Relying on Your Windows to Stop Hurricane Matthew??

So, you’ve made your decision on whether you’re evacuating for Hurricane Matthew or you’re riding it out.

If you’re evacuating to calmer weather, put up your shutters, pull the main breaker, empty the fridge and shut off the water main control to your home. There’s no sense in coming home to a bigger, smellier mess than necessary.

If you’re riding it out, you have all of your provisions necessary to sustain you and whomever is staying with you. Medicine and prescriptions, fuel, First Aid supplies, tools, enough food for at least a week and some way of keeping it edible with no power. You’ll need some sort of weapon for protection from wild animals like snakes and varmints displaced by the storm and don’t forget to wear your I.D. in a fashion that will allow you to be identified in the event that you don’t fare through the storm as well as you had anticipated.

Whichever you have opted for there are a few things to consider to minimize any damage from hurricane force winds and all that goes with them.

STORM SURGE – There’s not much that the average homeowner can do if the predicted water levels are going to exceed that which sandbagging can hold back. Once the surge tops your dirt facade, the sandbags will only act to keep water in your home after the rest of the water outside, recedes. Don’t waste your time, spirit and energy putting up a 3 foot tall sandbag wall when the surge is promised to hit 5 feet. Save all of your will, intestinal fortitude, strength and strong will for your return. Most survivors state that the initial shock of returning to a catastrophic scene of a destroyed home is overwhelming. Often the depression is debilitating and the almost zombie-like stupor makes site clean-up  dangerous.

WIND DAMAGE – Using your windows as a first line of defense for wind protection isn’t your best choice. Not only do they break from flying debris, but they can leak and cause water damage to walls, floors and in the case of multiple floor housing, the unit below yours. Keeping wind-driven rain from reaching the critical areas of the windows where leaks start can save you (and your downstairs neighbors) a lot of heartache, inconvenience and money. What most folks don’t know is that no matter how new your windows are or what strength rating they carry (if any), the test standards for stopping water leakage don’t go above gale force wind pressures. Once you reach hurricane strength winds (74 mph and above), all bets are off on your windows stopping water leaks, so don’t be surprised if the company that you bought your windows from are less than gracious about paying for any damage that the leaky windows caused.

Leaks aren’t the only problem if there’s flying debris involved. Broken impact windows are expensive to replace. Just remember that after the storm passes, there will be literally thousands of windows that will need replacing and you never know where you will fall in the waiting line. In 2004, homeowners waited not weeks, but rather MONTHS to get their new windows.

These are just a few reasons to make hurricane shutters your 1st line of defense against tropical storm damage. The better your shutters are, the lower your chances of any loss by anything getting to your windows. When it comes to storm protection, shutters make a big difference! Don’t let anyone tell you differently.