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at what hurricane level do you need to board up the windows?


Trigger Mike

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What is a "panel"?  

 

I saw a safety presentation in which it was asserted that the real risk is flying debris; showed a fence post penetrate a sheet of plywood like a spear through whipped cream.  Can a "panel" do better?

 

Steel storm shutters are used around here, but we see far fewer hurricanes than the folks down on the Southern coast.  

 

No matter what you use, I assume that the appropriate time to put them up is before there is any wind at all.

 

LL

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Steel panels are the best and recommended by insurance companies. Plywood is what a lot of people use and is okay for tropical storm force up to cat 2 hurricane. The main threat is debris. I've see 2x4s driven through concrete block walls from a cat 4. Plywood won't stop that. Problem with losing windows is that the rooof can go soon after due to increase of the air pressure in the house.

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Whatever you do, if you board up and have a gable roof with vents on the gable.......don't forget about those. It's one of the easiest ways for strong winds to get into the attic and take out the roof.

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As far as when, don't wait for the breeze to pick up. I remember, when I was a boy, my dad and me boarding up the house in 30 mph winds. I learnt my lesson.

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The problem isn’t how fast the wind is blowing, the problem is what the wind is blowing. The window might hold up in 40 MPH winds, but if it gets hit by a flying BBQ lid at 40 MPH you’re outta luck. 

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One of the very early computer texts (before PC-ness became important) had a statement that I will paraphrase here, hoping not to be banned.

 

Documentation (Storm protection) is like **X, when it is good it is very good and any is better than none.

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now the storm has shifted west a little so my area it is said to be a category 1.  no one is boarding up.  the down side is now instead of being on the left side we will be on the right side as it passes through, which is where i i was during a tropical storm last year that loosened a shingle.  it is where they say the tornadoes start from.  i put a back pack with dehydrated food, first aid kit and water in my truck, some water in my barn, and some water in my cabin across my back pond.  i have a cement room in the basement for tornadoes and dehydrated food and water in it.  i parked my kawasaki mule sideways to protect the back garage door under the awning.  I will park the truck under the awning by the barn walk in door after we get home from church tomorrow.  the storm will start tomorrow afternoon (though the wind and sprinkling rain is here now) and last thru tuesday.  We will see.  I told the kids they could set up the tent in the basement and we will all sleep down there during the night of the storm.  thankfully no trees right by my house and got things secure best i could.  put the chicken feed inside their coop hoping they will stay in it as last year they stayed under the roof of the pen but not in the coop and walked in an inch of water.  they forced their way back out of the coop last year.  added sand and hay to the floor of their pen and coop to help things for them.  have placed some plywood along the sides the rain is supposed to come from.  I'm amazed at how generators suddenly can not be found and how many people keep lamenting they don't have one.  thankfully i bought one 3 years ago.  other than boarding up I've done everything i can think of.  i have a weather radio and solar powered flashlight and candles and gas stove.  If God delivers we will be fine.  if not, then nothing we do will work anyway.

 

 

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Having been through hurticanes since 1960,  winds of a Cat 1 (74-95 mph) make me board up the windows.

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Loophole, thank you for that vid, that was instructive!

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These are what I put on my house. Much quicker to put up when a storm approaced than plywood.

 

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that is a very good idea.   My local Lowes does not have that stuff but their web site does so i can get it shipped there.  i miss the ones we had in Germany.  Metal blinds that you could open and close like regular blinds from the inside though the blinds were outside.  Heavy metal and you could leave them open enough to see out or close completely.  

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