Despite the fact that this winter has been mild so far in comparison to the last two years, the months of February and March are still key months for fireplace use. By keeping in mind the following fireplace safety tips, you can protect your property and the lives of your family and neighbors.

• Inspect and clean your chimney and fireplace once a year (typically in the fall) to remove soot and creosote build up and to make sure they are able to operate safely. A chimney professional will use specialized vacuums to clean the firebox, smoke chamber, damper, smoke shelf and flue liner and will report on any system deficiencies found. They can also check the chimney and cap for deterioration or signs of damage.
• Install smoke and carbon monoxide detectors on each level of your home, and keep them in working order.
• Test your fireplace with a few small pieces of seasoned wood to make sure that smoke does not enter the room.
• When operating your fireplace, make sure you remove any combustible materials from the area around your hearth, and use a mesh screen to keep embers in the fireplace. Glass fireplace doors should be kept open when a fire is burning so that the fire receives air to complete combustion and reduce creosote build up in the chimney.
• Use the correct wood – dense wood types (oak, ash, maple) that have been stored in a dry area for 6 months or more are best – split wood dries more thoroughly and burns better than whole logs. Firewood should be stored a minimum of 30 feet away from your home.
• Never use flammable liquids to start fires – use matches or a commercial firelighter, and never burn cardboard, trash or debris.
• Do not close dampers until the fire is completely out.
• Clean out excess ash so that it doesn’t impede airflow for your fire. An inch of ash at the bottom actually helps to maintain a fire. Ashes can take several days to cool completely. Keep them in a metal container located at least 10 feet away from any buildings.

The expenses associated with maintaining your fireplace and chimney each year are minimal in comparison with the costs of a fire. We urge all our clients, family and friends to take the steps necessary to assure safe operations. If you have questions about your insurance coverage in the event of a fire, please contact our team in Cooperstown at 547-2951 or in Morris at 263-5170.

The fall months present a great opportunity for home projects that can help you prevent incidents over the winter season. In addition to accident and damage prevention, some of these can save you some money on energy costs as well!  Here are a few tips to help you get your home ready  for the winter.

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  Survey your property for dead tree limbs and remove them before they fall during a storm.  Taking down dead and dying tree limbs can prevent damage to your home and power lines.  Make sure you take safety precautions or hire a local professional to help you with this.

• Check your plumbing.  Are there water pipes in your home that are susceptible to freezing over the winter months?  You can insulate your pipes with pre-slit pipe foam (available at most hardware and home repair stores).  Just cut pieces to the proper length for exposed pipes and use duct tape to secure them.  You can also insulate your water heater too!

• Inspect and clean your chimney.  As we move into the fall months, you might want to enjoy an evening by the fire in your fireplace or woodstove.  Make sure that your chimney is structurally in good shape and clean out any debris build up that may cause chimney fires.  This usually needs to be done by a professional chimney expert, but is well worth the cost.

• Sealing and weatherstripping in preparation for the winter is always a good idea to keep your heat in  your home and should be checked and repaired when you are replacing your screens with storm windows and doors.

• Get your door drafts ready!  In addition to sealing, closing off rooms in your home will help keep each room warmer during the winter months.  Door drafts will help prevent cold air from coming in under your doorways – they really do work!

• Reverse your ceiling fans.  In the summer months, your fan blades rotate counterclockwise to push cooler air down to your floor.  The cooler air evaporates moisture which helps you feel cooler.    In the winter, your ceiling fan should rotate clockwise at low speed.  This pulls cool air up which pushes the warmer air near your ceiling down along your walls and back to the floor, making your room feel warmer.

• Don’t forget to clean out your gutters! Check your gutters for debris after the trees lose most of their leaves to assure for good drainage of melting water during the coming winter months.  Check your roof for missing shingles, possible leaks etc.

We hope you have found these tips helpful!  Check with Bieritz Agency for all your insurance needs.  Call us for a free quote – we can save you money!

Bieritz Insurance Agency, is proud to offer two convenient locations in Otsego County.

