Fall Back is a Good Time to Catch Up on Storm Preparations on the Cape Cod & The Islands

10/25/2015 (Permalink)

Use your time wisely to help you and your family prepare for potential storm damage.

This weekend marks the end of daylight savings time which means it’s time to fall back…giving us an extra hour on Sunday….an hour that could be used to prepare for any storms that might blow our way in the coming months.

I’m not sure about you, but I could use an extra hour in every day! I remember one year when daylight savings time ended, but my husband Bill and I failed to take advantage of the extra hour to sleep in. Oblivious to the fact that it was one hour earlier than the clocks in our house and cars indicated (yes, folks, this was the era before iPhones and smart phones that readjust the clocks for us), we got our three children up on Sunday morning, fed them breakfast, got them dressed, and loaded them into the car. We headed out to get a few errands done, which included some shopping. Thinking that it was well passed the scheduled noon opening time, we were stunned to find one store after another still closed. Confused and perplexed, we looked at one another until it finally dawned on us—everyone else in the state and the country remembered to turn their clocks back except for us.

As much as I celebrate gaining an hour, I also grieve it a bit, too, knowing that the sunsets will occur earlier, making the days feel shorter.  There is something sad about driving home from work in the dark. It signifies that the winter season—and the cold weather and the storms that go with it—really is just around the corner.

Since we do get an extra hour on the first Sunday morning when daylight savings time ends, the best use of this bonus time might be spent preparing for the upcoming winter season and checking on a few things. For instance, this is a great reminder to check the batteries in the smoke and carbon monoxide detectors. It’s a good time to seal up any cracks around windows and doors to ensure that there are no cold drafts pouring into the home, driving up our heating bills. This is also a good time to schedule an annual maintenance of your furnace. This not only helps to prevent a “puff back,” which can blow soot all over your home and belongings, it also helps to ensure that the furnace is working efficiently, which helps keep the heating bills in check.

If you have a storm emergency kit, this is the time to check it to make sure that it is fully stocked with things like flashlights, candles, batteries, water, non-perishable foods, etc. If you don’t have a storm emergency kit, then this certainly is a good time to put one together.

Daylight savings should serve as a reminder to have your chimney cleaned, since a build up of creosote can cause a chimney fire.

This is also a good time to clean up exterior spaces—making sure that any outdoor furniture is stored away and any items that remain outside are properly covered.

Since daylight savings 2015 officially ends on November 1 this year, after the last of the trick or treaters have come and gone, go ahead and turn back the clocks in your house and take pleasure in knowing that you can enjoy an extra hour of sleep the next day. And if you happen to forget about the time change, fear not…your phone will let you know.