Something to add to your hurricane list

[LaPlaceFF]

Here is something that you should add to your hurricane evacuation kit. It is a state map. You can use it to find secondary and alternate evacuation routes. For example, instead of using the interstate system, you could travel that US # route or even that state # route. Sure it may be longer, but you'll avoid that MAJOR traffic jam on the Interstate.

[hibiscushouse]

And I bet you'll end up seeing some of small town Florida that you didn't know even exists.

I've been looking for a thread to put this little tidbit in, so I'll do it here.
In both Frances and Jeanne, our condo had driving rain come up into the sliding glass door tracks and then onto the wood floors. With Frances, we stuck towels in the track. In preparing for Ivan, we tapped the outside with some duct tape, then took it off once Ivan went West.
Didn't have time to get the duct tape back on for Jeanne, but someone had left swim diapers in the condo. We ripped them in half and stuck them in the track, and it absorbed the water a lot better than the towels did.
So diaper your sliding glass door tracks!

[alicia-w]

The other thing I would recommend is to buy an AC adaptor for charging your cell phone in your car. Some friends in Cantonment lost their land line (and power) but their cell phone worked just great. However, after all the neighbors used it, the battery died and they had no way to recharge. A relatively inexpensive way to make sure you can stay in touch.

[Wacahootaman]

Another thing is a flat rubber stopper to go over the tub drain.

If you have a tub with one of those built in metal stoppers, it will probably leak and all of your water that you saved in the tub for flushing the toilet will be gone in a day.

These stoppers are hard to find and sell out quick

[jes]

Brew coffee in the car -- someone posted this a couple weeks ago. They said to do a search using 12 volt and coffee pot. I did that and found the coffee pots on a truckers web page.

[BaltimoreGirl]

I have another emergency tip that helped one of my neighbors homes from major flooding, last year when Isabel hit. It was a pain in the butt to clean off, but he only had a small bit of water inside his house, when some of the other neighbors had a few feet. He used that spray foam insulation on the edges of all his windows and doors, and all along the exterior of the house-foundation, etc. Now, we only had rising water(we're on a creek off the bay), and not waves hitting against the homes, but it did help to keep the water out.

[HurricaneGirl]

You can also cook hot dogs on the road by wrapping them in foil and putting them in your engine block.

[Radar]

Also, another great resevoir for water is to fill your washing machine full of water then stop the cycle... This water can be used for flushing toliets... washing yourself or water for cleaning.....

[windwatcher]

Do people hooked up to city water have to worry about not having running water? I remember after Hurricane Andrew we lost power for a week, but never lost running water.

ps, Living in the big city all my life, I did not even think that people who dont have city water needed power to have running water in their homes. This weather forum is great for learning new things!.

[Aimless]

Baltimore - we did that at the University on flood prone basement entrances... worked fairly well!

[Aimless]

I have a great little converter for my car - with 2 outlets - Radio Shack. ( used it for a nebulizer).

[Aimless]

Windwatcher - even if you are on city water, it is a good idea to have a supply of clean drinking water stored. City pumps can go down too.