Your “Hometown” Insurance Specialists!
HOME • AUTO • BUSINESS • LIFE • FARM • BOAT • CYCLE & MORE

Bieritz Insurance Agency
209 Main Street
Cooperstown, NY 13326
607-547-2951
FAX 607-547-4487
info@bieritzinsurance.com

Morris Insurance Agency
128 Main Street
P.O. Box 70
Morris, NY 13808
607-263-5170
FAX 607-263-5270
agent@morrisinsuranceny.com

Your homeowners insurance policy covers your property, but if you store your property off your site at a storage facility or self-storage unit, do you need additional protection?  In the case of natural disasters like flood, or tornado, the facility is not likely legally responsible for your belongings.

The best way to insure specific property is to list it specifically in your policy.  If you are using a storage facility for a short amount of time (such as during the time period when you are relocating to a different home), then your property is likely still covered.  If you are looking for long term storage, you might consider adding the storage location to your insurance policy as an additional insured location to assure coverage for your property.

Whatever you choose, check with your insurance agency to make sure that your policy applies to items stored offsite and make sure to bring proof of insurance with you when you sign your contract for storage.  You should also make sure that your items comply with any restrictions or policies of the storage facility to prevent voiding your rental contract.

Your homeowners insurance policy covers a lot of things, some you might not realize – and it also does not cover things that you might think are included.  Here are a few things many people might find surprising!

A typical homeowners policy likely covers a few things that you don’t realize.  (NOTE: you should always double-check with your agent for details specific to your own insurance policies.) These include things like medical expenses for guests that have been injured in your home (typically whether or not you were responsible for the injury) and charges from your local fire department for responding to an alarm call.  If someone drives through your lawn and damages your yard, chances are that your homeowners policy can help you to replace much of the damaged items.  If you spend a lot of time and money on your landscaping, you can always increase your coverage for these things.  Your homeowners policy also covers your college student’s property while they are away at school as well as your refrigerator and freezer contents if you lose power for a long period of time during a storm.

Many of these items have a replacement cap, and deductibles may or may not apply, depending on the situation and your coverage.  Although these items are all covered under a typical policy, homeowners should always consider the costs and benefits for submitting small claims.  Policies with a higher deductible amount can typically prevent small claims that could result in higher premiums.

It may be surprising to learn that property that is kept outdoors might not be protected by a homeowner’s policy in the event of damage or theft.  Think about your outdoor grill, your patio furniture, bicycles left outdoors, your ornamental garden plants or items you might keep in an unlocked shed. Replacement coverage for items like these are not commonly included in your homeowners insurance, but you may be able to add them for a higher premium to extend your coverage to include backyard possessions.

It is always helpful to assess your coverage to make sure that your policy fits your needs and your budget.  Our team at Bieritz Agency is happy to answer any of your questions so that you are informed about exactly what your policy covers and what it does not.  We can work together to fill in any gaps.  Bieritz Insurance Agency, Inc. is a local independent agency that represents over 20 companies and has offices in Cooperstown and Morris, NY.  Bieritz Agency has served the community as the only locally-owned and operated, independent agency for over 25 years.  Bieritz provides quality service, excellent prices and products that are in the client’s best interest!  Contact Bieritz Agency at 607-547-2951 today.

Tips to prevent flooding with the coming thaw.

Yes, we’ve all had enough of the cold weather and snow this winter and many of us are looking forward to seeing it all disappear …but, all that water has to go somewhere.  As little as 6 inches of melting snow and ice can lead to flooding – in our streets, and in our homes.  During the first thaws, the ground is still frozen, so water will run across the surface instead of seeping into the ground.  This makes our homes more susceptible to water intrusion and associated damage.

