Gold Coast Storm Season Checklist for Homeowners
Gold Coast storm season checklist
Storm season runs November to March. The work below is all cheaper, easier and faster to book in September and October than it is in December, and that is the entire point of doing it now.
Do these first — they are about water getting inside
Clear the gutters and downpipes. Not one or the other. A clear gutter feeding a blocked outlet still overflows. Insist that whoever does it flushes through afterwards and watches water come out at ground level. See what a pre-storm clean covers.
Check where the downpipe water actually goes. Follow it. If it discharges next to the slab, a heavy storm puts a large volume of water straight against the footing. Extending a downpipe outlet away from the house is a cheap afternoon and it solves a problem most people never think about.
Look at the roof valleys. Where two roof planes meet is where debris concentrates, and it is almost always out of sight from the ground. A packed valley diverts water sideways under the tiles or sheets.
Clear the ground drains and grates. Especially on the canal and low-lying suburbs — Mermaid Waters, Runaway Bay, Broadbeach. A blocked yard drain turns a wet lawn into water at the back door.
Then the wind items
Cut back anything overhanging the roof. Branches over a roof are two problems: they drop debris all season, and in a storm they come down on the roof itself. Most relevant in the hinterland suburbs — Mudgeeraba, Nerang, Highland Park, Tallebudgera.
Check the ridge capping and any loose sheets or tiles. A single lifted sheet in a storm becomes a hole, and everything after that is an insurance claim.
Secure or store the loose yard items. Trampolines, umbrellas, bins, shade sails. Nobody does this until the warning is already issued, at which point it is dark and raining.
The bit people skip
Photograph everything now, while it is intact. Roof, gutters, exterior walls, fences, contents. If you do end up making a claim, "here is what it looked like in October" is the single most useful thing you can hand an assessor, and it takes ten minutes on a phone. Related: what insurance actually covers.
Why the timing matters more than the list
Every item above is available in September. In December, after the first serious downpour, the whole coast is calling the same trades at once and you join a queue that runs weeks. The work does not get harder — the availability disappears. Booking a clean in the quiet window is the same job at the same price, just without the wait.