IBHS Offers Homeowner Tips Before the Trips

If you’re heading off for summer vacation, you’re probably locking up the house for a week or so.

It’s a routine for plenty of people each year. But what would happen if a pipe sprang a leak, the toilet kept running or the water line to your icemaker clogged?

When your house needs you the most, you may not be there. That’s why the Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS) developed the guide “Is Your Home Alone?”

IBHS helps consumers close up a home for a long weekend or even an extended period of time, with custom tips for cold and warm climates.

The guide also helps homeowners choose whether to turn the water off or leave it on, protect active water service, plan for high wind and make the house look lived in.

Also included are simple steps for routine maintenance that will help
protect the home year round, and a section by the Insurance Information Institute about obtaining proper insurance for homes that are left unoccupied.

A checklist attached to the guide can be torn off and carried in-hand with instructions for final preparations that should be made right before the owner heads out the door.

“Is Your Home Alone?” can be found in the Publications section of the IBHS Web site http://www.disastersafety.org . For free single copies, call toll free 1-(866) 657-IBHS (4247).