The Insurance Dogger has been keeping an eye on things in my absence!
Good afternoon! Long time no write!
Sorry I’ve been so busy – working on quotes and assisting clients with claims has eaten up vast amounts of time in my calendar!
Just a quick list of things you can easily do to prevent a disaster from occurring in your home.
If you think there’s something I missed, feel free to email your idea to me: scott@poleskyagency.com
1 – Turn off your water supply at the main valve into the house before leaving for vacation.
2 – Always use metal water supply lines for all fixtures, especially heavy water users like your dishwasher or wash machine – plastic lines corrode far too quickly and can be pinched or severed accidentally. You can either use actual copper lines, or the metal-coated flex lines.
3 – Have your sump pump tested annually, preferably before the spring rainy season arrives. If you don’t know how to do it, contact a local plumber to assist you.
4 – Check your foundation walls for cracks every six months, especially looking for cracks that run across the face of the blocks. Cracks that follow the mortar/joints between blocks could be a sign of ordinary settling, whereas cracks across the blocks themselves could be an indication of pressure or other damage that should be closely monitored. If you do see a crack developing, cover it with a small amount of caulk, joint compound or spackle, and check every few weeks to see how quickly the crack is spreading. If it’s spreading quickly, or if it’s more than 1/4″ wide, contact a licensed foundation repair contractor immediately.
5 – Trim trees annually, especially those near the house. Make sure to remove all dead branches, and to “balance” the tree as much as possible so it’s not producing branches primarily on one side of the tree. Similarly, trim back all shrubs and other landscaping so it is at least a foot from the exterior walls of the house to prevent infestation by ants, termites, and other insects.
6 – Place splash pans or catch basins under your washer and hot water heater to catch leaks. Make sure the pan drains to a nearby floor drain.
7 – Inspect your foundation walls annually for termite tunnels (which often look like small mud tunnels on the block).
8 – Add long down spout extensions to the end of your gutters to direct rain water away from the foundation of the house – a one inch rain fall drops approximately 650 gallons of water on an average roof!
9 – Install surge protectors on all of your electronics and, when possible, appliances.
10 – Test the batteries in all smoke detectors at least once per year, and keep at least one ABC rated fire extinguisher on each floor of the house and an additional ABC fire extinguisher in the kitchen. Replace them as indicated, or after any use.
Bonus tip – be sure to have your furnace/boiler cleaned and inspected on an annual basis before cold weather hits – preferably in the summer so if something comes up, you are not paying “emergency” or “rush” fees to your repairman!
Good afternoon and a Merry Christmas from the Insurance Dogger!
We hosted a mini-photo shoot with Sammy last night in preparation for putting together Social Media Christmas greetings, and some of the results are below. We narrowed and narrowed, and the picture on top was the final winner! (Outtakes to follow some time later this week or next!)
We hope that all of you have a wonderful Christmas Holiday, and that you have a healthy and prosperous New Year! We hope that if you are traveling, that you have a safe journey and enjoy your time with your family and friends.
Not terribly much new going on in the local insurance world, and amazingly few things need to be addressed insurance-wise.
I do want to say that I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas and New Years. The dog and I will be going on vacation shortly (well, I’m going on vacation, the dog is going to *gasp* the kennel) and this will be my last post of 2012! (for followers of the Mayan Calendar, I guess it’s my last post ever!). We will be celebrating Christmas and New Years with some of my oldest and closest friends, and I hope that you have the opportunity to do the same!
I would like to say a little something in light of the events in Oregon and Connecticut. There is very little that we can do to directly impact the lives of those involved with what happened, but there is a lot that we can do every day to impact the lives of those around us. Be the good, be the light, and be the joy that people need to see every day. Show people that there is a better way to live. Show patience. Love others. Be caring and understanding. Encourage those around you. Show people that there IS good in the world. As the world becomes a darker place, the only way to combat that is by adding more of your own light back in.
The fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
Next year, I am going to re-double my efforts to show my gratitude and appreciation to first responders. These people make sacrifices every day to ensure our comfort and safety – there is no such thing as doing “too much” to show them our appreciation – you never know whose life they saved today.
My first year with the Polesky Agency has ended on some very high notes! We’ve had one of our best years ever, and were recently ranked by the home office as being in the top 10% of all Erie agents! We’ve expanded the number and types of insurance companies we can place new policies with for both personal and commercial lines, allowing us to better serve our clients by offering them more options. Our office remodeling job is nearly completed, and the new layout and look have been a smashing success! We have dramatically expanded our social media presence – LinkedIn, Facebook, and Google+ – and are even the first listing now when you Google “Erie Insurance Moon Twp”!
I would like to wrap up just by saying that I’m looking forward to a positive, productive, and prosperous 2013, and I hope that we can work together to protect the things you care about most!
All the best for 2013!
Sammy Bo Journey, Scott & Amanda Berney
Scott Amanda and Claire in 3D glasses
Scott and Amanda Berney on their honeymoon
Sammy Bo can finally relax and enjoy the holidays!
Hi! I’m Sammy Bo Journey, the Dog Blogger. Believe it or not, I blog about insurance. Read more about that in my about page.
I’m here to tell you a little bit about myself. I’m relatively young, but my daddy has taught me a lot about insurance because of all the times that I’ve been bad… I guess it’s cost him a lot of money. But I couldn’t help it, right?
Needless to say, he’s gotten mad at me a few times. So what I took the car out for a spin? So what I might have chewed up a couple of valuables? Don’t even get me started on when Demon Doggy takes over – things get quite interesting…..
Anyway, I’m here to pass on some of the valuable insights I’ve learned about protection and coverage through all my various mistakes. I hope that you learn something… I know I sure did!
