One way to add wind resistance to a home's roof is to add three dots of roof cement under each shingle, focusing on the shingles nearest roof edges and near gable ends, seen Tuesday, July 9, 2019 during a tour of the LSU AgCenter's LaHouse Resource Center by its Director, Claudette Hanks Reichel, Tuesday, July 9, 2019. She was pointing out ome easy DIY ways to get a home ready for hurricane season.
Annular ring-shank roofing nails, which can be used to provide a more secure attachment of roof decking, seen Tuesday, July 9, 2019 during a tour of the LSU AgCenter's LaHouse Resource Center by its Director, Claudette Hanks Reichel, Tuesday, July 9, 2019. She was pointing out some easy DIY ways to get a home ready for hurricane season.
Annular ring-shank roofing nails, which can be used to provide a more secure attachment of roof decking, seen Tuesday, July 9, 2019 during a tour of the LSU AgCenter's LaHouse Resource Center by its Director, Claudette Hanks Reichel, Tuesday, July 9, 2019. She was pointing out some easy DIY ways to get a home ready for hurricane season.
Stainless steel screws, (foreground) that fight rust and stay secure longer, and polyurethane caulk are two ways to improve long-tern durability of soffits on a home's exterior, seen Tuesday, July 9, 2019 during a tour of the LSU AgCenter's LaHouse Resource Center by its Director, Claudette Hanks Reichel, Tuesday, July 9, 2019. She was pointing out some easy DIY ways to get a home ready for hurricane season.
Caulking the bottom edge of the soffit wall J track to the wall anchors it more strongly. (The caulk is shown in black for the demonstration.)
A screw is inserted through edge of the fascia cover, through soffit panels and into the fascia board.
Soffits, seen Tuesday, July 9, 2019 during a tour of the LSU AgCenter's LaHouse Resource Center by its Director, Claudette Hanks Reichel, Tuesday, July 9, 2019. Soffits can be strengthened in preparation for hurricanes by using sealant and stainless st\eel screws.
Silicone caulk can be used to seal plumbing and other penetrations on a home's exterior, in preparation for a hurricane. Seen Tuesday, July 9, 2019 during a tour of the LSU AgCenter's LaHouse Resource Center by its Director, Claudette Hanks Reichel, Tuesday, July 9, 2019. She was pointing out some easy DIY ways to get a home ready for hurricane season.
Strong, lightweight and translucent, these polycarbonatate shutters can be installed quickly, using wing nuts and a pop-open track system mounted ahead of time, seen Tuesday, July 9, 2019 during a tour of the LSU AgCenter's LaHouse Resource Center by its Director, Claudette Hanks Reichel, Tuesday, July 9, 2019. The shutters can protect aginst flying debris and presurization. She was pointing out some easy DIY ways to get a home ready for hurricane season.
Wing nuts securing strong, lightweight and translucent, polycarbonatate shutters that can protect against flying debris and pressurization during a hurricane. Photographed Tuesday, July 9, 2019 during a tour of the LSU AgCenter's LaHouse Resource Center by its Director, Claudette Hanks Reichel, Tuesday, July 9, 2019. She was pointing out some easy DIY ways to get a home ready for hurricane season.
One way to add wind resistance to a home's roof is to add three dots of roof cement under each shingle, focusing on the shingles nearest roof edges and near gable ends, seen Tuesday, July 9, 2019 during a tour of the LSU AgCenter's LaHouse Resource Center by its Director, Claudette Hanks Reichel, Tuesday, July 9, 2019. She was pointing out ome easy DIY ways to get a home ready for hurricane season.
Annular ring-shank roofing nails, which can be used to provide a more secure attachment of roof decking, seen Tuesday, July 9, 2019 during a tour of the LSU AgCenter's LaHouse Resource Center by its Director, Claudette Hanks Reichel, Tuesday, July 9, 2019. She was pointing out some easy DIY ways to get a home ready for hurricane season.
Annular ring-shank roofing nails, which can be used to provide a more secure attachment of roof decking, seen Tuesday, July 9, 2019 during a tour of the LSU AgCenter's LaHouse Resource Center by its Director, Claudette Hanks Reichel, Tuesday, July 9, 2019. She was pointing out some easy DIY ways to get a home ready for hurricane season.
Stainless steel screws, (foreground) that fight rust and stay secure longer, and polyurethane caulk are two ways to improve long-tern durability of soffits on a home's exterior, seen Tuesday, July 9, 2019 during a tour of the LSU AgCenter's LaHouse Resource Center by its Director, Claudette Hanks Reichel, Tuesday, July 9, 2019. She was pointing out some easy DIY ways to get a home ready for hurricane season.
Caulking the bottom edge of the soffit wall J track to the wall anchors it more strongly. (The caulk is shown in black for the demonstration.)
A screw is inserted through edge of the fascia cover, through soffit panels and into the fascia board.
Soffits, seen Tuesday, July 9, 2019 during a tour of the LSU AgCenter's LaHouse Resource Center by its Director, Claudette Hanks Reichel, Tuesday, July 9, 2019. Soffits can be strengthened in preparation for hurricanes by using sealant and stainless st\eel screws.
