Thursday, February 25, 2010 @ 4:01 PM Posted by Danielle Darany - 0 comments

Once you become a home inspector, your expertise may be called upon for more than deciphering the overall condition of real property. For example, if you live in a geographic region that's susceptible to annual hurricanes and tropical storms, you can help homeowners ensure their home is ready.

According to www.StormExpo2010.com, here are some important home inspection tips to consider for the exterior of a home:

Gutters & Shutters
Ensure gutters and shutters are firmly fastened to the structure.

Doors
Check the condition of the hardware on all doors. Adding deadbolts (top and bottom) to each door leaf can help prevent it from blowing outward or inward during a storm.

Trees
All overgrown trees should be trimmed down. Also, use the bark for ground cover, which is safer than gravel in the event of a storm.

Miscellaneous Outdoor Items
Is there a family of ceramic garden gnomes in the yard? Cute to some, but during a storm, items such as lawn decorations can break windows and cause additional, unnecessary damage to a home. Other items to consider include patio furniture and satellite dishes.

Garage
Is the home's garage made of hurricane resistant panels? If not, vertical support bars can be firmly screwed into the door ribs. You will also need to anchor in the bars at the top and bottom.

Turbines (roof)
Homeowners should buy caps for their home's roof turbines. When a storm hits, the turbines can be removed and replaced by the caps. Why? Because when winds hit 100 miles per hour or more, the turbines can blow off, leaving holes in the roof where rain and wind will enter the attic.