Quick take: what to handle before the first Gulf storm
- Atlantic hurricane season runs June 1 through November 30, and activity peaks around September 10, so the smart move is to finish exterior prep by late May rather than waiting on a forecast [1].
- Clogged gutters and downspouts that dump water right at the foundation are the most common pre-storm problem, and the easiest to fix. Booking a gutter cleaning early clears that risk before the rain arrives.
- Get downspout water 5 to 10 feet away from the house using extensions or splash blocks, so heavy rain drains into the yard instead of pooling against the slab [8][10].
- Trim or remove weak limbs over the roof and bring in anything the wind can pick up, including patio furniture, planters, and grills. Skip the tape on windows; it does nothing and creates larger shards if the glass breaks.
- Photograph the property and check your flood coverage now, since a new flood policy takes a month to start.
Why Houston’s storm season changes the exterior to-do list
Houston sits on flat, clay-heavy ground that drains slowly, and the metro carries a dense tree canopy that fills gutters fast. Rainfall here can be extreme: during Hurricane Harvey in 2017, a gauge on Clear Creek near I-45 recorded 48.20 inches, the highest single-storm total ever measured in the continental United States [5]. A roof system that handles an ordinary thunderstorm can be swamped when that kind of water has nowhere to go. That is why the exterior checklist for a Houston home leans harder on drainage and water management than a checklist written for a drier climate.
What a clogged gutter and bad drainage actually do to your home
Gutters and downspouts exist to catch roof runoff and carry it away from the structure, protecting windows, doors, siding, and the foundation in the process [9]. When leaves and grit block them, water spills over the edge, runs down the fascia, and collects against the base of the house. On Houston’s expansive clay soils, repeated soaking and drying around the slab is a recipe for foundation movement, and the water that backs up under the eaves rots soffit and fascia boards over time. Wind-driven rain makes this worse, because it pushes water sideways into roof edges and any gap a poorly draining gutter leaves open.
The scale of the risk in this region is hard to overstate. After Harvey, the Harris County Flood Control District estimated that nearly 136,000 structures flooded across the county [6]. Most homeowners cannot do much about a bayou cresting its banks, but they can control whether their own roof and yard send water toward the foundation or away from it. Wind is the other half of the problem. Storm surge has historically been the leading cause of hurricane-related deaths in the United States, and high winds turn loose objects into projectiles [4]. A clean, well-drained exterior with nothing flying around is a calmer starting point when a storm is bearing down.
What good looks like is simple to describe: gutters that flow freely end to end, downspouts that discharge several feet out into the lawn, surfaces and drains clear of debris, trees pruned of dead or overhanging weight, and every loose item either anchored or stored.
How to clear gutters, fix drainage, and secure surfaces safely
Start at the roofline. Clear all debris from the gutters by hand or scoop, then flush each run with a hose to confirm water moves to the downspout and out the bottom. Watch for sagging sections, loose hangers, and seams that leak, and refasten or seal them. Wear heavy gloves and eye protection, because wet leaves hide sharp metal edges and screws [9]. If you have a single-story home and a stable ladder, this is a reasonable do-it-yourself job. A two-story house, a steep pitch, or a roofline near power lines is a job to hand off.
Next, follow the water. Where each downspout lets out, add a flexible extension or a splash block so runoff lands 5 to 10 feet from the foundation and onto a vegetated area rather than the slab or a paved path [8]. Where you can, grade the soil next to the house so it slopes away at roughly two percent, which keeps water moving in the right direction [10]. Check that surface drains, French drains, and driveway channels are clear, since a blocked drain pushes water back toward the structure during a downpour. Clearing leaves and built-up grime off hard surfaces helps water find the drain; a driveway cleaning before the season keeps those paths open. Bring outdoor furniture, planters, and the grill inside or into the garage, and anchor anything that has to stay put, including fuel tanks [4].
Do not skip the fence. Loose panels, leaning posts, and gates that do not latch all come apart in high wind and become flying debris, so tighten fasteners, reset wobbly posts, and secure every gate. A pre-season fence cleaning is a good moment to spot the soft, rotting boards that will not survive a storm and replace them while there is time.
Trees deserve their own pass. Remove dead, cracked, or overhanging limbs that could fall on the roof, but do not top a tree to make it shorter. Topping strips away the foliage the tree relies on, and a topped tree that later takes storm damage is more likely to die than recover. Any large limb, high-climbing work, or pruning near a power line belongs to an ISA certified arborist, not a homeowner on a ladder with a chainsaw [7].
Finally, plan your window and door protection. Permanent storm shutters or pre-cut 5/8-inch exterior-grade plywood are the real options, and the garage door is often the most vulnerable opening on the house, so confirm it can take strong wind and seal gaps around wall openings while you are at it [2]. Buy panels or plywood now rather than during the pre-storm rush when shelves empty out.
What this work costs and how long it takes
Most of this is inexpensive in money and modest in time, which is the point of doing it on a calendar rather than under pressure. Clearing gutters on a single-story home is usually a half-day task; downspout extensions and splash blocks are low-cost parts from any hardware store. Tree work varies widely depending on the size and number of limbs and whether an arborist is needed, so get that quoted early in the spring when crews are not slammed with emergency calls. The same goes for fence repairs and surface cleaning, which book up quickly once a storm is named.
