A practical look at protecting Hawaii homes ahead of hurricane season, with a warning that many older houses can no longer get insured.

• Insurers have stopped writing policies for single-wall homes in Hawaii, and there are still a lot of them in the state.
• Adding hurricane clips — metal brackets tying the roof to the walls and the walls to the foundation — can make those homes insurable again.
• Retrofitting ranges from a basic roof-to-wall tie all the way to anchoring the whole house to the ground so wind can't lift it off.
• Spray-on fire retardant, applied to walls, roofs, and even yard plants, slows how fast flames catch and spread, and is meant as a cheaper alternative to sprinklers.
• Timing is the concern: a busy storm season is forecast, and heavy rains grew vegetation that is now drying out into fire fuel.

Outlook: Expect more homeowners to retrofit as insurers stay strict on single-wall houses and hurricane season peaks.