Can you minimize the damage to your home from trees?

You can.

Falling trees and limbs cause hundred of millions of dollars of damage each year, as well as personal injuries and deaths. Windstorms and ice storms are leading causes of such damage and injuries.

Tree-related damage is usually apparent. It is easy to see limbs on roofs, vehicles or power lines. Sometimes the damage is so severe that an entire building is destroyed. This is especially likely to happen when large trees are torn out of the ground and topple onto a house, crashing through the structure or knocking it off its foundation.

But don't forget about underground damage which isn't so obvious. In 1992 in Miami-Dade County, Florida, trees were uprooted by Hurricane Andrew ... hundreds of millions of dollars of damage was done to underground utilities such as sewer and water lines, buried communications cables and sidewalks.

Some potential problems are easy to spot. They include:

• cracks in the trunk or major limbs
• hollow and decayed trees
• trees that look one-sided or lean significantly
• branches hanging over the house near the roof
• limbs in contact with power lines
• mushrooms growing from the bark, indicating a decayed or weakened stem
• V-shaped forks rather than U-shaped ones. V-shaped are more likely to split
• crossing branches that rub or interfere with one another.

*Source: DisasterSafety.org

Do you have a Disaster Kit?

Every household should put together a disaster kit for emergency situations. You should also become familiar with your community’s severe weather warning system. Make certain every person in your family knows what to
do when severe weather threatens. Where you live, it may not be weather that threatens but a disaster instead. Everyone should study their community’s disaster preparedness plans and create a family plan. It is also important to learn about the plans of your workplace, children’s schools or day care centers.

Disaster kits should include:

First aid	Flashlights	Bottled water
Caution tape	Duct tape	Boots & gloves
Plastic bags	Additional batteries	Note pad/pens
Hard hats	Copy of emergency binder	Tarps

Visit our Smart Center

Our Southeast Michigan Advanced Restoration Training Center provides on-going education. this 1200 square foot state-of-the-art training facility has been constructed on-site at our Novi Headquarters. Please click our Smart Center tab to learn more and to see our upcoming classes! There is a class on Tuesday March 8th!

Be Prepared: Identifying Solutions to Basement Flooding

Basement flooding can be a problem in some homes, and there are steps to take to minimize potential damage. But since a flooded basement can result from a number of things, there is no single method for prevention. The most important things are to determine:

1. When is the basement flooding?
2. Where is the basement flooding?

Inspect the location where water is entering and caulk any cracks on the interior.

If the entire wall is damp, or water is entering through multiple wall surfaces, this may be a sign of a faulty or missing water proofing membrane.

• Remove soil around the foundation
• Consider a waterproofing membrane
• Consider applying an internal sealant that can be painted on interior surface of basement walls (This is not an option for finished basement walls. These products required constant maintenance or they will stop working.)

If the water appears to be entering the home near the foundation or through a floor drain;

• Install a French Drain at the base of the foundation
• Install a sump pump with a battery backup

*Source: DisasterSafety.org

Performance Standards ... SunGlo has them! What about your Restoration Specialist?

1. The homeowner will be contacted within one hour of receiving a job assignment.
2.  We will have a physical presence on the job within 4 hours of assignment for emergency losses, within 24 hours of assignment for non-emergency losses.
3. A detailed estimate within 72 hours of inspection will be provided. Full photographic documentation of the risk, damage, causation, and property condition will be given to the insurance company within 72 hours of inspection.
4. Accurate and comprehensive activity notes and project photos will be entered into the Sunglo website for ongoing tracking of all key conversations, agreements, understandings, and claims-related issues for easy access by the handling adjuster and designated supervisor and manager.
5. Drying Records will be entered into our website on a daily basis.
6. A diagram showing affected areas and the bordering non-affected areas will be submitted within 72 hours of inspection.
7. Work authorization must be received prior to commencing any work.
8. A certificate of satisfaction will be delivered upon completion of job.
   
   Insist on performance standards like these. Insist on SunGlo Services!

The Smart Center

We are the professionals that train the professionals. Our Southeast Michigan Advanced Restoration Training Center provides on-going education for employees, as well as, agents, adjusters and other insurance professionals, property managers, occupational therapists, risk managers, facility managers, and other IICRC members. This 1200 square foot state-of-the-art training facility has been constructed on-site at our Novi headquarters. Built to replicate a home, we can provide comprehensive training in a variety of residential situations, such as: kitchen bathroom, dining room, living room, bedroom, laundry room, and home office. Different construction material is also used for demonstration purposes, such as: wood and metal wall studs, four types of carpeting, wood, vinyl tile, and ceramic tile flooring.

Our unique and innovative training approach allows us to replicate the environment in which the damage would occur to teach the correct amount of equipment needed to efficiently complete the drying of the building. Open wall areas show the classes how drying equipment conducts airflow to thoroughly dry a wall interior. Our certified training crews flood the SMART Center monthly for class monitoring and then dry out all areas using different drying methods utilizing the newest technology and industry standards. The effectiveness of these methods is proven by the fact that the facility has been flooded repeatedly throughout the years without having to replace any of the materials. 

Take a look at our page here on our blog detailing the classes offered by SunGlo instructors!

Certifications at SunGlo

The staff and equipment to handle any job

We have a full time staff of over 80, including over 40 certified employees and 5 Master Water Restorers. Our technicians have over 100 certifications in the service areas needed to successfully complete any project.

• Carpet Cleaning • Upholstery & Fabric Cleaning • Journeyman Textile Cleaner • Water Damage Restoration • Odor Control • Health & Safety Technician • Applied Structural Drying • Applied Microbial Remediation Technician

• Carpet Repair & Reinstallation • Journeyman Water Restorer • Commercial Carpet Maintenance • Master Water Restorer • Fire & Smoke Restoration • Stone, Masonry & Ceramic Tile Cleaning • Roof Inspections

SunGlo has one of the largest inventories of equipment in southeast Michigan and a fleet of over 40 vehicles ready to serve you.