If and when hurricane-force winds bear down on the barrier island again, protection from loss of life is the first priority. Second but also crucial is protecting property – homes and businesses – from storm damage.Nothing can guarantee that a monster hurricane will not cause catastrophic damage to local real estate, but smart protective measures can help reduce losses in the event of a major or minor tropical event.Shutters of many kinds and impact-rated windows and doors are the most popular products available to homeowners, but neither option is something that can be installed overnight so the time to get protected for the balance of the 2009 hurricane season is now. Whether to cover windows and doors with shutters or to strengthen the system of windows and doors themselves is a personal decision, according to Ray Reinhard, a licensed civil engineer and vice president of HBS Inc. HBS specializes in impact-rated windows and doors for residential and commercial use, and has been doing business in Vero Beach since 1973.
“The cost of installing a non-impact window with a shutter is about the same, maybe just a little less than the cost of installing an impact window,” he said. “So it’s really just down to what the homeowner prefers. We don’t compete with the shutter companies.”
Orders placed today with HBS for impact windows and doors can be filled and installed in three to eight weeks, longer if high levels of custom millwork are involved.
“You can only count on yourself to install your shutters, so buy something that you can put up yourself, and most people in their 60s, 70s and 80s can’t put them up by themselves,” he said. “You just need to make sure you can do it safely yourself without getting injured.”
Corrugated aluminum or clear lexan hurricane panels, which consist of vertical, overlapping, lightweight panels are the least expensive and easy to store, but they do require some strength, balance and an electric drill to install – and upstairs shutters require an extension ladder.
There are many types of shutters that are designed more for the ease of the homeowner, including rolling shutters, accordion shutters, Bahaman shutters and colonial shutters. Though they’re more expensive, rolling shutters are probably easiest of all as they are self-contained above the window or door and can be wired into an automatic system and engaged with the flip of a switch.
All of these shutters are durable and are manufactured much tougher than the first-generation, pre-Hurricane Andrew aluminum shutters of the 1970s and 1980s, according to Thomas Pease Jr. of Florida Shutters, a Vero Beach manufacturer and dealer of hurricane shutters since 1979.
Pease, his father Thomas Pease Sr. and the Florida Shutters team have designed and installed shutters in Orchid, Windsor, John’s Island, the Moorings and Sea Oaks, to name a few communities.
To meet that code, the impact glass, which is actually two panes of glass with a polyvinyl butylene film in the middle, must be properly installed in an impact window system consisting of a heavy-duty frame and then tightly sealed into the frame with silicone.
The main advantage of impact windows and doors, Reinhard said, is 24-hour protection when the windows are closed and locked, not just against storms, but against break-ins where burglars gain access by breaking the glass.
Another advantage is that impact windows and doors filter out 99.5 percent of the ultraviolet rays from getting into the home, reducing fading of carpets and upholstery.
The biggest complaint he’s heard about impact windows is that they leak.
“Any functioning window, impact or not, is going to leak when you have wind driven rain coming at it at 120 or 140 miles per hour,” he said.
Homeowners without hurricane protection can seek coverage from non-admitted carriers, those not licensed and regulated by the State of Florida, such as Lloyd’s of London. Should the homeowner install hurricane protection later on, they may experience a decrease in the deductible required by these companies.
Gene Waddell of Waddell Insurance in Vero Beach helps clients navigate the morass of rules and regulations regarding wind coverage and hurricane protection. He said all homeowners should obtain a special form issued by the State of Florida My Safe Florida Home Program and hire a Licensed General Contractor or other Qualified Building Official to evaluate their home to see if they qualify for any credits off their homeowners’ insurance wind premium.
Bob McNally, owner of Palm Coast Shutters and Aluminum Products, said he can include completing the required insurance forms for his shutter clients in the price of the job, as he has the advantage of being a licensed general contractor and also a shutter manufacturer and dealer.
“The latest evolution in our business is the practicality and ease of the E-Z Close System,” McNally said. “It’s a self-reliant system and it affords the homeowner a quicker close of the house.”
The E-Z Close Shutter System combines the style of a traditional colonial shutter with the ease of an accordion shutter by mounting the colonial over the accordion to hide the casing of the accordion.
No matter whether it’s shutters or impact windows and doors, Reinhard said his and other products are designed to protect the 90 percent of the residents who do not endure a direct hit by a major storm.***This column first appeared in Vero Beach 32963.
