How a home in The Woodlands can get ready for the June to November hurricane season, what the Township expects from owners after a storm, and the line between house cleaning and restoration work.
Hurricane Harvey is the storm everyone here measures against. In late August 2017 it dropped 28.50 inches on a gauge just south-southeast of The Woodlands and more than 31 inches near Conroe and west of Spring, and Spring Creek and its tributaries caused major flooding across the area. Most seasons are far quieter than that, but every season brings heavy rain, wind and the chance of a long outage.
This guide covers the calendar, a household prep list that keeps cleanup manageable, the Township's storm debris rules, and what a cleaning visit can and cannot do once the weather clears.
The National Weather Service summary of Harvey lists Spring Creek and its tributaries as the source of major flooding in The Woodlands, Stagecoach, Decker Prairie, Rayford and along Interstate 45. Lake Conroe, upstream, reached record pool elevations, and a record release of more than 70,000 cubic feet per second from the dam added to flooding downstream.
Near Conroe, a gauge 2.1 miles south-southwest of town measured 31.22 inches, and River Plantation, Forrest Hills, Woodloch, Whispering Oaks and Chateau Woods were among the hardest hit areas. A gauge 2.8 miles south of Magnolia recorded 26.93 inches.
The Spring Creek watershed is large, about 284 square miles, and it takes in about half of Tomball as well as The Woodlands and the I-45 corridor. Only about 60 square miles of it lie in Harris County, so rain that falls well to the northwest ends up in the creek that runs past The Woodlands.
The Atlantic hurricane season runs from June 1 to November 30. The National Hurricane Center puts its statistical peak on September 10, with most activity between mid August and mid October. That window overlaps the wetter part of the local rain calendar: October averages 5.46 inches at Bush Intercontinental Airport, second only to June.
Storms do not need to be hurricanes to cause trouble. About 15 days a year bring an inch or more of rain at the airport, enough to soak shaded yards and turn entries muddy for days.
The forest that makes The Woodlands pleasant is also its weak point in a storm. The Township lists falling trees and limbs in severe weather among the most common causes of power outages, and depending on location, homes here get electricity from Entergy or CenterPoint Energy. The Township's forest program removes hazardous trees and watches for pine borers and laurel wilt, but a big wind still brings limbs down.
For a household, the most common indoor mess after an outage is the refrigerator. The Township specifically asks residents to keep food waste separate from green waste, especially after prolonged outages, so spoiled food goes in the trash and branches go out as yard waste.
A clean, uncluttered home is easier to protect and easier to recover. Work through this list before late August.
The Township is clear that The Woodlands sits in a hurricane-prone zone and that property owners handle their own storm cleanup. Branches and yard debris go out under the Township's rules, and bulky items need a Waste Management pickup scheduled at least 2 business days before the normal service day.
A cleaning visit helps once the home is dry, the power is on and nothing structural is in question. It can reset mud-tracked floors, wipe down kitchens and bathrooms and get a household back to normal. It does not include flood or water damage work, drying out walls, mold treatment, or carrying out damaged furniture and debris. If water came inside, call your insurer and a restoration company first, and book cleaning after they are done.
The questions The Woodlands homeowners ask most often about this topic, answered plainly.
TotalCare Cleaning will service The Woodlands and surrounding areas with background-checked cleaners and is insured up to $1 million. Re-clean guarantee: if we missed something, tell us by the end of the next day and we come back to fix it. Beyond Clean. TotalCare.
