Four checklists for one hurricane season

The weather we’re preparing for

Flagler County’s storm history is short and dense. Matthew in 2016 did tens of millions in damage countywide, most of it in Palm Coast. Irma in 2017 dropped a foot of rain. Ian and Nicole came back to back in 2022 and flooded the barrier island and the Palm Harbor canals. Milton in 2024 set a flood record on Haw Creek and put more than nine inches on Bunnell. Averaged out, a tropical storm or hurricane affects this county about every 2.7 years, and the season runs June through November, right through the hottest months, when the air conditioner matters most.

Wind takes units off pads. Water drowns them. Power surges and brownouts, before and after, kill compressors and control boards. And the long sweaty week without power grows mold in a closed house. Each of those has a step below.

Checklist 1: June 1, when the season opens

• [ ] Have the spring maintenance done if it hasn’t been. A clean coil and a verified charge mean the system can cool the house hard the day before a storm.
• [ ] Check the hurricane straps or tie-downs on the outdoor unit. Florida code requires condensers to be anchored to the pad; older installs in Palm Harbor and the Woodlands often aren’t. Four stainless straps and anchors is a small job.
• [ ] Confirm the float switch on the air handler works. A storm week means a wet week, and a wet week means a drain line working overtime.
• [ ] Photograph the system, inside and out, with the data plates. Date-stamped photos are what insurance will ask for after.
• [ ] Look at the pad elevation if you’re in a flood zone. Canal-side Palm Harbor, the Hammock and Flagler Beach especially. If the unit sits at grade and the yard has flooded before, this is the season to talk about a stand.
• [ ] Add a surge protector at the disconnect if there isn’t one. Summer lightning here is hard on equipment even without a named storm.

Checklist 2: Five days out, when the cone includes us

• [ ] Change the filter. You may be running the system harder than usual in the lead-up, and you won’t want to think about it after.
• [ ] Clear the yard around the condenser. Anything loose within thirty feet, chairs, planters, grill covers, becomes a projectile that bends fins or jams the fan.
• [ ] Trim nothing you can’t finish. Half-cut limbs are worse than whole ones.
• [ ] Test the generator if you have one and know what it can run. The guide on generator-ready HVAC covers whether yours can start the air conditioner.
• [ ] Decide about the thermostat. If you’re staying, note the current settings. If you’re leaving, plan to set it to a humidity-safe temperature rather than off, for as long as power lasts.

Need a pre-storm check? Call

Checklist 3: The night before

• [ ] Cool the house hard. Set the thermostat two or three degrees lower than usual for the afternoon and evening. The thermal mass of a block house holds that for a day.
• [ ] Then shut it down. When the outer bands arrive and the power starts to flicker, set the thermostat to off. If you’re evacuating, kill the breaker too.
• [ ] Cover the outdoor unit only if you can secure the cover. A loose tarp does more harm than good. A fitted, strapped cover keeps debris out of the fan; most homeowners should skip this step.
• [ ] Move anything portable inside. Window units, mini-split remote sensors, the smart thermostat’s hub if it’s a separate device.
• [ ] Open interior doors. It helps air move once the system is off and keeps closed rooms from going stale.

Checklist 4: The morning after

• [ ] Look before you flip anything. Is the outdoor unit still on its pad? Is there standing water around or in it? Is debris in the fan? Did a limb land on the line set? Photograph everything.
• [ ] If it stood in water, leave it off. Brackish or muddy water in the control compartment means a cleaning and electrical inspection before it runs, and sometimes a replacement. Starting it can finish the compressor.
• [ ] If it’s dry and intact, wait for stable power. Fifteen minutes after the lights stop flickering, restart at the thermostat and listen.
• [ ] Check the drain and the air handler. A week of rain may have the pan full. Confirm the condensate line is flowing.
• [ ] If you’re on a generator, don’t start the AC on it blind. See the generator guide; a compressor that can’t start on the available capacity trips the generator or damages itself.
• [ ] Call if anything is off. Odd noise, a breaker trip, warm air, a cabinet that moved. Dispatch runs around the clock after a storm and no later-than-business-hours fee applies.

The week without power

A closed Palm Coast house in August with no air conditioning reaches dangerous humidity within two days and shows mold within a week. If power is going to be out for a stretch:

• Open windows during the cooler overnight hours when it isn’t raining, and close them by mid-morning.
• Run fans on the generator before anything else; moving air slows mold.
• Prop closet and cabinet doors open.
• Once power returns, run the system for a full day before judging whether the house smells right. If the musty note persists, the air handler cabinet and ducts need a look.

A note on insurance

Carriers after Matthew and Ian asked for the same things: pre-storm photos of the equipment, post-storm photos of the damage, and a written diagnosis from a licensed contractor. We provide the third on request and will word it for the adjuster rather than for a homeowner. [[CONFIRM WITH JERRY: whether Cook’s provides a standard storm-damage inspection letter at a set fee or includes it with the repair visit]]