VALLEY INTERVIEW / TARI WEISS : Homeowner Says Quake-Proofing Efforts Worked

Homeowner Tari Weiss survived the Jan. 17 earthquake with practically all her possessions intact, unlike some of her neighbors in Calabasas Park. It wasn’t luck. In November the real estate agent earthquake-proofed the two-story Mediterranean house where she lives with her husband, Gary, a commercial real estate broker, and their daughter, Bronte. She used an earthquake-preparedness firm, one of several listed in telephone yellow pages in the San Fernando Valley area. Weiss was interviewed by Times correspondent Kay Hwangbo.

*

Question: How did you get through the earthquake?

Answer: I knew that a lot of the large pieces in my daughter’s bedroom had been bolted down, so I knew that there weren’t going to be large pieces that were flying. She’d be OK, if we could just get to her.

Once the shaking stopped, we went downstairs to a place where we’d been told was probably the safest place in the house to be, and that’s where we had this huge duffel bag filled with earthquake paraphernalia. We pulled out the flashlights, got the radio on and got the batteries into the equipment.

The whole time we were doing this the house was violently shaking. Plus, when it’s dark, you’re all that more at the mercy of whatever’s happening. It’s hard to prepare yourself at the time, so that’s why you’re prepared ahead of time.

*

Q. What prompted you to earthquake-proof your house?

A. I received a card in the mail from a girlfriend who was having, it sounds kind of strange, but an earthquake party. We couldn’t make it. We were going out of town. So I had the man’s name for months, and I don’t know why, I just decided that I just needed to give him a call. Everybody keeps on asking me, “Why? How did you know? Are you a psychic?” It’s just one of those things that somehow you just get a feeling to do something.

He came in the last week of November, and he came back like a week later and bolted everything in. He also secured the water heater. Later, his guy came out and put this auto gas-valve shut-off in.

*

Q. A lot of people have heard about bolting or strapping down heavy appliances and furniture. How is this done exactly, and does it entail unsightly fastening devices?

A. With all the big, heavy furniture he took an L-bracket and he screwed it to the wall and to the furniture itself. Within the armoires where the televisions were, there is this industrial 3-D Velcro, and it’s incredibly strong. And he secured it on the armoires and attached it to the TVs. And the same with all the artwork. There are special attachments that attach to the wall and also to the art itself. It’s placed inside the pieces so that it’s held even stronger.

You really can’t see anything unless you look for it. I’m sure there are ways, if you really wanted to, to hide it. You can see some of the straps inside the armoire, but if you didn’t point it out I don’t think anybody would really notice it. It’s not something that’s going to aesthetically change how your house looks.

*

Q. What can be done to protect dishes, crystal and ornaments on shelves or side tables?

A. There is a product called Quake Hold. It looks similar to Silly Putty, and it is a way to secure small items like figurines, crystals, collectibles, knickknacks, stuff like that. You adhere it onto your collectible, and then you do a little twisting motion onto a surface like a desk or a mantelpiece or wherever you’re going to put it.

Because I have a child, a 17-month-old, I had my whole house child-proofed, which means I have latches on all of my drawers. And that saved my entire kitchen. The only china that I had break were pieces that were display pieces.

*

Q. Can the Velcro, putty and bolts that you use do damage to woodwork or to the walls?

A. The bolting, yes. It goes through your plaster and your Sheetrock or whatever. But who cares? It’s behind the piece of furniture that you’re protecting. So when you move, you pull it out and you replaster if you want to change it. This Quake Hold says it’s not supposed to cause any damage. But then it does say it may leave an oily residue on some surfaces. But you can clean it with lighter (fluid) or dry-cleaning fluid.

Look, you have a choice of either trying to save the item or save a tiny mark on a piece of furniture that it’s adhered to, so I guess everybody has to make that decision for themselves. You put it underneath the glass, and you’re going to see it, if it’s on a glass shelf, but, ultimately on glass it’s going to come off, so . . .

*

Q. You mentioned the automatic gas shut-off valve. How does that work?

A. It’s a small piece, and there’s a ball bearing, and it’s held up in some way, in a certain position. When the earth shakes at a large magnitude, the ball will drop, and when the ball drops, it runs the length of the valve and turns the valve off automatically.

*

Q. I understand that the Gas Co. does not recommend these shut-off valves, saying they unnecessarily turn off the gas in many cases.

A. The earthquake person told me that outside of the earthquake itself, most homes are damaged by fire because of gas leaks. He said that it’s a good idea to have the gas shut off.

*

Q. What provisions did you lay by, in preparation for an earthquake, and which items did you find particularly helpful?

A. I purchased the largest duffel-bag kit. It’s for five people, three days. It’s like the super deluxe package. It’s got the food and water, batteries and these extended-life flashlights and 12-hour candles and a Swiss army knife and a whistle, and it has things I can’t even pronounce. Truck-pull ropes and hard hats and gloves and tape. This is for when you have major structural damage or if you’ve got doors that are jammed that you can’t lift. There’s rope, and there’s kind of a pulley system you can put together. And of course a first-aid kit and Listerine and things.

When I told my friends that I had purchased this, I’ve never been so harassed in my life. I’ve got to tell you, after it hit everybody wanted to be at my house. I also bought water supply for a month and a kit for my husband’s car and my car. There’s just a certain element of emotional strength that you get when you feel somewhat prepared.

*

Q. How did the earthquake affect your neighbors?

A. My neighbor on this side of me had major damage. He also had a lot more collectibles in his home. He had artwork slip off the walls and crystal and china just go crashing out of his china cabinets. He had crystal lighting fixtures just pop out of the walls. All his TVs crashed, his armoires moved, his fireplace is cracked and lifted. He had a lot of furniture. If he would’ve bolted it down, half the stuff might not have come crashing down. Nobody was hurt, thank God.

I have neighbors who lost TVs and stereos and artwork and furniture because they weren’t secure. Lots of china. A house three blocks away moved an inch or so, I was told, off its foundation.

*

Q. How much did it cost to earthquake-proof your house?

A. I think I spent close to $1,000. I got a lot of harassment from my friends and my family, and I do have the tendency of overindulging at times, but it was definitely worth it. There probably wasn’t much more I needed to do outside of the things that I did and everything I did seemed to work. Since the earthquake, everybody’s gotten prepared. I know a lot of people who have bought the L-brackets and they’re doing stuff themselves.

*

Q. I understand that most renters do not have the right to use fastening devices in their homes without the consent of the landlord. What would you advise them to do to make their homes safer?

A. I would have that put in the terms of my lease. Because we live in an area that’s susceptible to earthquakes, and we’re just seeing the incredible damage that comes, I would put it in the terms that the house needs to be earthquake-proofed as best as it can be. If the lessee comes in and wants it done, he should be allowed to do it and pay for it. Or maybe the cost is shared. The point is that nobody should have the right to tell somebody that they can’t secure their home.