Indianapolis Board Up Crew provides emergency board up services for residential and commercial properties throughout Indianapolis. We secure broken windows, sliding glass doors, damaged entryways and storefronts left exposed after storms, break-ins, vehicle impacts, accidents or fires. Boarding up these openings keeps out rain, wind, debris, thieves and trespassers, protecting the building and everything in it until permanent repairs can be made. Contact us for a free quote today.
What Are the Signs a Property Needs an Emergency Board Up?
After a fire, break-in, storm, or vehicle strike, any opening a person, animal, or weather can get through needs to be covered the same day. Shattered glass, a door kicked off its strike plate, or a hole punched by a fallen limb leaves the structure open to rain, theft, and squatters. Most homeowner policies also expect you to take reasonable steps to prevent further damage, so leaving an opening exposed can complicate your claim.
- Shattered or missing window glass
- Forced or broken entry doors
- Holes from storm debris or falling trees
- Fire-vented windows and roof openings
Do Crews Have to Screw Plywood Into the Siding or Brick?
Usually not. On most windows, we cut 1/2- to 3/4-inch plywood to fit the opening and secure it from the inside with 2x4 strongbacks and carriage bolts run through the board, so your exterior trim and masonry stay untouched. When there's no safe interior access, such as in a fire-gutted room, we fasten into the window framing instead of the cladding. That keeps the patch holes small and easy to fill later.
Why Is Water Still Getting In Behind the Boarded Window?
Plywood on its own isn't a weather seal. If the board sits flush without a membrane, rain wicks around the edges and runs down the inside of the sill. On roof openings, water pools wherever the tarp isn't lapped under the shingles above it. The fix is to remount the board with poly sheeting wrapped behind it, or to relap the tarp upslope, and to do it quickly, before the subfloor or drywall starts soaking up water.
Can You Board Up Before the Insurance Adjuster Sees the Damage?
Yes, and you should. Take photos and video of every broken opening first, then get it secured. Adjusters expect mitigation and won't hold a board up against you. Keep our invoice and any glass or debris we bag up, because that paper trail is what gets the emergency service reimbursed.
How Much Does Emergency Board Up Cost?
Emergency board up typically costs between $285 and $1,850 per call-out, and the final number depends mostly on how many openings need covering and how large they are. Expect a premium for after-hours or weekend dispatch. Second-story windows and fire-vented roof openings also take more labor and ladder time. If the crew tarps a roof hole or wraps the boards in poly sheeting, those materials show up on the invoice too.