Silicone caulk can be used to seal plumbing and other penetrations on a home's exterior, in preparation for a hurricane. Seen Tuesday, July 9, 2019 during a tour of the LSU AgCenter's LaHouse Resource Center by its Director, Claudette Hanks Reichel, Tuesday, July 9, 2019. She was pointing out some easy DIY ways to get a home ready for hurricane season.
Strong, lightweight and translucent, these polycarbonatate shutters can be installed quickly, using wing nuts and a pop-open track system mounted ahead of time, seen Tuesday, July 9, 2019 during a tour of the LSU AgCenter's LaHouse Resource Center by its Director, Claudette Hanks Reichel, Tuesday, July 9, 2019. The shutters can protect aginst flying debris and presurization. She was pointing out some easy DIY ways to get a home ready for hurricane season.
Wing nuts securing strong, lightweight and translucent, polycarbonatate shutters that can protect against flying debris and pressurization during a hurricane. Photographed Tuesday, July 9, 2019 during a tour of the LSU AgCenter's LaHouse Resource Center by its Director, Claudette Hanks Reichel, Tuesday, July 9, 2019. She was pointing out some easy DIY ways to get a home ready for hurricane season.
Hurricane season officially started June 1, but if you’re like me, it’s only now, with a storm in the Gulf, that you’re paying much attention. Most storms here in this century, after all, have struck in August and September. But if you’re like Claudette Reichel — and we all should be - you stay on top of home preparations year round.
Reichel is the director of the LaHouse home and resource center of the LSU AgCenter in Baton Rouge, which is a showcase of building and landscape methods especially suited to the South. She demonstrated some easy and inexpensive DIY tips that will help your home stand up against whatever blows its way in the next few months.
Give Reichel’s suggestions some attention, starting now.
High winds can blast up underneath the bottom row of shingles and lift the rest of the layers along with them. Securing that bottom row may help save your roof in a storm.
For roofs that are not high-wind rated (such as Class G or H), buy a tube of roofing cement (about $9 for 11 oz.) and use it to affix that first row more tightly. Each shingle should get three 1-inch dots of cement, one in the middle and one on each side, a few inches from the shingle's edge. One tube will take care of about 25 feet of shingles.
It may take two weeks for the cement to properly adhere, so do this as soon as possible.
Also check for loose shingles. If you can lift the edge of any shingle, it should be re-adhered.
If it's time for a new roof, consider:
Add fasteners: Roof decking is usually nailed or stapled sparingly to the rafters. With the roofing felt off, add nails or screws to the roof deck. Galvanized ring-shank nails (about $16 for 140) have more holding power than smooth nails.
Hurricane straps: With the roof decking removed, add straps that connect the rafters to the walls for added stability.
Glue: If the decking remains, add AGF-01-rated subflooring adhesive in a bead along where the side of the rafter meets the sheathing.
Synthetic underlay: If replacing the underlay, use synthetics, which are more wind-resistant than felt. Overlap the underlayment 4 to 6 inches and tape the seams with a bitumen tape.
New shingles: Wind resistant shingles come in three classes: D - up to 90 mph wind; G - up to 120 mph; and H, up to 150 mph.
Soffits protect a home's rafters from the elements. Keeping moisture away from them reduces the chance of mold, and helps prolong the life of the materials. Many soffits sit in J channels attached where they meet the siding.
A 10 oz. tube of polyurethane sealant (about $8) and some stainless steel screws can help keep soffits secure.
The goal is to firmly connect the soffit parts so they act as a unit so that one weak part can't start a general failure.
Apply a bead of sealant along the joint between the edge of the soffit channel and the wall.
Then install sharp-pointed stainless screws through the fascia and channels so that they connect the soffit material.
Apply sealant in the grooves where they butt up against the fascia and wall channel. Secure the trim piece against the house by caulking the bottom of the trim piece to the wall at the interface between the two.
The LaHouse uses built-in vented soffits made of the same cement board as the rest of the house.
For about $6, a 10 oz. container of silicone caulk will seal holes where wire, cables and pipes enter or exit the house.
Think cable TV and phone lines; electrical boxes and circuit breaker panels; AC refrigerant and condensate lines; water heater and water pipes; wall outlets; dryer, bathroom and kitchen vents; and electrical devices such as wall lights.
Replace gravel in the landscape with a soft mulch ($3-$4 for 2 cubic feet). In strong storms, gravel can shred vinyl siding and break glass. Ask your neighbors to do the same.
Also: Trim trees, and remove dying ones
Secure the things in your yard, or find a place to stow them away during a storm.
Add storm shutters to help protect against storm-driven debris. The LaHouse uses strong, lightweight polycarbonate shutters that can be installed quickly if a storm is coming by using wing nuts on a pop-open track system. When not in use, the cover of the track closes and panel looks like trim. The shutters cost more but are much easier to use than clunky, heavy plywood. The wavy surface helps to resist wind.
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LaHouse is open for a special event from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, with a focus on disaster resistance and resilience in the wake of hurricanes and flooding.
Director Claudette Reichel will be there, at 2858 Gourrier Ave. in Baton Rouge, to answer questions about the high-performance building materials and methods used throughout the house systems to make it stand up to Louisiana's climate.
LaHouse is an LSU AgCenter extension program. Normal hours for self-guided tours are 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday-Friday.
Tropical Storm Barry is meandering in the Gulf of Mexico as it moves closer toward the Louisiana coastline Friday evening, according to the 7 …
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