurricane preparations, particularly 2024 hurricane preparations for your property, is now! Home repairs and preparations needed before the hurricane season can take weeks or months in some cases to ensure quality results. Therefore doing it at a time before the season and heavy rainfall/winds helps reduce interruption of inspection work and preprations, ensuring a good job and minimsing risk as much as possible.

Here are a few things to consider getting inspected and prepared before the hurricane season:

Roof Inspections

It is recommended that you have a roof inspection of your home at least twice a year, with one of those inspections being pre-Hurricane season. Having your roof inspected is an important step in hurricane preparations. This can help to check the durability of the roof, looking to see if there are any loose shingles or problem points which need to be addressed. Addressing and repairing these not only helps with minimising damage to your home during storms e.g. preventing water from getting through, but also preventing any of the looser shingles being picked up during heavy storm winds and becoming hazardous debris.
5 Star offers roof inspections for single story and double story properties.

You can book your appointment for roof inspections now.

Installing Shutters or Buying Plywood

After roof inspections, installing or checking up on your shutters or getting plywood is another key preparation step. If you currently have shutters, it’s good to get these inspected before the season to ensure there’s no damage and they’re able to be closed properly. For those wishing to install shutters or getting plywood, the installation process may take one to two days or less, but enough time should be left for measurements, purchasing of materials, which sometimes require pre-ordering from overseas.

Deciding whether you should get shutters or plywood? We offer more detail in our article here on the benefits of each, the differences and what might work for you.

Tree trimming and removing any other hazardous debris

Ensuring overhanging or dead branches are trimmed and removed is also essential. These branches can easily be removed in strong winds and pose risk to your property, car and other areas. The same applies for any other broken parts around the house such as the gutters, garden tools or debris.

5 Star’s landscaping services includes tree trimming, garden cleanup and more. For more information about these services, click here.

This is just a snapshot of some of the areas of your property to check and get inspected before the hurricane season. If you have any questions about hurricane preparedness for your home or want to learn more about what’s covered in the inspections or appointments, contact us here.

Make sure to also check out Hazard Management’s website caymanprepared.ky for more information on a hurricane preparedness checklist for yourself and your family along with a list of hurricane shelters and the latest news and guidance from the Cayman Islands Government.

Power Washing homes in the Cayman Islands: What you need to know

Power Washing homes in the Cayman Islands: What you need to know

by | Jan 19, 2024 | Checklists & Guides, Maintenance

Power Washing Services

 

Power washing is one of our many 5 Star maintenance services available for residential and commercial properties in Grand Cayman.

Power washing is an effective tool to remove years of mold, mildew, stains, and dirt whether on your external walls, driveway, or garage. It’s a great way to refresh your house, to make it look brand new.

At 5 Star, we offer a tailored experience for maintenance services such as power washing. To ensure best results, there’s a few factors to consider, depending on the property. Some of these include:

House is near the water

Being an island, we have many properties near the water!

Whether it’s oceanfront or near canals, having a property near the water may lead to greater moisture in the area, which can cause a buildup of mold or mildew on the walls.

Usually, this means your property will need  more power washing sessions to keep everything well maintained.

Proximity of vegetation

If your property is near to bushes, trees and other vegetation, the walls or driveway may get stained by leaves, tree sap and thus more power washing may be needed than other homes.

How close the trees or shrubs are to the house is also important for determining the power washing chemicals used. At 5 Star we always suggest a site visit before starting services and will review how close the trees are and the best way to proceed.

Sun Exposure

Adding to the previous point, proximity of vegetation or other objects can block the property from having direct sunlight, thus impacting the service as well. For those more in direct sunlight, the drying time after power washing can be quicker and thus help prevent new growth of mold. For those with properties more in the shade, there will need to be considerations for the fact it can take longer to dry after the service  – especially in our climate that is very humid.

With this in mind, we also suggest trying to get the majority of your power washing sessions done outside of the hurricane season in Cayman to avoid power washing periods in heavy rainfall.

If your property fits any of the above, we would normally recommend you do power washing every 3 months. However, we always find a site visit of your property is best to ensure we tailor the service to fit your property’s needs, ensuring your property remains in great shape year round! To learn more about our power washing services click here.

Don’t Panic Moments: What to do when a pipe bursts?

Don’t Panic Moments: What to do when a pipe bursts?

by | Nov 29, 2023 | Checklists & Guides, Maintenance, Urgent Help

Emergency maintenance issue?

 

Your pipe bursts.

It can be a moment of panic, especially if it’s outside of normal hours.

However, the most important thing is to remain calm and follow the instructions below swiftly to ensure the least amount of damage and issues for your home.

We have created 5 immediate steps below to follow in the event your pipe bursts.

1. Turn off the main water shut off valve

There is an internal stop valve for water in many houses in Cayman and these might be found in garages etc. However, as a first step, especially where there is extensive flooding, it’s best to use the external main water stop valve.

Unlike the internal stop valve, this will shut off all the water supply going into your home meaning the water will stop regardless of if the leak is coming from an internal or external source.

This main shut off valve is usually outside along the perimeter of your home.

2. Find the source of the leak

The leak may be easier to find in obvious places such as the ceiling, bathroom pipes or pipes under the kitchen sink.

It’s important to do a thorough check of nearby rooms if there’s not a clear source, especially if it’s near to another door. For example, water heater leaking out from storage room into the next room.

