Disaster Preparedness for Your Business

Have you ever thought about what would happen to your business in the event of a fire? 20-40% of businesses don't reopen after they experience a loss. 

Just imagine...

Who will contact customers? Are your contacts and files backed up off site and where?

Are you a tenant? What does your insurance cover? Do you have Business Interruption Coverage?

If you could not access your office for days or even months, would you close temporarily? Move business elsewhere? How would you continue your operations?

Do you have an evacuation plan? Are your employees aware of it?

These questions may scare you. But knowing the answers could be the difference between going out of business or saving your business after a disaster. 

Don't worry! Buffalo has a simple, easy to use, disaster planning worksheet available for free for businesses in our community. 

• The worksheet compiles important contact information for the business including preferred plumber, landlord, insurance provider, electrician, IT support etc. Having this "important contacts" information in one place is incredibly helpful in streamlining the response to a disaster.

• The worksheet also encourages businesses to include a sketch of their facility. The sketch can identify water shut off valves, hazardous materials such as propane, electrical boxes, critical areas, exits etc. This sketch is good to have so that you can help emergency and restoration personnel navigate the building.

• And lastly, the worksheet has businesses answer a number of questions about their operations, insurance coverage, communications chain, evacuation process and more so that the business has a plan in place.

Tip: Buffalo suggests keeping a copy of this worksheet in a central location in the business. Tell employees where it is kept and encourage them to read through it so they know where to access important emergency information if they are the one needing to make the calls. We also suggest businesses keep a copy of this worksheet off site, or even at Buffalo Restoration, so that it is accessible if the internal copy has been compromised. Buffalo can use this information to respond to the emergency quickly.

For your copy of the Buffalo Restoration Disaster Preparedness Worksheet, email eporth@buffalorestoration.com or call 406-586-8109.

Did You Know? Turkey Facts!

With Thanksgiving approaching, we decided to help you get to know the bird a little bit better. Thanks to FRSTeam for their inspiration!

• The average weight of a turkey purchased at Thanksgiving is 15 pounds.

• The heaviest turkey ever raised was 86 pounds, about the size of a large dog. 

• A 15 pound turkey usually has about 70 percent white meat and 30 percent dark meat

• The five most popular ways to serve a leftover turkey is as a sandwich, in stew, chili or soup, casseroles, and as a burger.

• Turkey has more protein than chicken or beef

• Turkeys will have 3,500 feathers at maturity

• Male turkeys gobble. Hens do not. They make a clucking noise.

• Commercially raised turkeys cannot fly

• Turkeys have heart attacks. The United States Air Force was doing test runs and breaking the sounds barrier. Nearby turkeys dropped dead with heart attacks.

• A large group of turkeys is called a flock

• Turkeys have poor night vision

• It takes 75-80 pounds of feed to raise a 30 pound tom turkey

• A 16-week-old turkey is called a fryer. A fire to seven month old turkey is called a young roaster

• At one time, the turkey and the bald eagle were each considered as the national symbol of America. Benjamin Franklin was one of those who argued passionately on behalf of the turkey. Franklin felt the turkey, although "vain and silly", was a better choice than the bald eagle, whom he felt was "a coward".

• Some turkeys can run up to 25 miles per hour on ground

Happy Thanksgiving from the Buffalo Herd!

Beware of Ice Dams!

It's getting cold, beware of ice dams which can cause water damage to your home!

When warm air from your home gets into your attic, it melts the bottom layer of snow on your roof. The water then slides down the roof, and when it hits the cold air of the outside, it freezes into ice. At first it may look like icicles. But eventually, the ice will dam up, forcing water underneath the shingles and into your attic. After time, the water could seep down through sheet rock and flooring to cause major damage to the inside of your home.

This isn't easy stuff to understand, check out this video for a better diagram.

A couple tips from the Buffalo Herd:

• Improve the ventilation in your attic.
• Insulate around penetrations
• Clear out your rain gutters
• Remove icicles as they form

BE CAREFUL, don't climb on your roof with snow and ice present. And don't chip at the ice, this could cause more damage.

If you do have water damage, don't hesitate. Call Buffalo Restoration immediately to dry your home and prevent further damage.

Brrr... It's That Time of Year Again

Brrr...It's Time: Tips for Winterizing Your Home

Call an HVAC specialist to schedule a time to inspect your furnace and replace your filters. It is always convenient to get your duct system cleaned at the same time. Buffalo can help with that. If you have a hot water radiator, bleed the valves by opening them slightly and when water appears, close them. If any equipment, boxes, or clutter has accumulated near the furnace during the Summer months, move it away to prevent fire.

Prepare your fireplace by screening the top of the chimney to keep out rodents or birds who are trying to escape the cold. Call a chimney sweep to clean it before it is used during the Winter.

Cover drafty windows and doors with weather-stripping or plastic shields to prevent heat loss. Switch out Summer window screens with glass replacements, install storm windows if you have them.

Prevent ice dams by adding extra insulation to your attic, cleaning out rain gutters, and removing icicles as they form. Ice dams can cause water damage when they accumulate and then melt.

Get out your cold weather equipment (and put away your lawnmower). Drain the gas from your lawn mower and other lawn care equipment to store for the Winter. Tune up your snow blower, make sure it’s in working condition for the first big storm. Pull out your shovels from the garage. Stock up on sand

Protect against plumbing freezes by draining your garden hoses and air conditioner pipes. Locate and label your water main so it is easily found in case it needs to be shut off in an emergency. Always leave home at least 55 degrees.

And the easiest preparation tip of all, keep Buffalo Restoration’s number handy on your fridge. Montana Winter weather can cause serious damage to your home and Buffalo can be there in a snap to get things back to normal as quickly as possible. 

Chip Tips: Halloween 2012

Prevent fires this Halloween by replacing your jack-o-lantern candle with electric battery operated lights.

In our first installment of our new mini-series, Chip shows you exactly how to do it!