Many Veterans proudly fly or display the American flag on their property year-round. But as the winter approaches, don’t forget to take steps to care for your flag through the months of inclement weather ahead.
Here are some wintertime tips for flag owners:
Take it down and store it. The best way to care for your flag is to take it in and store it during the winter months. Be sure to properly clean your flag before storing it in a dry, breathable container.
Temporarily remove the flag during bad weather. If you plan to continue flying your flag during the winter, you may want to temporarily remove it during periods of high winds, ice, or winter precipitation.
Switch to a polyester flag. Flags made of polyester are more durable and windproof than flags made of nylon.
Care for your hardware. Rust, grime, and debris can shorten the life or your flagpole and flagpole parts. Before the weather turns, ensure your flag hardware is clean and lubricated to minimize winter wear and tear.
If a flag needs to be retired, it should never be thrown in the trash. VSC of Summit County can either refurbish or properly dispose of your old flag by burning it, as recommended by the U.S. Flag Code, using our new Elastec-SmartAsh incinerator, which arrived in September.
While we don’t retire flags during the winter months, flags can be dropped off year-round at the VSC office, located at 1060 E. Waterloo Road in Akron.
