If you live in Florida, you are vulnerable during hurricane season, and you need to take precautions to protect yourself and your home. The most important precaution you can take to reduce damage to your home and property is to cover or reinforce the areas where the wind can enter. This means covering the large windows and glass doors that Florida homes often have in them. Otherwise, wind and debris will tear holes in your home.
One way to protect your home from damage in wind storms is to install hurricane shutters over all your sizable windows and glass doors. Not only will the shutters protect doors and windows from objects thrown by the wind, they also can decrease the damage caused by sudden pressure changes in the house when a window is broken during the storm. If you are adding hurricane shutters to an existing home, make sure not to wait until hurricane season is upon you to start making changes – you may require permits before you can start to make any changes to your home. Make sure that you look at local building codes to find out what need to do before you start any home improvement projects.
Many people have used just plywood to cover their windows in the past. It’s certainly easy – and cheap – but many homeowners found that their temporary plywood shutters blew off during the dangerous winds that come with a hurricane. Plywood window covers can be a huge waste of money and time, as they don’t provide as much protection and they come off easily. Roll-down shutters or similar type do a much better job of protecting your home, and because they are anchored securely, will not blow off during the storm. Hurricane shutters are tested to make sure they are up to the standards necessary to resist the wind and objects flung at high speed during a hurricane.
Impact resistant windows are another good option for home protection, and are a particularly good choice when you are building a new home. Although these kinds of windows look no different than regular windows and sliding glass doors, they offer considerably more protection from wind-borne debris. And when you add in the protection of Accordion shutters or Bahama shutters, your home is doubly protected against the weather or the substantial pressure changes that happen during tropical storms and hurricanes that can cause major damage.
Protecting your home during a hurricane or tropical storm is critical, especially if you live in a coastal area. Don’t stint on protection if you live a distance from the coast, however. If you live in Plantation, Florida, even though it’s about 25 miles from the coast, they suffered extensive damage from Hurricane Wilma in 2005. Though hurricanes drop in intensity once they make landfall, the winds and wind-borne debris can still damage your home. Install hurricane shutters today, before the next storm is imminent.
