Proper Maintenance - Take care of your property, especially the parts that are prone to water damage or withstand harsh weather at its worst. This will include the roof, walls, gutters, windows and any other parts of the house that are exposed to damage due to stormy weather. In addition, water has a tendency of flowing downwards (gravity is wonderful, right?) so check your basement, crawl spaces and any place water can hide comfortably and cause more damage. Water damage increases over time, so the sooner you handle it - the better. Some tips for proper maintenance of your home would include:

1. Check your roof and attic at least once a year to make sure they're intact and that there is no evidence of damage or water.
2. Clean your gutters before the rains begin in the fall. Water will flow to the most convenient place, so make sure it's the gutter and not your home.
3. Check windows, doors and any joint of two or more materials - the seams between materials and parts of the house are a weak link in the house, so make sure they're intact and in good condition.
4. Are you sure your vents and chimney are well maintained? If not, it's important to make sure that they're protected from rain and snow, not clogged, and that they're clean. During winter, you need those air ways when the whole house is closed and sealed

More tips can be found in this article: Storm & Rain Damage Restoration on our company's main website.

Check your pipes, insulation and main water valve - Freezing water can burst your pipes, and Washington DC in January-February temperatures are freezing, or just a little above that. The storm will pass, the pipes will defreeze, and water will start flowing through the burst pipes, with water damage in tow.

How to prevent water damage from burst pipes? Check that the pipes are intact, not too dry and that there are no visible cracks. Check the pipes insulation - better and proper insulation will keep your pipes from freezing and bursting, saving you money and stress. If it's going to be super cold, leaving a tap dripping might be a good idea.

Suffered Water Damage? Act Immediately! - Water damage increases and spreads over time. Untreated water damage will get worse, and would require more effort to repair, not to mention the money, time and stress.
The correct steps to take care of water damage are:

Find the water source and stop more water from getting in: do this as quickly as you can. Close the water mains if the water comes from a pipe, or seal the hole that's allowing the water to come in.

Call the insurance - though their lines might be busy due to the storm, you'll have to talk to them or to your insurance agent to understand what's covered in your policy and what not, and to get information from them on the next steps in storm damage restoration.

Call the professional storm & water damage experts - Call Flood Damage Pro Washington DC at 202-787-3959 and get a prompt response to your crisis. We'll come over as fast as we can, and help restore your home and life from the storm damage.

Extract the water and remove water damaged items - the first step in restoration of storm and water damage is to get the water out and to remove items before the damage is set. Although some items will be damaged as soon as water touches them, some items can be safely dried and restored if you act fast enough. You do not have to wait for Washington DC's Flood Damage Pro response team, you can start removing items yourself. Just make sure you turn off the electricity before you do - we do not want you endangering your life!