Here are a few tips to help prevent damage from all that water:

• dig snow out of window wells and basement exterior stairwells (including any drain areas)
• remove any snow a few feet away from outside doors, and dig a path for water to flow away from your home
• be aware of ice dams (view past article here) – try to clear gutters and downspouts and prepare drainage paths away from your home for areas where roof runoff is likely to occur
• after the thaw, inspect and repair roof shingles and flashing as needed to prevent water damage in the future
• homeowners who experience basement flooding each year with the spring thaws should check their sump pump to make sure it is operational before the season begins

For information about whether your insurance coverage protects you from water damage from snow melt flooding, please feel free to contact our offices (in Cooperstown at 607-547-2951, and in Morris at 607-263-5170).  Wishing all our clients and neighbors a safe and DRY spring!

Bieritz Insurance Reminds Residents to Replace their Smoke Detector Batteries
COOPERSTOWN, NY (10/03/14): Bieritz Insurance Agency, a local business providing full spectrum insurance products and services, is reminding area residents to replace their batteries on smoke detection devices in their home.

According to the National Fire Protection Association, three out of five home fire deaths result from fires in properties without working smoke alarms, and the risk of dying in a home fire is cut in half in homes with working smoke alarms.  There is no doubt that smoke alarms save lives. To help keep your family safe, stop in at the Bieritz Insurance Agency during the month of October and pick up a free 9v replacement battery for your smoke detector (while supplies last).

Typically, smoke detectors should be tested monthly and if they do not have a lithium 10-year (long life) battery, their 9v alkaline batteries should be replaced once each year.  Smoke alarms that are hardwired into a home’s electrical system will usually have a back-up battery that needs to be replaced each year as well.  In addition to changing your batteries, any smoke detector unit should be replaced every ten years.

Bieritz Insurance Agency, 209 Main Street, Cooperstown, NY

Bieritz Insurance Agency Inc. is a local Independent insurance agency that represents over 20 companies. Bieritz Agency has served the community as the only locally-owned and operated, independent agency for over 24 years.  Bieritz provides quality service, excellent prices and products that are in the client’s best interest!  Free quotes are available through both Cooperstown and Morris offices.  Contact Bieritz at (607)547-2951.

June is National Safety Month, so our team has decided to provide resources from the National Safety Council to help improve some general safety practices for all our friends and clients.

This week, we are featuring information and resources about Slips, Trips and Falls.

Falls are one of the leading causes of unintentional injuries in the United States, accounting for approximately 8.9 million visits to the emergency department annually (NSC Injury Facts 2011).

Adults 55 and older are more prone to becoming victims of falls, and the resulting injuries can diminish the ability to lead active, independent lives. The number of fall deaths among those 65 and older is four times the number of fall deaths among all other age groups.

Please take a few moments to review the information below.

Slips, Trips and Falls Information

Slips, Trips and Falls Fact Sheet

Fall Proofing Your Home – Checklist

Visit us next week for information about being aware of your surroundings (and potential hazards) in the workplace and at home!

With ten more weeks of winter still to come, we are sure to find a few snowstorms in our future. The next time it snows, do yourself a favor and take a look at your roof. Does the snow cover your roof evenly or does it melt in the center and remain visible only towards the eaves? Do you find that large icicles develop from your gutters or roof edge after a few days? These are visual signs that your home is forming ice dams.

Ice dams are formed when warm air escapes into your attic and heats/melts the snow on the roof. When the water from the snow melt reaches the eaves or gutter area, it gets colder again (no longer effected by the warmer attic temps) and freezes along the edge. Ice begins to build up along the edge, with water accumulating behind. This water can continue to build up and eventually seep through the roof, causing damage.

This video illustrates the process very well.

Ice dams can be prevented by making sure that heat from your home is not escaping into your attic. An energy audit from a local service provider can help give you information on where air leaks are coming from and recommendations on how to fix, either through improvements in attic insulation or proper ventilation. In many cases in New York State, a home energy audit can be done for free – see information here from NYSERDA.

In the meanwhile, if you have ice dams that have already formed and are causing damage, you are going to want to contact a local roofing professional who can use steam to safely clear the ice blockages from your eaves.

For more information about ice dams, view Energy Star Fact Sheet here.