One cost item has a hard deadline attached. Standard homeowners insurance does not cover flooding, and a new flood policy through the National Flood Insurance Program carries a 30-day waiting period before it takes effect [2]. If flood coverage is on your list, buy it well before a storm is in the Gulf, because a policy bought the week of a storm will not be active when you need it.
Common mistakes Houston homeowners make before a storm
The biggest one is waiting for a named storm. When everyone calls a gutter or tree crew at the same time, availability disappears and prices climb, and the work that should take an afternoon turns into a scramble.
A close second is cleaning the gutters but ignoring where the downspouts let out. A spotless gutter that still dumps water two inches from the slab has not solved the actual problem.
Topping trees is a costly error that feels like progress. It weakens the tree and raises the odds of losing it in the next storm, which is the opposite of what the homeowner wanted.
Taping windows is a myth worth retiring. Tape will not hold glass together, and broken taped glass produces bigger, more dangerous shards [3].
Leaving loose fence panels and unlatched gates is easy to overlook, and a swinging gate or a flying panel becomes both a projectile and a repair bill.
How professionals approach pre-storm exterior prep
A pro walks the full roofline first, checking gutter pitch, hanger spacing, and downspout flow rather than only scooping out visible debris. The flow test matters: water poured into the far end of a run should arrive at the bottom of the downspout without backing up. From there, the focus shifts to the drainage path, tracing where roof water actually goes and recommending extensions, splash blocks, or in some yards a buried drain line to move it clear of the foundation.
Surfaces come into the plan because they affect how water moves. Keeping driveways, walkways, and patio drains clear of debris and slick buildup helps storm runoff reach the drain instead of sheeting toward the house, and a seasonal pressure washing of those surfaces is an easy way to keep them functioning. Good crews also coordinate timing so the work lands before the September peak, which means you are not sitting on a waiting list when the tropics get busy and every neighbor is calling at once.
Key takeaways
- The calendar should drive this work, not the forecast. Aim to finish before June 1, since the season is already underway by the time most people start thinking about it.
- Drainage protects more than a clean exterior does. Getting roof water several feet away from the slab is the single highest-value step on the list.
- Know your limits on height and trees. Single-story gutter work is fair game, while roofline jobs near power lines and large limbs belong to a professional or an arborist.
- Sort out flood coverage early. A new flood policy needs 30 days to take effect, so a last-minute purchase will not help you.
FAQ
When does hurricane season start in Texas?
The Atlantic hurricane season runs from June 1 to November 30, with peak activity around September 10. That is why exterior prep is best finished in May, before the first storms form [1].
Should I clean my gutters before hurricane season?
Yes. Clogged gutters overflow during heavy rain and send water against the foundation, so clearing them lets the roof system handle a downpour the way it should.
How far should downspouts drain away from the foundation?
Aim to move the water 5 to 10 feet from the house using extensions or splash blocks, discharging onto a lawn or bed rather than against the slab or a paved surface.
Do I need to trim my trees before a hurricane?
Remove dead or overhanging limbs that could hit the roof, but do not top the tree. Large limbs, high work, or anything near power lines should be left to an ISA certified arborist [7].
Is pressure washing part of storm prep?
Clearing debris and buildup off driveways, walkways, and surface drains helps storm runoff reach the drains instead of pooling near the house. Cosmetic washing on its own is not a safety step, so handle the gutters, drainage, and tree work first.
Should I tape my windows before a storm?
No. Tape does not keep glass from breaking and only makes the shards larger and more dangerous. Use storm shutters or pre-cut plywood instead [3].
References
- NOAA National Hurricane Center, Tropical Cyclone Climatology. https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/climo/
- NOAA, Prepare Before Hurricane Season. https://www.noaa.gov/prepare-before-hurricane-season
- FEMA, Six Ways to Prepare Your Home for a Hurricane. https://www.fema.gov/blog/six-ways-prepare-your-home-hurricane
- Ready.gov, Hurricanes. https://www.ready.gov/hurricanes
- NOAA Climate.gov, Reviewing Hurricane Harvey’s Catastrophic Rain and Flooding. https://www.climate.gov/news-features/event-tracker/reviewing-hurricane-harveys-catastrophic-rain-and-flooding
- NOAA National Weather Service (Houston/Galveston), Hurricane Harvey Information. https://www.weather.gov/hgx/hurricaneharvey
- Texas A&M Forest Service, Tree Care From Storm Damage. https://tfsweb.tamu.edu/trees/tree-care/trees-and-natural-disasters/tree-care-from-storm-damage/
- Virginia Tech (Virginia Cooperative Extension), Stormwater Management for Homeowners Fact Sheet 1: Rooftop Redirection. https://www.pubs.ext.vt.edu/SPES/SPES-9/SPES-9.html
- West Virginia University Extension, Gutter Safety. https://extension.wvu.edu/community-business-safety/home-safety/gutter-safety
- University of Nebraska-Lincoln Extension, Stormwater Management: Disconnecting Downspouts and Impervious Surfaces (G2186). https://extensionpubs.unl.edu/publication/g2186/na/html/view