Any water near entrances to another room should be followed to ensure there is no further leaking or water damage.

If you still aren’t able to find the source, not to worry as the maintenance team can help. We only suggest you try to locate it in the interim so you’re able to soak up water as soon as possible (see next point).

3. Soak / gather up the water

Use buckets, cloths or towels to gather up any excess water in the interim of a professional team arriving to minimize damage as much as possible.

4. Note down the damage and area

Whilst waiting on the plumber/maintenance team to arrive this is a good moment to make a note and take photos of any extensive damage that may require an insurance claim.

5. Contact 5 Star on their urgent helpline

At 5 Star we help with a range of emergency maintenance situations including burst pipes.

To learn more about out urgent help services click here.

Also make sure to download our printable PDF that is a condensed version of this article for what to do when your pipe burst to have it on file or share with family and friends.

Download PDF here

Garden Preparation for Hurricane Season: Palm Trees and Coconut Trees

Garden Preparation for Hurricane Season: Palm Trees and Coconut Trees

by | Sep 12, 2023 | Helpful Guidance, Hurricane Preparedness, Landscaping & Outdoors, Maintenance

Hurricane Prep for Homes: Palm Trees & Coconut Trees

This is our third and final article in our series ‘Home Hurricane Preparedness’.

In our first article we discussed the general areas of your home you should assess before the hurricane season. In our second article, we focused in more on garden preparation in particular. For this article, we are still on the topic of preparing your garden for a hurricane however we’re looking at palm trees and coconut trees in particular!

Coconut trees and palm trees can make for a picturesque view in your commercial or residential property. However, these trees can pose a risk during storms and strong winds.

Being aware of the weather forecast along with ensuring you schedule in maintenance visits for your trees is vital.

Below are some of the main areas of the tree that should be maintained or assessed, especially before a storm.

Learn more at the end of this article about 5 Star’s landscaping services, including our urgent help service for any fallen trees or debris that needs to be cleared.

Inspect Palm Trees:

This includes looking out for any pests, areas of the tree that may be struturally compromised or any diseases.

Coconut Tree/Palms Safety:

Check the coconut trees & palms, removing any overhanging branches and/or harvesting coconuts that may pose risk during strong storm force winds

Supporting Trunks:

Taller palm or coconut trees may benefit from having braces or methods to help support it (e.g. tree straps or stakes to stablize it) to prevent the tree from falling over or the  trunk from curving.

Mulching and Root Protection:

Adding mulch around the palm and coconut trees are great for helping to retain mosture. It’s also good for soil stabilzation. However, it is important not to pile up mulch right by the tree trunk as this may lead to rotting of the tree in some areas.

Pruning Fronds:

When trimming the fronds (part of the palms), it’s best to only trim the damaged or dead ones to prevent putting extra streess on the tree.

Regular Maintenance:

Regular maintenance checks throughout the year are important to keep trees healthy, but this is especially vital during the hurricane season.

View the information below to schedule your maintenance visit with 5 Star.

Get in touch

We hope this article has given you greater insight into preparing your palm trees and coconut trees properly for a storm.

For more information on our landscaping services at 5 Star, visit here.

However, we know things can happen during storms with trees and they may fall over or cause damage to properties. We have a dedicated urgent helpline for any emergencies including fallen trees or damage to structures. For more information on our urgent help service, visit here.

Garden Preparation for Hurricane Season

Garden Preparation for Hurricane Season

by | Sep 7, 2023 | Helpful Guidance, Hurricane Preparedness, Landscaping & Outdoors, Maintenance

This is our second article in our series ‘Home Hurricane Preparedness’. In our first article we discussed the general areas of your home you should assess before the hurricane season. In this article, we will focus in more on garden preparation in particular. Strong gusts of wind during storms can cause plants and other objects in your garden to be swept away, posing risk. Below are some areas we suggest you assess and things to do in and aorund your garden before a storm comes.

View end of article to find out more about 5 Star’s Landscaping Service.

Plant Maintenance:

As mentioned in the 1st article plant maintenance including trimming dead branches from trees and shrubs is important during hurricane season to help reduce the amount of branches that may fall or be swept away by the wind. Staking and fastening taller plants to avoid them bending is also vital as it can help  increase the durability of a plant.

Harvest and Store:

Harvesting fruits before a storm, especially coconuts (which have hard shells and can be  heavy), prevent them from becoming a risk in terms of flying into cars houses. Storing produce in a safe place will also help prevent damage to your crops, for those who do farming.

Potted Plants:

It’s good to have space in your shed or inside to also store any potted plants. These ceramic plant pots could fall over and smash if left outside during a storm and the shards could also pose a risk. 

Mulching and Soil Stabilization:

It can be useful to add some mulch to your garden to help prevent soil erosion. Sandbags may also aid in securing soil in spots where it may be more likely to erode during a storm.

Irrigation Systems:

Make sure you are aware of how to turn your irrigation systems and sprinklers on and off, and ensure these are off during heavy rainfall to avoid your plants being overwatered.

Get in touch

We hope this article has given you a better feel of the key areas of your garden you should be asessing and scheduling landscaping & lawncare visits when doing your hurricane preparation. At 5Star, we have a team of trained professionals that can assist you with all of your landscaping needs:

  • Garden cleanup
  • Irrigation & drainage
  • Planting & removal
  • Urgent help
  • And more…

For more information click here.