Storm season for the whole map: what to do before, during and after
A hurricane that floods a lanai in Flagler Beach may just knock the power out in Live Oak. Here's how to prepare a system for whichever version you get.
Two storm seasons in one territory
Cook’s covers ground from the Atlantic barrier islands to the Suwannee River, and a hurricane doesn’t treat those places the same. On the coast, in St. Augustine, Palm Coast and Ormond Beach, the threats are storm surge, salt-laden wind and flooding around the outdoor unit. Inland, in Gainesville, Lake City and Live Oak, the usual story is wind, fallen limbs, long power outages and the surges that come with restoration. The river towns around Palatka can get both.
The preparation below is written for all of it, with the coastal and inland differences called out where they matter.
Before the season: the April checklist
- Get the maintenance visit done early. A system that enters June with a clean coil, a clear drain and a tested capacitor is a system that will keep up during the hottest, wettest weeks. Agreement customers are scheduled first; everyone else should book before the first heat wave fills the board.
- Check the pad and the straps. The outdoor unit should sit level on its pad, and in the coastal markets it should be tied down against wind. Code requires it on new installs; older units often aren’t. A technician can add tie-downs.
- Add surge protection. A device at the condenser disconnect and one at the air handler. Lightning and restoration surges kill more Florida systems than wind does.
- Clear the drain line and confirm the float switch works. Storm humidity means the system produces more condensate than at any other time of year.
- Trim limbs over the condenser. The unit doesn’t need a canopy of oak over it when the wind comes.
- Photograph the system. Nameplate, outdoor unit, air handler. If you ever need an insurance claim, you’ll want the before pictures.
When a storm is forecast: the 48 hours before
Cool the house down harder than usual while power is reliable; a well-insulated house holds it for a surprisingly long time. Replace the filter so the system isn’t working against a dirty one. Move anything loose in the yard away from the condenser. If a cover is going over the outdoor unit, make it one designed for that purpose, strapped so it can’t become a sail, and take it off the moment the wind passes; a covered unit that gets switched on is a damaged unit.
On the coast, if surge is forecast for your street, there is a hard question: can the condenser be raised or protected? Usually not in two days. What you can do is turn off the breaker so a flooded unit isn’t energized.
During the storm
Thermostat off. When the storm is close, breaker off. Then leave it alone. A system that’s off can’t be damaged by the brownouts and spikes that happen as lines come down and come back up, and those spikes are what kill more control boards than anything else the morning after.
The first 48 hours after
- Look before you switch. Walk around the outdoor unit. Is it level, dry, free of debris, with no limbs inside the fan guard? Was the water line above the base of the cabinet? If it was wet, don’t restart; call.
- Breaker on, then thermostat on, then listen. A new rattle, a hum without the fan spinning, or a breaker that trips again means stop and call.
- Check the air handler and the drain. Storm humidity plus a system that was off is a recipe for a backed-up drain line.
- Give the power a few hours to settle. Restoration surges are real. If the grid in your area is flickering, waiting until it’s stable is cheaper than a board.
- Document anything damaged before anyone touches it, for the adjuster.
How Cook’s runs the days after a storm
Dispatch answers through the storm and takes calls for the moment roads are safe. Afterward the routes run long and the board is sorted by need: no cooling with vulnerable people in the house first, then water damage, then everything else. The far markets aren’t moved to the back because they’re far; the on-call technician for each region works their list the same way. No after-hours charge applies, storm or not, and if a system was damaged beyond repair, Jerry’s replacement quote and financing are available the same week.
Storm questions
Should the system be turned off during the storm itself?
Yes, at the thermostat and, when the storm is close, at the breaker. Power flickers and surges during a storm are what kill boards and compressors, and a system that’s off can’t be hurt by them. Cool the house down beforehand.
Will Cook's send a technician out while a storm is in progress?
Not while conditions are unsafe to drive in. Dispatch keeps answering, takes the call, and puts you on the list for the moment roads reopen. In the days after a storm the routes run long and the far markets get the same place in line as the near ones.
Should the condenser get its own surge protector?
In this territory, yes. Summer lightning is constant and the post-storm power restoration is often rough. A dedicated surge device at the outdoor unit and one at the air handler is cheap relative to a control board, and a technician can add them at a maintenance visit.
What if the outdoor unit was under water?
Don’t restart it. Leave the breaker off and call. Flooded electrical components and motors need to be inspected and often replaced before the unit is safe to run, and insurance adjusters generally want it documented first.
Storm coming or just passed?
Call. Dispatch is answering, and a storm-night visit is billed like any other.